“THE SCOREBOARD”
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INDIANA BOYS BASKETBALL TUESDAY
ADAMS CENTRAL 79 SOUTHWOOD 71
ANDERSON 54 INDIANAPOLIS SHORTRIDGE 38
AVON 56 WARREN CENTRAL 48
BEDFORD NORTH LAWRENCE 66 MARTINSVILLE 46
BELIEVE CIRCLE CITY 66 LEGACY CHRISTIAN 55
BELLMONT 69 SOUTH ADAMS 50
BLOOMFIELD 66 NORTH CENTRAL (FARMERSBURG) 42
BLOOMINGTON NORTH 55 TERRE HAUTE SOUTH 44
BORDEN 64 CRAWFORD COUNTY 49
BREBEUF JESUIT 76 HERITAGE CHRISTIAN 49
CANNELTON 68 CLOVERPORT (KY.) 27
CASTLE 57 VINCENNES LINCOLN 53
CENTERVILLE 78 UNION CITY 33
CHESTERTON 52 LOWELL 41
CONCORD 46 CENTRAL NOBLE 36
CONNERSVILLE CHRISTIAN 65 UNION COUNTY 51
COVENANT CHRISTIAN 85 KIPP INDY LEGACY 67
DANVILLE 76 MOORESVILLE 71 OT
DEKALB 58 FORT WAYNE CONCORDIA 42
DELPHI 45 WINAMAC 38
DELTA 67 RUSHVILLE 45
EASTBROOK 54 WABASH 27
EASTERN (GREENTOWN) 73 CLINTON PRAIRIE 29
EASTERN (PEKIN) 47 ROCK CREEK ACADEMY 45
EASTERN HANCOCK 67 BLUE RIVER VALLEY 40
EASTSIDE 68 WOODLAN 66 3OT
ELKHART CHRISTIAN 49 WEST NOBLE 48
EVANSVILLE MATER DEI 61 MOUNT VERNON (POSEY) 53
FAIRFIELD 64 BREMEN 54
FOREST PARK 47 BOONVILLE 40
FORT WAYNE CANTERBURY 52 FORT WAYNE NORTHROP 51
FORT WAYNE LUERS 82 HUNTINGTON NORTH 77 OT
FORT WAYNE NORTH 71 HERITAGE 51
FOUNTAIN CENTRAL 55 INDIANA DEAF 15
FRANKLIN COUNTY 41 TRI 39
FRANKTON 78 DALEVILLE 41
FRONTIER 75 FAITH CHRISTIAN 52
GARRETT 47 CHURUBUSCO 39
GARY 21ST CENTURY 68 EAST CHICAGO CENTRAL 33
GREENCASTLE 72 INDIAN CREEK 50
HAMMOND NOLL 62 HIGHLAND 53
HOMESTEAD 48 EAST NOBLE 38
INDIANAPOLIS ATTUCKS 81 INDIANAPOLIS TINDLEY 62
INDIANAPOLIS RONCALLI 69 INDIANAPOLIS SCECINA 52
INDIANAPOLIS ROOTED 64 NORTHPOINT HOMESCHOOL 53
JIMTOWN 70 BETHANY CHRISTIAN 45
KNIGHTSTOWN 71 SOUTHWESTERN (SHELBYVILLE) 62
KOKOMO 79 INDIANAPOLIS METROPOLITAN 59
KOUTS 41 HANOVER CENTRAL 32
LAVILLE 51 TRINITY ACADEMY 50
LAFAYETTE JEFF 72 INDIANAPOLIS WASHINGTON 57
LAKE CENTRAL 65 HAMMOND CENTRAL 36
LANESVILLE 57 MEDORA 49
LEWIS CASS 43 CASTON 35
LINTON 89 CLAY CITY 33
MACONAQUAH 65 NORTHFIELD 50
MARQUETTE CATHOLIC 80 ILLIANA CHRISTIAN 60
MCCUTCHEON 50 BENTON CENTRAL 37
MOORESVILLE CHRISTIAN 55 TABERNACLE CHRISTIAN 29
MUNCIE BURRIS 59 SOUTHERN WELLS 37
NEW PRAIRIE 55 WHEELER 53
NORTH HARRISON 68 CLARKSVILLE 42
NORTH JUDSON 64 CULVER 60 2OT
NORTH MIAMI 67 LAKELAND CHRISTIAN 36
NORTH MONTGOMERY 56 CLINTON CENTRAL 39
NORTH NEWTON 55 SOUTH NEWTON 47
NORTH PUTNAM 52 OWEN VALLEY 37
NORTHEAST DUBOIS 53 EVANSVILLE CENTRAL 48
NORTHRIDGE 69 LAKELAND 41
NORTHVIEW 67 NORTH VERMILLION 33
OAK HILL 71 TIPTON 48
ORLEANS 45 WEST WASHINGTON 43
PAOLI 40 CHRISTIAN ACADEMY 28
PENDLETON HEIGHTS 55 NEW CASTLE 34
PERRY CENTRAL 51 MITCHELL 48
PERRY MERIDIAN 55 COLUMBUS NORTH 39
PIKE 80 LAWRENCE CENTRAL 50
PLAINFIELD 84 SOUTHPORT 52
PLYMOUTH 63 KNOX 43
PRAIRIE HEIGHTS 51 LAKEWOOD PARK 50
PRINCETON 94 TECUMSEH 44
PROVIDENCE 76 MADISON 37
RANDOLPH SOUTHERN 63 HAGERSTOWN 58
RYLE (KY.) 42 EAST CENTRAL 27
SCOTTSBURG 56 TRINITY LUTHERAN 51
SEEGER 62 TRI-COUNTY 50
SEYMOUR 48 GREENSBURG 46
SHENANDOAH 73 UNION (MODOC) 41
SHERIDAN 72 WESTERN BOONE 44
SOUTH BEND ADAMS 76 MISHAWAKA 66
SOUTH BEND RILEY 66 CULVER ACADEMY 62
SOUTH BEND ST. JOSEPH 80 GOSHEN 75 OT
SOUTH CENTRAL (UNION MILLS) 55 ARGOS 39
SOUTH DECATUR 79 OLDENBURG ACADEMY 41
SOUTH KNOX 49 VINCENNES RIVET 42
SOUTH PUTNAM 51 SOUTHMONT 47
SOUTHRIDGE 59 EVANSVILLE CHRISTIAN 49
ST. THOMAS MORE 67 ANDREWS ACADEMY (MICH.) 49
TERRE HAUTE NORTH 63 PARK TUDOR 39
TRI-WEST 71 SPEEDWAY 50
TRITON CENTRAL 45 MONROVIA 34
TRITON 72 ROCHESTER 39
WALDRON 64 MILAN 62 OT
WAPAHANI 71 BETHESDA CHRISTIAN 50
WASHINGTON TWP. 84 OREGON-DAVIS 55
WASHINGTON 70 PIKE CENTRAL 33
WEST CENTRAL 65 DEMOTTE CHRISTIAN 53
WEST VIGO 58 CLOVERDALE 55
WESTFIELD 71 UNIVERSITY 49
WESTVIEW 67 WAWASEE 46
WHITE RIVER VALLEY 53 LIGHTHOUSE CHRISTIAN 36
WHITING 44 HAMMOND SCIENCE & TECH 40
WOOD MEMORIAL 68 EVANSVILLE DAY 39
YORKTOWN 70 MUNCIE CENTRAL 53
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INDIANA BOYS BASKETBALL WEDNESDAY SCHEDULE
ALL TIMES EASTERN
ANDERSON PREP AT ELWOOD 7:30 PM
BROWNSTOWN CENTRAL AT JENNINGS COUNTY 7:30 PM
CONNERSVILLE AT LAWRENCEBURG 7:30 PM
DEMOTTE CHRISTIAN AT NORTH WHITE 7:30 PM
FORT WAYNE DWENGER AT LEO 7:30 PM
FORT WAYNE LUERS AT BELLMONT 7:30 PM
GRIFFITH AT HOBART 8:00 PM
INDIANAPOLIS LUTHERAN AT INDIANAPOLIS CHATARD 7:30 PM
IRVINGTON PREP AT GREENWOOD CHRISTIAN 7:30 PM
RIVER FOREST AT HAMMOND CENTRAL 8:00 PM
ROCK CREEK ACADEMY AT DOSS (KY.) 7:30 PM
SOUTH DEARBORN AT HARRISON (OHIO) 7:30 PM
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INDIANA GIRLS BASKETBALL SCOREBOARD
SATURDAY SEMI-STATE MATCH-UPS
CLASS 4A
LAPORTE
10 AM CT | G1: NORTHRIDGE (20-7) VS. MCCUTCHEON (22-5)
12 PM CT | G2: CROWN POINT (23-4) VS. NORWELL (23-4)
8 PM CT | CHAMPIONSHIP: G1 WINNER VS. G2 WINNER
JASPER
10 AM ET | G1: FLOYD CENTRAL (23-3) VS. LAWRENCE CENTRAL (21-4)
12 PM ET | G2: CENTER GROVE (26-0) VS. EVANSVILLE REITZ (21-2)
8 PM ET | CHAMPIONSHIP: G1 WINNER VS. G2 WINNER
CLASS 3A
LOGANSPORT
10 AM ET | G1: BELLMONT (22-3) VS. CULVER ACADEMIES (22-5)
12 PM ET | G2: CONNERSVILLE (20-7) VS. FAIRFIELD (20-6)
8 PM ET | CHAMPIONSHIP: G1 WINNER VS. G2 WINNER
SOUTHPORT
10 AM ET | G1: WASHINGTON (22-4) VS. JENNINGS COUNTY (19-6)
12 PM ET | G2: NORTHVIEW (20-6) VS. RONCALLI (25-3)
8 PM ET | CHAMPIONSHIP: G1 WINNER VS. G2 WINNER
CLASS 2A
FRANKFORT
10 AM ET | G1: LAPEL (22-4) VS. BREMEN (23-2)
12 PM ET | G2: WHITKO (25-1) VS. OAK HILL (22-3)
8 PM ET | CHAMPIONSHIP: G1 WINNER VS. G2 WINNER
GREENCASTLE
10 AM ET | G1: HERITAGE CHRISTIAN (19-8) VS. PARKE HERITAGE (19-7)
12 PM ET | G2: EASTERN (PEKIN) (18-7) VS. NORTH KNOX (19-6)
8 PM ET | CHAMPIONSHIP: G1 WINNER VS. G2 WINNER
CLASS 1A
HUNTINGTON NORTH | TICKETS
10 AM ET | G1: NORTH MIAMI (18-8) VS. ELKHART CHRISTIAN (22-4)
12 PM ET | G2: FREMONT (26-2) VS. MONROE CENTRAL (21-2)
8 PM ET | CHAMPIONSHIP: G1 WINNER VS. G2 WINNER
CHARLESTOWN
10 AM ET | G1: EVANSVILLE CHRISTIAN (19-6) VS. BORDEN (22-4)
12 PM ET | G2: GREENWOOD CHRISTIAN (16-10) VS. TINDLEY (17-5)
8 PM ET | CHAMPIONSHIP: G1 WINNER VS. G2 WINNER
========================================================
INDIANA WRESTLING
STATE FINALS
FRIDAY, FEB. 20, 2026
SESSION 1
1:30 PM ET – GATES OPEN
2:30 PM ET – PARADE OF CHAMPIONS
2:45 PM ET – PRESENTATION OF COLORS AND NATIONAL ANTHEM
3 PM ET – FIRST ROUND WEIGHT CLASSES 150 – 285
6 PM ET – FIRST ROUND WEIGHT CLASSES 106 – 144
SATURDAY, FEB. 21, 2026
SESSION 2
8 AM ET – GATES OPEN
9 AM ET – QUARTERFINALS BEGIN WITH SEMIFINALS TO FOLLOW
FIELDHOUSE CLEARED OF ALL SPECTATORS FOLLOWING SEMIFINALS
SESSION 3
3:30 PM ET – GATES OPEN
4:30 PM ET – CONSOLATION MATCHES
7 PM ET – INTRODUCTIONS OF STATE CHAMPIONSHIP PARTICIPANTS
APPROX. 7:24 PM ET – PRESENTATION OF COLORS AND NATIONAL ANTHEM
7:30 PM ET – STATE CHAMPIONSHIP MATCHES BEGIN
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INDIANA STATE WRESTLING ASSOCIATION: https://www.iswa.com/
INDIANA MAT: https://indianamat.com/
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MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL SCORES
#1 MICHIGAN 91 #7 PURDUE 80
#12 FLORIDA 76 SOUTH CAROLINA 62
NORTH CAROLINA STATE 82 #16 NORTH CAROLINA 58
#20 TO MIAMI OHIO 86 UMASS 77
SMU 95 #21 LOUISVILLE 85
RHODE ISLAND 81 #18 ST. LOUIS 76
OHIO STATE 86 #24 WISCONSIN 69
#15 MICHIGAN STATE 82 UCLA 59
IOWA 57 #9 NEBRASKA 52
ARIZONA STATE 72#13 TEXAS TECH 67
FLORIDA STATE 80 BOSTON COLLEGE 72
NORTHERN ILLINOIS 72 BUFFALO 70
EASTERN MICHIGAN 66 CENTRAL MICHIGAN 54
VILLANOVA 92 XAVIER 89 OT
KENT STATE 78 BOWLING GREEN 71
OHIO 69 BALL STATE 57
AKRON 90 WESTERN MICHIGAN 73
CENTRAL FLORIDA 82 TCU 71
MIAMI FLORIDA 67 VIRGINIA TECH 66
VCU 89 GEORGE WASHINGTON 75
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI STATE 56 TENNESSEE MARTIN 53 OT
TEXAS 88 LSU 85
WYOMING 92 FRESNO STATE 82
GEORGIA 86 KENTUCKY 78
KANSAS STATE 90 BAYLOR 74
NEW MEXICO 98 AIR FORCE 61
GRAND CANYON 73 SAN DIEGO STATE 63
SAN JOSE STATE 87 NEVADA 71
MINNESOTA 61 OREGON 44
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WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL SCORES
#17 OLE MISS 94 #21 TENNESSEE 81
EAST CAROLINA 74 FLORIDA ATLANTIC 61
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI STATE 62 TENNESSEE MARTIN 52
TEMPLE 58 CHARLOTTE 54
ILLINOIS 76 RUTGERS 56
NORTH TEXAS 84 ALABAMA BIRMINGHAM 54
COLORADO 78 ARIZONA 70
RICE 79 S. FLORIDA 72
TULANE 63 MEMPHIS 58
CINCINNATI 76 BYU 67
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MEN’S COLLEGE HOCKEY SCORES
NO GAMES SCHEDULED
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MEN’S COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL SCORES
NO GAMES SCHEDULED
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COLLEGE WRESTLING SCORES
NO MATCH’S SCHEDULED
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DIVISION 1 COLLEGE SOFTBALL SCORES
FLORIDA 7 N. FLORIDA 3
FLORIDA STATE 8 LOUISIANA 0
DUKE 13 ELON 1
ARIZONA 9 NEVADA 7
LSU 10 S. ALABAMA 2
CALIFORNIA BAPTIST 9 HAWAII 0
NORTH CAROLINA STATE 10 QUEENS 0
FLORIDA GULF COAST 3 FLORIDA ATLANTIC 2
LOUISVILLE 10 BELLARMINE 2
LOUISIANA TECH 12 NORTHWESTERN STATE 3
TEXAS SAN ANTONIO 9 HOUSTON CHRISTIAN 1
LAMAR 9 SAM HOUSTON 4
MCNEESE 8 SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI 6
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DIVISION 1 COLLEGE BASEBALL SCORES
#15 LOUISVILLE 23 XAVIER 11
MOREHEAD STATE 8 #18 KENTUCKY 6
COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON 4 #6 COASTAL CAROLINA 3
#1 UCLA 13 TULANE 5
#13 TENNESSEE 10 UNC ASHEVILLE 3
#10 NORTH CAROLINA 10 RICHMOND 0
#19 CLEMSON 11 CHARLOTTE 1
#4 MISSISSIPPI STATE 13 TROY 7
#22 WAKE FOREST 7 HIGH POINT 6
#23 MIAMI 8 CENTRAL FLORIDA 7
#16 FLORIDA STATE 13 JACKSONVILLE 3
#5 GEORGIA TECH 25 GEORGIA SOUTHERN 1
#3 TEXAS 14 LAMAR 4
#12 FLORIDA 12 STETSON 2
#20 SOUTHERN MISS 3 SE. LOUISIANA 1
#24 TEXAS A&M 8 TEXAS A&M CORPUS CHRISTI 3
CINCINNATI 8 #9 AUBURN 0
TEXAS ARLINGTON 11 #7 TCU 8
BUTLER 10 ILLINOIS 8
INDIANA 15 BRADLEY 3
MARYLAND 16 GEORGETOWN 3
IOWA 34 WISCONSIN PLATTEVILLE 5
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DIVISION 1 MEN’S LAX SCORES
BUCKNELL 16 IONA 8
MOUNT ST. MARY’S 13 QUEENS 10
ST. BONAVENTURE 14 ROBERT MORRIS 11
SIENA 14 BINGHAMTON 5
MERCYHURST 10 CANISIUS 8
ST. JOHN’S 20 QUINNIPIAC 8
MONMOUTH 15 WAGNER 7
NOTRE DAME 29 BELLARMINE 10
PENNSYLVANIA 15 ALBANY 10
NAVY 19 VMI 12
HARVARD 17 COLGATE 8
YALE 15 MARIST 9
DREXEL 9 LAFAYETTE 8
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DIVISION 1 WOMEN’S LAX SCORES
VERMONT 8 IONA 5
FLORIDA 17 LOYOLA MARYLAND 13
CORNELL 20 UC DAVIS 4
CLEMSON 24 QUEENS 5
VIRGINIA TECH 11 VCU 4
VILLANOVA 13 ST. JOSEPH’S 9
YALE 15 QUINNIPIAC 9
LEMOYNE 13 WOFFORD 9
BOSTON 11 MARIST 8
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NBA SCORES
NO GAMES SCHEDULED
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NBA G-LEAGUE SCORES
NO GAMES SCHEDULED
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NHL SCORES
NO GAMES SCHEDULED (OLYMPIC BREAK)
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WOMEN’S PRO VOLLEYBALL SCORES
NO GAMES SCHEDULED
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NATIONAL SPORTS NEWS RELEASES
NBA
DOUG MOE, THE RUMPLED, IRREVERENT COACH OF THE HIGH-SCORING DENVER NUGGETS, DIES AT 87
DENVER (AP) — Doug Moe, an ABA original who gained fame over a rumpled, irreverent and sometimes R-rated decade as coach of the Denver Nuggets in the 1980s, died Tuesday. He was 87.
Moe’s son, David, notified several of the coach’s friends that his father had died after a long bout with cancer, Ron Zappolo, a longtime Denver TV personality and good friend of Moe’s, told The Associated Press.
The Nuggets, in a social media post, called Moe “a one-of-a-kind leader and person who spearheaded one of the most successful and exciting decades in Nuggets history.”
Moe went 628-529 over 15 seasons as a head coach, including stints with the San Antonio Spurs and Philadelphia 76ers. He never won a title — his most memorable run coming in 1985 when his best Denver team fell to the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference finals. He was the NBA Coach of the Year in 1988.
More than for wins and losses, Moe will be remembered for his motion offense and for the equally entertaining shows he put on while prowling the bench during his coaching days.
His Denver teams led the league in scoring over five straight seasons in the early ‘80s, and he rarely ran a set play.
He called the people he liked the most “stiffs,” (or worse) and used more colorful language to drive points home to some of his favorite foils — Kiki VanDeWeghe, Danny Schayes and Bill Hanzlik stood out.
The coach stalked the sidelines in one of his well-worn sports coats, usually without a tie (he had a small stash of “emergency suits” in his closet for bigger events), his hair a mess and his overtaxed voice barely at a croak by the end of most games.
The Nuggets bench, along with the 10 rows behind it, was no place for children, but within hours, Moe would be at the bar or coffee shop hanging with many of those same players he’d excoriated, often himself wondering where that foul-mouthed man on the sideline had come from.
“Sometimes I think I have a Jekyll-and-Hyde personality. I clown around a lot before and after a game, but once a game starts, my emotions just take over,” Moe said in a 1983 interview with The New York Times.
Years before John Elway arrived, Moe was Denver’s biggest sports personality. Zappolo, the sportscaster, said there was a sweet teddy bear behind the game-day bluster.
“I don’t know if there’s ever been a more important sports figure in Denver, not only because of how successful he was, but how colorful he was and how kind he was,” Zappolo said. “There are a lot of people walking around today who feel like they were Doug’s best friend.”
A legend in Brooklyn and North Carolina before a pro career in the ABA
Douglas Edwin Moe was born Sept. 21, 1938, in Brooklyn, New York. As a teen he became well-known in New York basketball circles, where he would sometimes head to gyms using fake names to play on teams he wouldn’t otherwise be eligible for.
He paired with good friend Larry Brown at North Carolina, where as a 6-foot-5 small forward he twice earned All-America honors. But Moe’s college career was terminated early because of a point-shaving scandal for which he received $75 to fly to a meeting; he refused to throw games.
After a few years in Europe, Moe again became a package deal with Brown, as they winded their way through the new and fledgling ABA. Moe was a three-time All-Star over a five-year career that ended early because of his perpetually ailing knees.
His playing days done, he teamed again with Brown, working as his assistant with the Carolina Cougars, and then with the Nuggets toward the end of the franchise’s ABA days.
Moe insisted he never wanted a head coaching job — didn’t want to work that hard — but Brown coaxed him into taking a job in San Antonio. With the help of George Gervin, Moe won the division twice and made one conference final in four seasons with the Spurs.
Moe’s next stop was Denver, where he took over after another of his Carolina buddies, Donnie Walsh, got fired in 1980. The ensuing 10 seasons marked a golden era for the Nuggets, who played in rainbow uniforms and rewrote record books but never climbed out from the shadows of the Lakers and Celtics dynasties of the era.
Moe coached the top-scoring duo in NBA history and in its highest-scoring game
Alex English and VanDeWeghe finished 1-2 in scoring in the 1982-83 season, a feat no teammates have accomplished since. The Nuggets lost a 186-184 game to the Pistons in 1983 that remains the highest-scoring game in NBA history. Moe won 432 games with the Nuggets, and the franchise retired that number, with Moe’s name attached.
It took more than 30 years after Moe retired and moved back to San Antonio for the Nuggets to break through and become NBA champions.
Oddly enough, one of Moe’s most colorful coaching coups came at the expense of the Nuggets on the last day of the 1977-78 season when he was with the Spurs. In an early game, Denver, coached by Brown at the time, fed David Thompson on the way to a 73-point outburst against Detroit that briefly put him ahead of Gervin in a neck-and-neck battle for the scoring title.
So, that night, Moe told the Spurs to get out of “Ice’s” way. Gervin scored 63 against the Jazz to win the title by .07.
Moe’s coaching peak, however, came with the Nuggets, where his teams got considerably better when Fat Lever and Calvin Natt came via a trade in 1984. But both were injured during that 1985 conference final against the Lakers. The Nuggets dropped the last three games in a 4-1 series loss, and Moe never got closer.
Though the focus of the Nuggets was offense, Moe spent ample time preaching defense — insisting it, not the team’s scoring ability, would make the difference between winning and losing.
Once, incensed at the lack of effort during a blowout loss at Portland, he commanded his team to stop trying on defense and to let the Blazers make layups at will over the final minutes to set the franchise scoring record for a single game. That earned him a fine and suspension, only weeks after he was fined for throwing water on an official.
For the most part, though, Moe made a career out of not taking himself too seriously — a wryly wrinkled counterbalance to the slicked-down Pat Riley and the Laker Showtime teams that dominated the NBA’s Western Conference over the decade.
Moe even punctuated one of his lowest moments — his firing by the Nuggets in 1990 — by wearing a Hawaiian shirt and popping open champagne at the news conference while his wife, whom he called “Big Jane,” looked on. A day to celebrate, he insisted, because he would now be getting paid to do nothing.
Moe finished his head coaching career with an unsuccessful stint in Philadelphia that lasted less than a season before returning to Denver in supporting roles, including a return to the bench as George Karl’s assistant.
“Because I’m stupid, or something like that,” Moe said when asked to explain why he was coaching again.
Far from it.
And despite his insistence that he did little more than throw a ball out there, there was a well-honed, much-practiced method behind what looked like the madness of his always-in-overdrive passing game.
“There will never be another sports figure like Doug Moe,” Zappolo said. “He really was one of a kind.”
DETROIT’S STUNNING SURGE: PISTONS ENTER POST-ALL-STAR PLAY WITH THE NBA’S BEST RECORD
The Detroit Pistons had the worst record in franchise history at the All-Star break four years ago. And two years ago, their record at the break was even worse.
Look at them now.
When the NBA starts post-All-Star play on Thursday, the Pistons — a franchise that last won a playoff series in 2008 — will start the night with the best record in the league, a smidge ahead of the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder. Detroit is 40-13, Oklahoma City 42-14.
The Thunder were expected to be here. The Pistons probably weren’t. How Detroit finishes, and if it can hold on to that top spot, is one of the intriguing storylines for the stretch run of the NBA season — with two-thirds of the year complete and teams now set to sprint toward the playoffs or sprint toward the bottom in search of better lottery odds.
“We’re just going to run our race,” Pistons All-Star guard Cade Cunningham said. “We like where we’re at, and we’re going to continue to try to finish our season strong.”
There’s a lot to like about the Pistons going into the home stretch.
They haven’t been prone to any sort of real slide yet; they’re 11-2 after a loss and are one of only three teams (Oklahoma City and San Antonio are the others) yet to have a losing streak of more than two games. They don’t get blown out; they have a league-low three losses by 10 points or more. They’re a league-best 17-6 against teams who were at .500 or better.
Playoff basketball awaits in Detroit, and for the first time since 2008 there should be a Game 1 of a postseason series at home for the Pistons. Plenty of other teams — the Thunder, Boston, New York, San Antonio, Denver, Houston, Cleveland — are probably safe to call playoff locks at this point as well.
The next two months will tell the tale of which teams find their way either into Round 1 or will be trying to land the No. 1 draft pick instead.
“It’s been hard. It’s been a long journey so far, but just going to work every day, finding ways to connect with my teammates, connect with the city the best I can, and bring wins to the city,” Cunningham said. “That’s what the city respects and loves is people that go out there and compete every day. There were times they didn’t like how we played. We figured it out, and now we have something going, something building. Just have to keep going now.”
The realistic contenders
The top five teams in the NBA record-wise right now: Detroit, Oklahoma City, San Antonio, Boston, Denver and New York (the Nuggets and Knicks are tied).
Expect one of those clubs as the champion in June.
Granted, in the early days the league had far fewer teams than it does now. But there have been only four instances of the eventual NBA Finals winner not being among the league’s top-five teams record-wise at the All-Star break.
Milwaukee was seventh at the break in the coronavirus-affected 2020-21 season. Detroit was seventh at the break in 2003-04, Houston was ninth at the break in 1994-95 and Washington was eighth in 1977-78.
The scoring race
It looks like a two-person race for the scoring title: the Los Angeles Lakers’ Luka Doncic and Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Doncic is averaging 32.8 points, Gilgeous-Alexander — the reigning champion — is averaging 31.8.
Doncic won the scoring race in 2023-24; Gilgeous-Alexander could become the 14th player in NBA history to win the title in consecutive seasons.
Award possibilities
Boston’s Jayson Tatum and Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton — All-NBA picks last season — were going to be out of the awards mix this season because of their Achilles tendon tears suffered in last season’s playoffs, so it was clear from the outset of this season that the group of award winners this spring would be different.
Turns out, it’s going to be very different.
Because of the 65-game rule for eligibility for most player awards, the Lakers’ LeBron James is going to see his 21-year streak of making the All-NBA team end. He’s one of five All-NBA picks from last season who are assured of not making the team this year, joining Tatum, Haliburton, Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo and Oklahoma City’s Jalen Williams.
On the brink of joining that list: Denver’s Nikola Jokic and Golden State’s Stephen Curry, who basically can miss one more game the rest of the way to preserve their award eligibility.
Cleveland’s Evan Mobley — second-team All-NBA last season — has been inactive 13 times this year, so he doesn’t have a lot of missed-time wiggle room down the stretch of the season. The Lakers’ Austin Reaves, Washington’s Anthony Davis and Memphis’ Ja Morant are all well past the cutoff for eligibility as well.
Others who are close to missing too much time for an All-NBA shot: Doncic, San Antonio’s Victor Wembanyama, the Los Angeles Clippers’ Kawhi Leonard, Utah’s Lauri Markkanen and Phoenix’s Devin Booker.
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MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
TOP 25 ROUNDUP: IN FIRST GAME AS NO. 1, MICHIGAN ROLLS OVER NO. 7 PURDUE
Elliot Cadeau led a balanced attack with 17 points and seven assists as newly crowned No. 1 Michigan downed No. 7 Purdue 91-80 on Tuesday in West Lafayette, Ind.
Playing for the first time as the nation’s top-ranked team since 2013, the Wolverines (25-1, 15-1 Big Ten) led by double digits for the majority of the game.
Yaxel Lendeborg had 13 points and seven assists. L.J. Cason and Trey McKenney also had 13 points, while Morez Johnson Jr. supplied 12 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. Aday Mara added a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds in Michigan’s 11th straight win.
Trey Kaufman-Renn led the Boilermakers (21-5, 11-4) with 27 points and 12 rebounds. Braden Smith had 20 points and doled out six assists while Fletcher Loyer added 11 points.
Iowa 57, No. 9 Nebraska 52
Bennett Stirtz scored a game-high 25 points and the Hawkeyes gave their NCAA Tournament hopes a big boost with an upset of the Cornhuskers in Iowa City.
Cooper Koch added 10 for Iowa (19-7, 9-6 Big Ten), which overcame 17-of-51 (33.3%) shooting from the field to post its first win over a ranked team since February 2024.
Pryce Sandfort scored 13 points for the Cornhuskers (22-4, 11-4) in his return to Iowa, where he played the first two seasons of his career. Nebraska lost for the fourth time in six games.
No. 12 Florida 76, South Carolina 62
Alex Condon produced 20 points and 10 rebounds while Rueben Chinyelu added 15 points and 17 rebounds as the Gators stayed atop the Southeastern Conference with the win over the Gamecocks in Gainesville, Fla.
Florida (20-6, 11-2 SEC) never trailed after the opening two minutes to claim its sixth win in a row. Thomas Haugh added 10 points and Micah Handlogten grabbed nine rebounds as the Gators won the rebound battle 47-30 and scored 28 points in the paint.
Despite Meechie Johnson’s 22 points and three steals, South Carolina (11-15, 2-11) dropped its seventh straight game. Elijah Strong added 10 points as the Gamecocks went 4 of 19 from 3-point range.
No. 15 Michigan State 82, UCLA 59
Jeremy Fears Jr. recorded 16 points and 10 assists as Coen Carr also scored 16 points to help the Spartans roll to a victory over the Bruins in Big Ten play in East Lansing, Mich.
Carson Cooper had 12 points and seven rebounds and Jordan Scott had 11 points for the Spartans (21-5, 11-4 Big Ten). Jaxon Kohler contributed nine points and 10 rebounds for Michigan State, which lost three of its previous four games.
Tyler Bilodeau scored 22 points and Skyy Clark added 12 off the bench for the Bruins (17-9, 9-6). UCLA lost by an average of 26.5 points on a two-game trip to play Michigan and Michigan State.
NC State 82, No. 16 North Carolina 58
Quadir Copeland scored 20 points to power the Wolfpack to a resounding upset win over the Tar Heels in Raleigh, N.C.
Copeland also collected six rebounds, seven assists and four steals for the Wolfpack (19-8, 10-4 ACC). Matt Able scored 19 points on 5-of-7 shooting from behind the arc, Darrion Williams added 13 points, Paul McNeil scored 10 and former Tar Heels forward Ven-Allen Lubin tallied 12 points and six rebounds against his old team. The 250th meeting between the Wolfpack and the Tar Heels (20-6, 8-5) marked the first victory in the series for first-year NC State coach Will Wade.
Playing without leading scorers and rebounders Caleb Wilson (hand) and Henri Veesaar (lower body), North Carolina was paced by 13 points and 10 boards from Zayden High before he fouled out with under six minutes to play. Jarin Stevenson chipped in 13 points and nine rebounds.
Rhode Island 81, No. 18 Saint Louis 76
Jonah Hinton scored a career-high 29 points and made 9 of 15 3-point attempts to lead the Rams to an upset of the Billikens in an Atlantic 10 showdown in Kingston, R.I.
Myles Corey tallied 15 points and made 11 of 11 free-throw attempts for Rhode Island (15-11, 6-7 A-10), which defeated an Associated Press Top 25 team for the first time since Nov. 23, 2017, against Seton Hall. Tyler Cochran added 11 points for Rhode Island, which snapped the Billikens’ 18-game winning streak.
Robbie Avila led Saint Louis (24-2, 12-1) with 21 points. Dion Brown contributed 19 points and Amari McCottry chipped in 10 points, five rebounds and five assists for the Billikens, who committed 18 turnovers that led to 28 Rhode Island points.
SMU 95, No. 21 Louisville 85
Jaron Pierre Jr. scored 25 points and grabbed seven rebounds as the Mustangs outlasted the Cardinals in Dallas, Texas.
The Atlantic Coast Conference’s top two scoring offenses put up a fast-paced showcase that featured 16 ties and 17 lead changes. Pierre scored 13 of his points in the second half. SMU’s Boopie Miller finished with 23 points and nine assists for the Mustangs (18-8, 7-6 ACC).
The Cardinals (19-7, 8-5) gave up 90-plus points for the first time this season, and their five-game winning streak ended. Mikel Brown Jr. led with 29 points as he hit on 11 of 18 shots but committed a season-high seven turnovers. Five of Brown’s turnovers came in the second half, when Louisville committed 12 of its season-high 17
No. 22 Miami (Ohio) 86, Massachusetts 77
Peter Suder tossed in a game-high 23 points and the RedHawks remained undefeated by beating the Minutemen in a Mid-American Conference matchup in Amherst, Mass.
Luke Skaljac added 16 points for Miami (26-0, 13-0 MAC), which is the only undefeated team in Division I. Miami made 26 of its 52 field goal attempts; the RedHawks have shot 50.0% or better from the field in 20 of their 26 games.
Isaiah Placide scored a career-high 19 points for UMass (15-12, 6-8 MAC). Placide made 5 of 7 3-point attempts.
Ohio State 86, No. 24 Wisconsin 69
Bruce Thornton scored 24 of his 27 points in the second half and the Buckeyes got a much-needed signature win against the Badgers in Columbus, Ohio.
Devin Royal posted a season-high 25 points and Amare Bynum added 13 for the Buckeyes (17-9, 9-6 Big Ten), who led by 12 at halftime and were not threatened over the final 20 minutes. Ohio State is on the bubble for the NCAA Tournament and was 0-6 against ranked opponents and 0-8 vs. Quad 1 teams but trailed the Badgers for just 44 seconds.
Braeden Carrington tried to keep the Badgers (18-8, 10-5) close by hitting five 3-point attempts in the second half and finishing with a team-high 20 points. Nick Boyd and John Blackwell chipped in with 14 points apiece.
5-STAR G DYLAN MINGO COMMITS TO NORTH CAROLINA
Five-star guard Dylan Mingo announced his commitment to North Carolina’s 2026 recruiting class Tuesday on ESPN’s “First Take.”
The 6-foot-5 Mingo, from Long Island’s Lutheran High School, is No. 5 overall in the 247Sports composite rankings.
Mingo chose head coach Hubert Davis and the Tar Heels over Baylor and Penn State, where his older brother, Kayden Mingo, is a freshman.
He recently told 247 Sports that he has remained in contact with Tar Heels star Caleb Wilson since his campus visit.
“He was very welcoming on my visit,” Mingo said. “It was fun to chill with him on my visit. He told me to come here if you want to go to the League, basically. When you do get there, take full accountability for what you are repping in North Carolina.”
Mingo is the second top-25 prospect in North Carolina’s 2026 class, joining 6-foot-7 forward Maximo Adams from Sierra Canyon in Chatsworth, Calif.
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WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
COTIE MCMAHON, NO. 17 OLE MISS DEMOLISH NO. 21 TENNESSEE
Cotie McMahon racked up a career-high 39 points along with 10 rebounds and five assists as No. 17 Ole Miss cruised to a 94-81 win over No. 21 Tennessee on Tuesday in Oxford, Miss.
McMahon posted 16 points in the first half to guide the Rebels (21-6, 8-4 Southeastern Conference) to a 44-33 halftime edge. Then the team hit another gear in the third quarter, with McMahon knocking down 5 of 6 shots for 13 points as Ole Miss led by as many as 26.
Ole Miss shot 50.8% from the field and 29 of 36 at the foul line as Tennessee committed 29 fouls along with 16 turnovers. The Rebels got 16 points from Christeen Iwuala, 14 points and 12 rebounds from Latasha Lattimore and 12 points off the bench from Tianna Thompson.
The Lady Volunteers (16-8, 8-4) have lost five of their last seven games, including a 30-point loss to nonconference rival UConn and a 43-point drubbing by South Carolina.
Talaysia Cooper kept the Lady Vols in the game with a season-high 30 points, two days after scoring 29 against No. 4 Texas. Lauren Hurst had 16 points with nine boards and Alyssa Latham added 10 points.
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MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
TONY CLARK INTENDS TO RESIGN AS MLB PLAYERS’ UNION HEAD, AP SOURCE SAYS, AS POSSIBLE CAP FIGHT LOOMS
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Tony Clark intends to resign as head of the Major League Baseball Players Association, a person familiar with the union’s deliberations said Tuesday.
The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because his decision, first reported by ESPN, had not been announced. The person said an announcement was likely later Tuesday.
Clark’s decision took place during an investigation by the U.S. Attorney in Brooklyn, New York, into One Team Partners, a licensing company founded by the union, the NFL Players Association and RedBird Capital Partners in 2019.
“A lot of people have known that the investigation has been going on,” said the New York Mets’ Marcus Semien, a member of the union’s eight-man executive subcommittee. “I think that this happening during the investigation is not like, as a subcommittee, is not like overly surprising, but it still hurts and it’s still something I’m processing.”
Deputy executive director Bruce Meyer is set to be the primary negotiator in the upcoming labor talks, as he was in 2021-22. After Clark and Rick Shapiro led the 2016 negotiations, Meyer was hired in August 2018 as senior director of collective bargaining and legal and was promoted to his current role in July 2022.
Semien believes Clark is leaving to deal with the probe.
“I think so,” he said, “because up to this point, before any investigations, I’ve had the ultimate confidence in Tony Clark to lead this player group. I’ve had the ultimate confidence in Bruce Meyer to be the lead negotiator for this player group.”
The decision was made ahead of an expected start of collective bargaining in April for an agreement to replace the five-year labor contract that expires Dec. 1. Management appears on track to propose a salary cap, which possibly could lead to a work stoppage that causes regular-season games to be canceled for the first time since 1995.
Adam L. Braverman, a former U.S. associate deputy attorney general and U.S. attorney in Los Angeles, was hired by the union’s executive subcommittee as outside counsel, two people familiar with the group’s action told the AP. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the union hadn’t announced that.
The union on Monday canceled Tuesday’s scheduled start of the staff’s annual tour of the 30 spring training camps, which was to have begun with the Cleveland Guardians in the morning and the Chicago White Sox in the afternoon.
Clark, 53, is a former All-Star first baseman who became the first player to head the union.
He played from 1995-2009, becoming a union leader shortly after going to his first executive board meeting in 1999.
Clark was hired as the union’s director of player relations in 2010 and was promoted to deputy executive director in July 2013, when union head Michael Weiner’s health declined because of a brain tumor. Weiner died that November and Clark was elevated to executive director, following Marvin Miller, Kenneth Moffett, Donald Fehr and Wiener as union head.
Clark led players through negotiations that led to an agreement in December 2016, about 3 1/2 hours before the prior deal was set to expire, and another in March 2022 after a 99-day lockout.
Meyer, 64, spent 30 years at Weil, Gotshal & Manges before joining the NHL Players Association in 2016 as senior director of collective bargaining, policy and legal.
Three members of the subcommittee, Jack Flaherty, Lucas Giolito and Ian Happ, were among the players who in March 2024 advocated for the ouster of Meyer in an effort led by former union lawyer Harry Marino. Clark backed Meyer, the effort failed and those three players were dropped off the subcommittee that December.
The subcommittee voted 8-0 against approving the 2022 labor contract and Meyer had advocated pushing management for a deal more favorable to the union. Team player representatives, the overall group supervising negotiations, voted 26-4 in favor, leaving the overall ballot at 26-12 for ratification.
In addition to Semien, the current subcommittee includes Chris Bassitt, Jake Cronenworth, Pete Fairbanks, Cedric Mullins, Paul Skenes, Tarik Skubal and Brent Suter.
OneTeam says since its formation that it added, among others, the players’ associations of the WNBA, MLS, NWSL and the U.S. women’s soccer national team. RedBird sold its stake in 2019 to HPS Investment Pa
MLB REMOVING STRIKE ZONE BOX FROM BROADCASTS DUE TO ABS SYSTEM
Major League Baseball broadcasts no longer will use the strike zone box to indicate where the pitch was a ball or a strike, a move that coincides with the league’s implementation of the automated ball-strike challenge system.
The box itself still can be used, but viewers will have to gauge for themselves whether the pitch was a ball or a strike.
The change is being made so that players can’t be tipped off through a signal as to whether to challenge a strike call. Teams will be allowed to challenge two calls in each regulation game.
MLB will begin using the ABS system this season after it was tested in Triple-A and during 2025 MLB spring training games. It will make its formal debut on March 25 on Opening Night when the New York Yankees visit the San Francisco Giants in the first-ever live MLB broadcast on Netflix.
“With ABS now determining the zone,” an MLB spokesperson said, per Yahoo, “we want fans to trust the system without second-guessing every call through a digital strike box.”
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COLLEGE FOOTBALL
REPORTS: EX-FLORIDA QB JADEN RASHADA SETTLES NIL LAWSUIT
Quarterback Jaden Rashada agreed to a settlement on Tuesday, ending his name, image and likeness lawsuit targeting former Florida coach Billy Napier and others.
Terms of the agreement were not announced.
The defendants included Napier, school booster Hugh Hathcock, Hathcock’s company and ex-Florida staffer Marcus Castro-Walker, according to The Athletic.
Rashada accused the defendants of reneging on a four-year, $13.85 million NIL agreement reached when he was a high school senior in Pittsburg, Calif., in late 2022.
The quarterback, who previously committed to Miami, instead signed with Florida, but he never played for the Gators.
Rashada’s attorney, Rusty Hardin, told ESPN after the settlement was revealed, “He’s a bright young man with great judgment. He thought it was time to move on. He made the point he wanted to make, and now he’s ready to go play football.”
Napier’s attorneys, Hank Coxe and Michael Lockamy, said in a statement to The Athletic, “The parties have reached a confidential resolution of the litigation. The case will be dismissed, and all parties are moving forward.”
While the case was working its way through the legal system, a federal judge wrote in 2025, per The Athletic, that Rashada’s assertions “advance a compelling narrative that the Defendants were all marching to the beat of the same drum throughout Rashada’s failed recruitment to UF, each taking interwoven and often overlapping steps designed to lure Rashada away from Miami all while knowing they would never make good on the NIL promises made and leading Rashada on until his other NIL offers dried up.”
Rashada appeared in three games for Arizona State in 2023, completing 53.7% of his passes for 485 yards with four touchdowns and three interceptions.
He subsequently transferred to Georgia, though he never played for the Bulldogs, and then to Sacramento State. Last season for the Hornets, he connected on 40.5% of his passes for 264 yards with one TD and one interception in six games.
Three weeks ago, Rashada transferred again, to Mississippi State.
EX-MICHIGAN COACH SHERRONE MOORE GRANTED HEARING TO CHALLENGE ARREST
Sherrone Moore won a round in court on Tuesday when a judge granted the former Michigan football coach an evidentiary hearing regarding the circumstances surrounding the warrant used for his arrest in December.
Washtenaw County (Mich.) Judge Cedric Simpson scheduled the hearing for March 2 in Ann Arbor, Mich.
Moore was arrested on Dec. 10 and subsequently was charged with stalking, breaking and entering, and third-degree home invasion. The alleged victim was a woman who worked for Michigan’s athletic department.
The alleged incident occurred on the same day that Michigan fired Moore, stating that it found “credible evidence” the coach engaged in an inappropriate office relationship.
Moore’s lawyer, Ellen Michaels, argued that the Pittsfield Township Police Department detective in the case didn’t present all of the facts to the district court magistrate while seeking the arrest warrant on Dec. 12 — failing to disclose that the alleged victim was Moore’s boss.
While the police listed Moore’s multiple text messages and calls to the woman, they didn’t tell the magistrate of the pair’s work relationship. Michaels maintained that the communication might not be viewed as stalking given the two were working together.
Simpson said Tuesday in response, “It seems to me, if I’m the magistrate, I’m getting half the story. I’m not getting the full story. … I’m very worried about the omission.”
He added, “What is clear from this court’s perspective is that an omission in certain contexts can be more damaging, more problematic, more troublesome than what might be an intentional misrepresentation.”
Michaels said outside the court later Tuesday, “Judge Simpson got it right in this motion, and due process matters. Coach Moore maintains his innocence, and the truth will come out.”
Moore, 40, had a 16-8 record at Michigan after taking over for Jim Harbaugh, whom he served as offensive coordinator. Both he and Harbaugh were embroiled in a sign-stealing controversy from the school’s 2023 national-championship season, with Moore ultimately serving a two-game suspension.
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NFL
AGENT: BUCCANEERS WR MIKE EVANS INTENDS TO PLAY IN ’26
Mike Evans intends to continue his NFL career, though the exact location is to be determined.
The 32-year-old wide receiver’s agent, Deryk Gilmore, told NFL.com and ESPN on Tuesday that Evans is coming back.
“He is opening it up,” Gilmore said of Evans’ free agency in a statement to NFL.com. “He will play next season with someone. It could be Tampa. But he will definitely play a 13th season.”
Evans has played his entire career with the Buccaneers, who selected him seventh overall in the 2014 draft. He was a key piece in the Tom Brady-led squad that won the Super Bowl after 2020 season.
Evans topped 1,000 receiving yards in each of his first 11 seasons before finishing with just 30 catches for 368 yards and three touchdowns in eight games last year. He missed three games due to a hamstring injury and six because of a broken collarbone, though he was back for the season’s final month.
The Texas A&M product just completed a two-year contract that featured an average annual salary of $20.5 million.
In 176 career games (175 starts), Evans has compiled 866 receptions for 13,052 yards and 108 touchdowns. He is Tampa Bay’s all-time leader in all three of those categories as well as scoring (662 points).
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WNBA
REPORTS: WNBA PLAYERS LOWER SALARY CAP, REV-SHARE PROPOSALS
The Women’s National Basketball Players’ Association eased its financial stance in the latest proposal it made to the WNBA in collective bargaining, multiple media outlets reported on Tuesday.
The latest counterproposal came after a league proposal submitted earlier this month.
Per the reports, the union is now seeking an average of 27.5% of the league’s gross revenue, beginning at 25% in the first year of a prospective agreement. The salary cap for the initial year would be below $9.5 million in the opening season, per the WNBPA’s reported proposal.
Previously, the union sought a 31% average of gross revenue, beginning at 28% in the first year. The opening-year salary cap was at $10.5 million in the WNBPA’s previous proposal.
A WNBA spokesperson told ESPN regarding the new union position, “The Players Association’s latest proposal remains unrealistic and would cause hundreds of millions of dollars of losses for our teams. We still need to complete two Drafts (a two-team expansion draft and college draft) and free agency before the start of training camp and are running out of time. We believe the WNBA’s proposal would result in a huge win for current players and generations to come.”
The WNBA’s latest offer features a $5.65 million salary cap. A key sticking point involves the league’s desire to peg the players’ share to net revenue rather than gross revenue. The WNBA reportedly is offering an average of more than 70% of net revenue to the players, but ESPN reported that figure would work out to less than 15% of the gross revenue.
The new union proposal reportedly seeks to retain housing for players, which the WNBA was trying to phase out from prior collective bargaining agreements. The WNBPA is asking for housing to remain in place for the first few years of a new deal, but later players making higher salaries would be on their own to find housing.
The WNBA reportedly has offered one-bedroom apartments for players making the minimum salary and studio apartments for two developmental players per team.
The next WNBA season is currently scheduled to tip off on May 8 with three games, including the expansion Toronto Tempo playing host to the Washington Mystics. The expansion Portland Fire are due to face the visiting Chicago Sky on May 9.
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GOLF
PGA TOUR RETURNS TO RIVIERA AFTER THE FIRES. LPGA STARTS ITS FIRST ASIA SWING IN THAILAND
PGA Tour
GENESIS INVITATIONAL
Site: Los Angeles.
Course: Riviera CC. Yardage: 7,383. Par: 71.
Prize money: $20 million. Winner’s share: $4 million.
Television: Thursday-Friday, 4-8 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday, 1-3 p.m. (Golf Channel), 3-7 p.m. (CBS); Sunday, 1-3 p.m. (Golf Channel), 3-6:30 p.m. (CBS).
Defending champion: Ludvig Aberg.
FedEx Cup leader: Chris Gotterup.
Last week: Collin Morikawa won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
Notes: The tournament was held at Torrey Pines last year because of the devastating wildfires in Pacific Palisades. … Tournament host Tiger Woods is not playing. … This is the second straight $20 million signature event. … The tee on the par-3 fourth has been changed so the hole plays 37 yards longer at 273 yards. The 18th tee is where the fourth tee used to be, adding 24 yards to make it play 499 yards. … Lanny Wadkins holds the 72-hole scoring record at Riviera at 264 set in 1985, the longest-standing 72-hole record on the PGA Tour. … Adam Scott received one of the sponsor exemptions. He is a two-time winner at Riviera, one of those unofficial because rain shortened it to 36 holes in 2005. … Riviera will host the U.S. Women’s Open for the first time in early June, along with the Olympics in 2028. … The Charlie Sifford exemption was given Sahith Theegala, who has not been eligible for the signature events this year.
Next tournament: Cognizant Classic.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/
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LPGA Tour
HONDA LPGA THAILAND
Site: Chonburi, Thailand.
Course: Siam CC (Old). Yardage: 6,649. Par: 72.
Prize money: $1.8 million. Winner’s share: $270,000.
Television: Wednesday-Thursday, 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. (Golf Channel); Friday-Saturday, 10:30 p.m. to 3:30 a.m. (Golf Channel).
Defending champion: Angel Yin.
Race to CME Globe leader: Nelly Korda.
Last tournament: Nelly Korda won the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions.
Notes: This starts the first Asia swing of the LPGA Tour schedule that will go from Thailand to Singapore to China before returning back to the U.S. on March 19. … Nelly Korda, who won the season opener in Florida that was reduced to 54 holes, is skipping the early Asia swing for the third consecutive year. … Past Thai winners at their home tournament are Patty Tavatanakit (2024) and Ariya Jutanugarn (2021). … The field features Jeeno Thitikul, the No. 1 player in women’s golf, and Women’s British Open champion Miyu Yamashita. … Danielle Kang at No. 625 in the women’s world ranking is playing on a sponsor invitation. Kang, a former major champion, has not had a top 10 since 2023 as she works through injuries. … Amy Yang is a three-time winner of the Honda LPGA Thailand. The only other multiple winner since the tournament began in 2006 is Yani Tseng, who won twice. … Fourteen Americans are part of the 72-player field.
Next week: HSBC Women’s World Championship.
Online: https://www.lpga.com/
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European tour
MAGICAL KENYA OPEN
Site: Nairobi, Kenya.
Course: Karen CC. Yardage: 7,056. Par: 70.
Prize money: $2.7 million. Winner’s share: $450,000.
Television: Thursday-Friday, 5-10 a.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday, 4:30-9 a.m. (Golf Channel); Sunday, 3:30-8:30 a.m. (Golf Channel).
Defending champion: Jacques Kruyswijk.
Race to Dubai leader: Patrick Reed.
Last tournament: Patrick Reed won the Qatar Masters.
Notes: This is the first of three consecutive weeks on Africa for the European tour. In the middle is the South African Open, which this year offers an invitation to the Masters. … This is the seventh year of the tournament being part of the European tour schedule, dating to 2019 because of the coronavirus pandemic. … Thriston Lawrence of South Africa is the only player from the top 100 in the world ranking who is playing. … Freddy Schott is in the field. The German won the Bahrain Championship in a playoff. … Patrick Reed leads the “International Swing” by more than 1,000 points. The winner of each swing gets a $200,000 bonus. … Reed and Jayden Schaper of South Africa already are multiple winners on the European tour season so far. Schaper is not playing this week. … While the Kenya Open has been on the European schedule since 2019, past champions include Seve Ballesteros and Ian Woosnam when it was on the Sunshine Tour.
Next week: Investec South African Open.
Online: https://www.europeantour.com/dpworld-tour/
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LIV Golf League
Last week: Anthony Kim won LIV Golf Adelaide.
Next tournament: LIV Golf Hong Kong on March 5-8.
Points leader: Jon Rahm.
Online: https://www.livgolf.com/
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PGA Tour Champions
Last week: Davis Toms won the Chubb Classic.
Next tournament: James Hardie Pro-Football Hall of Fame Invitational on March 6-8.
Charles Schwab Cup leader: Stewart Cink.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/pgatour-champions/
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INDIANA SPORTS RELEASES
INDIANA HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS BASKETBALL
Franklin High School will be searching for a new coach following the resignation of Mike Armstrong. Armstrong won back-to-back sectional titles and a regional championship in his first two seasons at Franklin. In four seasons the Grizzley Cubs went 64-35 under Armstrong.
INDIANA GIRLS BASKETBALL SEMI-STATE AT HUNTINGTON AND JASPER
This weekend, IndianaSRN brings you wall-to-wall coverage of two Semi-State events as part of the IHSAA Tournament of Champions Network, powered by IndianaSRN. From opening tip to the final buzzer, fans will experience championship-level basketball with professional production and expert analysis.
Class 1A – at Huntington North
At 10:00 AM ET, Game 1 tips off with North Miami (18–8) vs. Elkhart Christian (22–4).
At 12:00 PM ET, Game 2 features Fremont (26–2) vs. Monroe Central (21–2).
The Championship tips at 8:00 PM ET, matching the winners of Game 1 and Game 2.
Class 4A – at Jasper
The action starts at 10:00 AM ET with Floyd Central (23–3) vs. Lawrence Central (21–4).
At 12:00 PM ET, it’s Center Grove (26–0) vs. Evansville Reitz (21–2).
The Championship tips at 8:00 PM ET, featuring the winners from the morning and midday games.
Join our broadcast team 10 minutes before each tip for the IndianaSRN pregame show. Expect an ESPN-style webcast with sharp graphics, multiple camera angles, crystal-clear audio, and seasoned broadcasters—reaching thousands of viewers across the state and beyond.
Stay connected all weekend with updates, links, and highlights on the IndianaSRN Sports page. Don’t miss a moment—this is high school basketball at its best, only on IndianaSRN.
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INDY FUEL
FUEL KICK OFF ROAD WEEKEND WITH GAME AGAINST K-WINGS
KALAMAZOO– The Fuel will head to Kalamazoo for a two-game set against the K-Wings this weekend. They start with a Friday night game, where they will look to extend their road point streak to six games.
LAST TIME OUT
The last time these two teams met was on January 17, when the K-Wings visited the Fuel in Fishers. After going up 2-0, the Fuel gave up three late goals including the overtime game winner, to fall 3-2 to Kalamazoo. Former Fuel forward Colin Bilek netted a power play goal early in the third frame to tie it up, and Jayden Lee scored in OT. Jadon Joseph had both goals for Indy that evening.
SCOUTING REPORT
Despite being in sixth place in the Central division, the Kalamazoo Wings have some heavy offensive hitters. Quinn Preston leads the team in scoring with 39 points, including 17 goals. Zach Okabe follows closely behind with 37 points, including two goals against the Fuel this year.
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INDIANA FOOTBALL
HEISMAN WINNER AND NATIONAL CHAMPION QB FERNANDO MENDOZA SHIFTING TO NFL MINDSET
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza is now starting to shift his mindset toward the NFL, which really was his goal when he transferred to Indiana.
Mendoza and the Hoosiers just happened to have a perfect season together that ended with an improbable national championship.
“It’s been a whirlwind. I think now it’s finally settled in and the dust has started to settle,” Mendoza said Monday night before receiving the Davey O’Brien Award as the nation’s top college quarterback. “The national championship, and then boom, next thing you know you’re on a new chapter.”
The latest award ceremony for Mendoza, the transfer from Cal who grew up a few miles from Miami’s campus, came exactly four weeks after Indiana won its first national championship 27-21 over the Hurricanes in their home stadium. It was also a week before the NFL combine, and just over two months from the opening night of the NFL draft on April 23, when Mendoza very well could be the No. 1 overall pick by the Las Vegas Raiders and their new coach.
“I’d be blessed and honored to play for the Raiders, or I’d be blessed to play for any team. Any NFL team that drafts me, I’d be ecstatic,” he said. “I know at the draft, I’ll probably shed a tear or two just because it’s such a full-circle moment for me. … The goal of transferring to Indiana was to make the NFL. It wasn’t to be a great college player. It was to try to develop into being an NFL quarterback one day.”
Mendoza threw for 3,535 yards and an FBS-leading 41 touchdowns while completing 273 of 379 passes (72%) with only six interceptions. He had 4,712 yards passing and 30 TDs in 20 games over two seasons at Cal, which gave him a late scholarship offer after he had been prepared out of high school to “put myself into student debt” to play football at Yale — since no athletic scholarships are offered in the Ivy League — because he loved the game so much.
Now the 22-year-old QB is preparing to move on to the highest level, knowing that college success won’t automatically translate to the pros.
“College is great, but that part’s behind me,” he said. “I feel like I’ve been satisfied with my college career. However, now I’m on to the NFL career. It requires a new skill set. It’s a grown man’s league.”
His Heisman Trophy
When Mendoza accepted the Heisman Trophy in December, his intention was to keep the trophy in Bloomington forever, where he felt it belonged.
It wasn’t until a couple of weeks later, when the Heisman Trophy was in a case on the Indiana campus, that he realized he also got one of his own to keep.
“Then I took it back home, and so it’s in my living room, which is great,” he said. “Think about that decoration.”
He even took his trophy to St. Paul Catholic Center in Bloomington, where he regularly attended Mass, to share with the church leaders around Christmas. He also hopes to take the trophy to his high school in Miami.
Mendoza’s heir apparent
The ceremony for the Davey O’Brien Award, named for the former TCU quarterback and 1938 Heisman winner, is held only a few miles from the TCU campus. That is also where the quarterback who likely will replace Mendoza was a starter the past three seasons.
Josh Hoover threw for 9,629 yards and 71 touchdowns over 36 games for the Horned Frogs before leaving in the portal for Indiana even before the national championship game.
Mendoza said he hadn’t had the opportunity to speak with Hoover, and said any advice he would have for his successor would be given in person.
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INDIANA BASEBALL
YOUNG TALENT SHINES IN HOME OPENER
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The Indiana Baseball team (1-3, 0-0 B1G) improved to 11-3 all-time in home openers at Bart Kaufman Field with a 15-3 (F/7) victory over Bradley on Tuesday (Feb. 17) afternoon. Behind a massive fourth inning and fantastic pitching, the Hoosiers picked up their first win of the young season. Six different players provided multi-efforts in the victory.
Sophomore catcher Hogan Denny did some early damage with a pair of two-run home runs in the first and third innings to give IU a lead it would never relinquish. The offensive onslaught started in the fourth inning when 13 batters came to the plate, allowing IU to score eight runs on six hits. Sophomore Cooper Malamazian had one of his game-high three base knocks in the frame to put the game out of reach.
Graduate student right-handed Reagan Rivera earned his first start for the Hoosiers and hung a zero in the opening frame after working around a pair of bloop hits. Graduate student southpaw Conner Linn (W, 1-0) was the only pitcher to throw multiple innings, earning the first win of his IU career. Freshmen right-handed pitchers Ivan Mastalski and Kellen English each made their collegiate debuts.
Freshman second baseman Landen Fry provided a big spark off the bench for head coach Jeff Mercer. He had a pair of hits and two RBIs in his first two career at-bats. On top of that, he helped turn a double play on the final sequence of the game to wrap up the win. His classmate, freshman outfielder Davian Carrera, made his collegiate debut as a defensive sub.
IU is back in action this weekend against a trio of talented teams in Florida. The Hoosiers will play in the Live Like Lou Jacksonville Baseball Classic. Action begins on Friday (Feb. 20) against the defending national champions, No. 2 LSU (2 p.m. ET). UCF and Notre Dame are also on the docket down south.
Scoring Recap
Bottom First
Hogan Denny did early damage with a two-run home run to left field. The ball left the bat at 109 miles per hour and went 427 feet.
Indiana 2, Bradley 0
Top Second
Cal Leighton answered back with an RBI double to left-center field.
Indiana 2, Bradley 1
Bottom Third
Denny hit another two-run home run to extend the lead in the bottom of the third.
Indiana 4, Bradley 1
Top Fourth
Peyton Nelson’s sacrifice fly helped cut Bradley’s deficit in half.
Indiana 4, Bradley 2
Bottom Four
IU hung a big number on the board in the fourth. 13 batters came to the plate to score eight runs. Jake Hanley led off with an RBI walk. Cooper Malamazian had a single up the middle with the bases loaded before Cole Decker drove in a run on a sacrifice fly. A double from Caleb Koskie and a pair of RBI singles from Landen Fry and Will Moore finished the scoring in the fourth.
Indiana 12, Bradley 2
Bottom Fifth
Malamazian smashed a solo home run over the bullpen in left field.
Indiana 13, Bradley 2
Bottom Sixth
A lost ball in the lights dropped well past the left fielder as Hanley raced around the bases for a two-run, inside-the-park home run.
Indiana 15, Bradley 2
Top Seventh
Bradley worked a run back on an RBI single from Jack Holubowski.
Indiana 15, Bradley 3
Top Hoosier Performers
#2 Denny, Hogan
2-3, 2 HR, 3 R, 4 RBI, BB
#15 Malamazian, Cooper
3-4, 2 R, HR, 2 RBI
#25 Fry, Landen
2-2, R, 2 RBI
Inside the Box Score
• Six different players had multi-hit games for the Hoosiers – all of them underclassmen.
• IU recorded seven walks at the plate to just four strikeouts.
• Three players combined to hit four home runs. IU had five extra-base knocks in total.
• All six pitchers for IU recorded at least one strikeout. No one threw more than 37 pitches.
Notes to Know
• The win over Bradley on Tuesday improved IU to 11-3 all-time in home openers at Bart Kaufman Field. Head coach Jeff Mercer is 7-1 in home openers, dropping just one last year to Xavier in 2025. It also improves IU’s all-time record at its home field to 221-80-1.
• With a 15-run output against Bradley, IU has now scored 15-or-more runs on 34 occasions in the Mercer era (since 2019). IU has done it at least once in all eight seasons. In each of the last three years (2023-2025), the Hoosiers have put up 15 runs in at least six different contests.
• Sophomore third baseman Will Moore is now riding a 22-game reached base streak and an eight-game hitting streak – both dating back to last year – after a two-hit, three-run effort on Tuesday. The win was the 12th multi-hit game of his young career.
• IU’s program has long been built around recruiting and developing elite offensive players. In Tuesday’s win, all 14 hits and all 15 RBIs were provided by underclassmen that were recruited out of high school by Mercer. In total, four sophomores and two freshmen had multi-hit games. 11 of 12 position players to feature were prep recruits by the Hoosiers.
Up Next
The Hoosiers are back in action for a big test on the weekend. They will play No. 2 LSU, UCF and Notre Dame in the Jacksonville Baseball Classic. The first game is on Friday (Feb. 20) against LSU. All three games will be streamed on D1Baseball.com and will be carried on the Indiana Sports Radio Network via IUHoosiers.com/Audio.
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PURDUE MEN’S BASKETBALL
#1 MICHIGAN’S FIRST-HALF RUN TOO MUCH TO OVERCOME FOR #7 BOILERMAKERS
#1 Michigan 91, #7 Purdue 80 (Postgame Notes)
1-ranked Michigan defeated No. 7 Purdue 91-80 to stop Purdue’s four-game winning streak and drop the Boilermakers to 21-5 overall and 11-4 in the Big Ten standings.
Purdue has now lost three games in Mackey Arena for the first time since the 2019-20 season (five losses).
Purdue fell to 3-21 all-time against No. 1-ranked teams and 1-6 against No. 1 in games played in Mackey Arena. Purdue was looking for its first win over No. 1 at home since the 1978-79 season (Michigan State).
Purdue has lost three straight games to Michigan, the longest-active losing streak against a Big Ten opponent.
Purdue fell to 4-2 against Michigan when both teams were ranked in the top 10.
Purdue averaged 1.03 points per possession in the first half and was outrebounded 21-14 in the first half. In the second half, Purdue averaged 1.33 points per possession and was outrebounded 18-17.
Purdue scored 80 points, but shot under 40.0 percent in a regulation game for the first time since Nov. 8, 2022, vs. Milwaukee (84 points; 37.5 percent FGs). It marked only the second time under Matt Painter that has happened in a regulation game.
Since the start of the 2022-23 season, Purdue is now 17-20 (.459) when allowing a run of 10-0 or larger. Michigan used a 16-0 run in the first half to take control of the game.
Trey Kaufman-Renn scored a season-high 27 points with 12 rebounds. In four games against top-10 teams, Kaufman-Renn is averaging 13.8 rebounds per game.
Trey Kaufman-Renn is just the third player in the last 20 years to have at least 27 points and 12 rebounds against the No. 1 team in the country. He joins Texas Tech’s J.T. Toppin vs. Arizona (Feb. 14, 2026) and North Carolina’s Luke Maye vs. Duke (Feb. 20, 2019).
Fletcher Loyer and Braden Smith tied the school record with their 136th start, matching the mark set by E’Twaun Moore (2008-11).
Fletcher Loyer made his 263rd career 3-pointer, now 18 shy of tying Carsen Edwards (2017-19) for the school record.
Braden Smith recorded his 24th career game of 20 points, with 20 points (all in the second half) with six assists and four steals. Smith moved into 5th place on the NCAA career assists list (986). He passed East Tennessee State legend Keith Jennings (983).
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) — Elliot Cadeau scored 14 of his 17 points in the second half Tuesday night, and Aday Mara added 10 points and 11 rebounds to send No. 1 Michigan past No. 7 Purdue 91-80.
Trey McKinney, Yaxel Lendeborg and L.J. Cason each had 13 points for the Wolverines, who won their 11th straight and took a big step toward capturing their first outright Big Ten regular-season title in five years.
The win came one day after Michigan (25-1, 15-1) moved into the nation’s top spot for the first time since January 2013.
It was the 7-foot-3 Mara’s early tone-setting presence that helped the Wolverines turn the tables on Purdue’s usually dominant front line as two-time national player of the year Zach Edey watched from the second row. Mara made each of his first four shots on the way to a 10-point, eight-rebound first half. He spent most of the second half in foul trouble, finishing 4 of 6 from the field as Michigan had a 39-31 rebounding advantage.
Trey Kaufman-Renn scored a season high 27 points to lead Boilermakers on a night most of his teammates struggled. Braden Smith added 20 points as the Boilermakers (21-5, 11-4) had their four-game winning streak end. They now trail Michigan by 3 1/2 games in the league race.
Michigan took control quickly by using an early 13-0 spurt to take a 23-10 lead. A 14-4 scoring flurry gave Michigan a comfortable 44-22 cushion with 4:23 left in the first half, forcing Purdue to play catchup the rest of the night.
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PURDUE SWIMMING AND DIVING
BOILERMAKERS MAKE THEIR WAY TO MINNEAPOLIS FOR BIG TENS
MEET INFORMATION
Purdue Women’s Swimming & Diving at the Big Ten Championships
Wednesday, Feb. 18 to Saturday, Feb. 21 / All Sessions Streaming on B1G+
Opening Night Relays & Team Diving at 5 p.m. ET
Swimming Prelims at 11 a.m. ET / Diving Prelims at 1 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. ET Finals Sessions
Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center / Minneapolis, Minn.
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue Women’s Swimming & Diving trains all season for the championship portion of the season, which begins this week with the spotlight on the Twin Cities as the Big Ten Championships return to the University of Minnesota.
Action is set for Wednesday evening through Saturday at the Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center in Minneapolis, which is serving as the host site of the women’s championships for the ninth time (first since 2021, when Purdue hosted the diving events as co-ed). Swimming prelims begin at 11 a.m. ET and diving prelims at 1 p.m. ET. Finals sessions begin at 6 p.m. ET with the diving consolation final. The meet begins Wednesday at 5 p.m. ET with a pair of relays plus the exhibition team diving event.
With the NCAA Championships adopting a new event schedule this season, the Big Ten Championships has followed suit and also changed up its daily slate of events. The Boilermakers experienced that new event schedule for the first time at the Ohio State Invitational in November. At the OSU Invite, Purdue eclipsed the program record in the 400 freestyle relay that had stood since the 2011 Big Ten Championships. Caitlin Hurley, Lara Phipps, Adele Sands and Hannah Hill teamed up for the relay record.
At Big Tens last season, Avery Worobel (silver on 3-meter) and Daryn Wright (bronze on platform) won medals in the diving events. Wright finished top five in all three diving events. Abby Marcukaitis eclipsed her own team record in the 200 backstroke and owns an NCAA Championships qualifying time in the event this season.
Campbell Scofield and Worobel represented the Boilermakers on the new Big Ten All-Freshman Team last season. Worobel became Purdue’s first (female) freshman diver to medal at Big Tens since Maycey Vieta in 2020. As an A finalist and the top freshman finisher in the 200 butterfly, Scofield became Purdue’s first (female) freshman swimmer to race for a Big Ten title since 2015.
TOP 10 TIMES/SCORES IN TEAM HISTORY POSTED THIS SEASON
• 400 Free Relay Team (Hurley, Phipps, Sands, Hill) – 3:16.68 (Team Record)
• Abby Marcukaitis – 52.73 in 100 Back (2nd) // NCAA Championships Qualifying Time
• Reagan Mattice – 9:47.16 in 1000 Free (3rd)
• Lara Phipps – 49.26 in 100 Free (T-4th)
• 800 Free Relay Team (Phipps, Hurley, Sands, Mouser) – 7:05.72 (4th)
• Ava Fasano – 53.90 in 100 Back (5th)
• 200 Medley Relay Team (Marcukaitis, Sharma, Phipps, Hill) – 1:38.43 (5th)
• Amie Perna – 53.92 in 100 Back (6th)
• Reagan Mattice – 16:21.01 in 1650 Free (6th) // NCAA Championships Qualifying Time
• 200 Free Relay Team (Hill, Phipps, Fasano, Rojas) – 1:30.85 (6th)
• Daryn Wright – 374.48 on 3-Meter (7th)
• Caitlin Hurley – 49.32 in 100 Free (7th)
• Caitlin Hurley – 1:46.29 in 200 Free (7th)
• Caitlin Hurley – 4:44.56 in 500 Free (8th)
• Brinly Hardy – 53.82 in 100 Fly (8th)
• Keira Kask – 53.83 in 100 Fly (9th)
• Lara Phipps – 1:46.47 in 200 Free (T-9th)
• Lara Phipps – 53.86 in 100 Fly (10th)
Seniors Kaitlin Simons, Reagan Mattice and Wright have an opportunity to close out their careers as four-year scorers at Big Tens. Mattice has posted lifetime bests in all three distance events this season and owns an NCAA Championships qualifying time in the mile. Wright is 9-for-9 in career top-10 finishes at Big Tens.
Kate Mouser has scored in all three of her individual events at Big Tens in her first two seasons. She joined Alex Clarke (2016 and 2017) as Purdue’s only swimmers to score in all three events each of their underclassman seasons since the top-24 scoring format went into effect in 2016. Sands matched Mouser’s achievement in her debut at Big Tens as a freshman last season.
No. 4 Michigan, No. 6 Indiana, No. 11 Ohio State, No. 12 USC, No. 15 Wisconsin, No. 22 UCLA and No. 25 Minnesota are all ranked among the national top 25 in the CSCAA coaches poll. UCLA and USC debuted at the Big Ten Championships last season, bringing the field of teams to 14 – making it the largest ever for Big Tens. Maryland, Michigan State, Oregon and Washington do no sponsor swimming & diving.
ANNUAL DIVING MEDALISTS
• The Boilermakers have produced a medalist in platform diving at the last eight Big Ten Championships dating back to 2018. Purdue racked up 100-plus points – 109 in 2022, 102 in 2023, 101 in 2024 – in the event three years in a row while accounting for half of the eight-diver championship field.
• Daryn Wright has scored in all three diving events every season as Purdue’s active career scoring leader (209 points) at the meet. She reached the 200-point benchmark in just three years, joining Emily Bretscher (team-record 300 points from 2018-22) and Sophie McAfee (2022-25) as the only Boilermakers to achieve the feat since the scoring format change in 2016.
• Wright aims to become the latest Boilermaker to medal at three consecutive Big Tens, a feat previously accomplished by Maggie Merriman (2020-23), MacKenzie Tweardy (2013-15) and Carrie McCambridge (2004-06)
• Purdue has won at least one consolation final in the dive well every season since 2021. The Boilermakers swept the springboard consol finals in 2022 (Sophie McAfee) and 2023 (Wright). McAfee was also victorious in the platform consolation final each of the last two years.
MEDALS WON BY BOILERS WHEN MINNESOTA HAS HOSTED BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIPS
2014
• Casey Matthews – Gold on 1-Meter, Silver on 3-Meter
• Mary Beth Dunnichay – Bronze on 1-Meter, Bronze on 3-Meter
• MacKenzie Tweardy – Bronze on Platform
2013
• MacKenzie Tweardy – Silver on 1-Meter, Silver on Platform
• Lauren Gustafson – Silver in 100 Free
• 400 Free Relay Team (Mercer, Gustafson, Nichols, Sheets) – Bronze
• 800 Free Relay Team (Mercer, Sheets, Gustafson, Davis) – Bronze
2007
• Carlene Takaki – Silver in 200 Fly
• Amanda Miller – Silver on 3-Meter, Bronze on 1-Meter, Bronze on Platform
2004
• Carrie McCambridge – Gold on 1-Meter, Gold on 3-Meter, Gold on Platform
• 400 Free Relay Team (Seleskie, Leupold, Duchac, Hentschel) – Bronze
1996
• Erika Whyte – Silver in 100 Fly
1991
• Susan Wolfle – Gold in 400 IM, Bronze in 500 Free
• Kim Fritsch – Silver in 100 Fly
• Heidi Reynolds – Silver in 200 Breast
NOTABLE LIFETIME BESTS TO MOVE UP/JOIN PURDUE RECORD BOOK AT 2025 BIG TENS
(Current All-Time Rank in Team History)
• Abby Marcukaitis – 1:54.09, Purdue Record in 200 Back (1st)
• Kate Mouser – 4:12.97, 3rd in 400 IM (3rd)
• 200 Medley Relay (Marcukaitis, Folcik, Hill, Phipps) – 1:38.13, 3rd (3rd)
• Campbell Scofield – 1:57.02, 4th in 200 Fly (4th)
• Abbie Kehmeier – 1:56.48, 4th in 200 Back (4th)
• Kate Mouser – 1:57.96, 6th in 200 Fly (6th)
• 400 Free Relay (Phipps, Hurley, Sands, Hill) – 3:18.67, 6th (7th)
• Adele Sands – 1:46.33, 7th in 200 Free (T-7th)
• Kate Mouser – 4:43.71, 7th in 500 Free (7th)
• Reagan Mattice – 16:26.04, 7th in 1650 Free (6th)
• Adele Sands – 4:45.01, 8th in 500 Free (9th)
• Keira Kask – 1:58.57, 9th in 200 Fly (9th)
• Adele Sands – 16:30.43, 10th in 1650 Free (10th)
• 800 Free Relay (Sands, Mouser, Hurley, Mattice) – 7:09.44, 10th (11th)
• Sophia Capp – 2:14.88, 11th in 200 Breast (11th)
• Avery Worobel – 361.20, 12th on 3-Meter …Purdue Freshman Record (12th)
PURDUE’S ACTIVE SWIMMERS TO RACE ON RELAYS AT BIG TENS LAST SEASON
• Lara Phipps – 200 & 400 Free, 200 & 400 Medley
• Hannah Hill – 200 & 400 Free, 200 Medley
• Caitlin Hurley – 400 & 800 Free
• Adele Sands – 400 & 800 Free
• Abby Marcukaitis – 200 & 400 Medley
• Ana Rojas – 200 Free
• Keira Kask – 400 Medley
• Reagan Mattice – 800 Free
• Kate Mouser – 800 Free
YEAR 11 OF THE CURRENT SCORING BREAKDOWN
• A Final: 32-28-27-26-25-24-23-22
• B Final: 20-17-16-15-14-13-12-11
• C Final: 9-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 (and 17th through 24th in Diving Prelims)
• Relays: 64-56-54-52-50-48-46-44-40-34-32-30
PURDUE’S MOST RECENT BIG TEN CHAMPIONS
• Diving: Maycey Vieta – Platform, 2023
• Swimming: Carlene Takaki – 200 Fly, 2006
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PURDUE BASEBALL
TEXAS TOUR CONTINUES AT RICE AS PURDUE’S FIRST-EVER FEBRUARY MIDWEEK GAME
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Purdue (2-1, 31-23 in 2025) at Rice (2-1, 17-40 in 2025)
Wednesday, Feb. 18 at 7:30 p.m. ET / ESPN+
Reckling Park / Houston, Texas
Probable Starting Pitchers: Austin Klug (Sr, RHP) vs. Jeremiah Arnett (Jr, RHP)
SERIES HISTORY
All-Time: Rice leads 4-1
Last Meetings: #11 Rice swept a 3-game series (February 2014 in Houston)
Last Midweek Matchup: #8 Rice 9, Purdue 1 (March 2005 in Houston)
First Meeting: Purdue 5, #1 Rice 2 (Purdue’s 2001 Season Opener, Feb. 16 in Houston)
SUGAR LAND, Texas – Purdue Baseball continues its season-opening tour of Texas with the program’s first-ever February midweek game, visiting Rice for the first time in 12 years.
First pitch at Reckling Park in Houston is set for 7:30 p.m. ET. The Boilermakers practiced at Reckling Park in February 2025 in advance of their season-opening series in Sugar Land and again Tuesday morning.
Purdue and Rice both won two of three during their season-opening weekends. The Boilermakers improved to 19-3 at Constellation Field in Sugar Land since 2022, winning in comeback fashion Saturday and Sunday to take the series vs. Portland. The Owls won a pair of one-run games to sweep a season-opening doubleheader vs. Northwestern on Friday. The Wildcats erupted for 17 runs over seven innings to salvage the series finale.
Rice hosts Louisiana on Tuesday evening in its midweek opener.
The Boilermakers rallied back to win their season-opening weekend after losing on Opening Day for the first time since 2003,
Purdue went 7-3 in midweek action last season. But the Boilers have struggled in true road games in recent years, compiling a 24-42 mark in such games since the start of the 2022 campaign.
One of the Boilers’ biggest road wins in program history was at Rice in mid-February of 2001. On the opening night of the Rice Classic, Purdue upset the No. 1-ranked Owls. The Feb. 16 game in Houston was the Boilers’ season opener and game No. 9 of the campaign for Rice. The Owls have won the last four meetings since, including a midweek matchup on Purdue’s 2005 spring break trip and sweeping a three-game set during weekend No. 2 of the 2014 campaign.
Pitcher Zach Erdman won’t get the ball again until this weekend at the Round Rock Classic in the Austin area. But the native Texan made quite the first impression with his eight shutout innings in Saturday’s win. He was the only starting pitcher in the nation to work eight innings during the opening weekend. Erdman’s game score of 83 from his gem (8 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 7 K) was good for second nationally, behind only Lamar’s Chris Oliver (6 IP, H, 0 R, 0 BB, 14 K, game score 86). Erdman lost out on Big Ten Pitcher of the Week honors after USC’s Grant Govel struck out 10 over six no-hit innings (game score 81).
Rice made seven College World Series appearances from 1997-2008, winning the national title in 2003. The Owls’ streak of 23 consecutive NCAA Regional appearances came to an end in 2018 and the program has not been back to the NCAA Tournament since. Former Texas, Tulane and Sam Houston State head coach David Pearce was hired on St. Patrick’s Day last year after a midseason coaching change amidst a 2-14 start. Pearce served as an assistant under legendary Rice coach Wayne Graham from 2003-11.
Purdue head coach Greg Goff coached against Rice during both of his seasons at Louisiana Tech (2015-16), matching up twice in the semifinal round of the 2016 C-USA Tournament. The Owls now compete in the American Athletic Conference. The Boilermakers have not played a current AAC member since squaring off against East Carolina and future MLB World Series starting pitcher Trey Yesavage (Toronto Blue Jays) at the Keith LeClair Classic in March 2024.
EARLIEST MIDWEEK OPENERS
In many years from 1979-1994, Purdue would open its season with a spring break trip during the first week of March, playing daily during the trip
• 2026: Feb. 18 at Rice
• 2022: March 2 at Charlotte (W, 6-2)
• 2025: March 4 at Indiana State (W, 14-4)
• 2024: March 5 at Notre Dame (L, 11-2)
• 2011: March 8 at #20 Louisville (W, 6-4)
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NOTRE DAME WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
HIDALGO SELECTED TO NAISMITH LATE-SEASON TEAM
ATLANTA — Junior guard Hannah Hidalgo has been named to the 2025-26 Naismith Trophy Women’s College Player of the Year Late-Season Team on Tuesday afternoon.
Hidalgo has had a remarkable 2025-26 campaign, averaging 24.6 points per game, which leads the ACC and ranks third in the nation.
The guard is also the best on-ball defender in the nation, leading the country in steals at a clip of 5.44 per game. Hidalgo is the only player in the country to average five or more steals per game.
Hidalgo set the NCAA record for steals in a game with 16 against Akron while also setting the Notre Dame program record for points with 44 in the win.
The guard also set the program record for career steals, becoming the first player in program history to surpass the 400-steal milestone (415).
In her most recent outing Hidalgo posted 19 points, 8 rebounds, 6 steals and 6 assists in a win over NC State. The performance marked the second time this season that she recorded a stat line of at least 15 points, 6 rebounds, 6 steals and 6 assists. Hidalgo is the only player in the ACC to post those numbers in a game this season.
The Fighting Irish hit the road for a midweek matchup against Wake Forest at 6 p.m. ET on Thursday, Feb. 19 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The game will be streamed on ACCNX.
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NOTRE DAME HOCKEY
KEMPF EARNS SECOND STAR HONORS FROM BIG TEN
NOTRE DAME, Ind. — After an undefeated weekend in which he posted a 1-0-1 record in the crease, and amassed 54 saves over 125:00 minutes played, Nicholas Kempf has been named the Big Ten Conference Second Star of the Week. The Notre Dame sophomore backstopped the Irish to a 2-2 Friday night before rounding out the weekend with a 3-2 win over the Gophers of Minnesota.
After allowing two early goals for the Gophers Friday night, Kempf went on to stop all 26 shots faced in the final two periods plus overtime to close the night out with a tie. The 26 saves count includes an astonishing 17 stops in the third period as the Irish fought back to overcome a two-goal third period deficit.
On Saturday night, Kempf kept the Irish hopes alive with 23 saves as Notre Dame defeated the conference foe, 3-2. Additionally, he served as the last line of defense against the nation’s then-top ranked powerplay unit, holding the Gophers scoreless on their five opportunities on the man-advantage. Prior to the weekend against the Irish, the Gophers’ special teams had been operating at a rate of 31.3-percent.
The sophomore netminder’s 54 save total on the weekend ranked second among all Big Ten goaltenders. Meanwhile, his .931 save percentage against the visiting Gophers ranked first among all Big Ten netminders who faced 15 or more shots on the weekend.
Kempf becomes the third Irish individual to pick up conference Star of the Week recognition this season, joining Sutter Muzzatti and Evan Werner as previous honorees in 2025-26.
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NOTRE DAME MEN’S LAX
IRISH BREAK PROGRAM RECORDS IN DOMINANT WIN OVER BELLARMINE
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — The Fighting Irish men’s lacrosse team put on an attacking display for the ages on Tuesday afternoon, scoring a program-record 29 goals in the 29-10 win over Bellarmine at Arlotta Stadium.
The previous record for goals in a game stood for nearly 43 years, as the Irish scored 28 goals against Mount Union on April 9, 1983.
A number of Notre Dame players had career days but none stood out more than Brock Behrman’s game-high seven points while setting career highs in goals (4) and assists (3). Will Maheras and Jalen Seymour also recorded the first hat tricks of their careers, each totaling three goals on the afternoon.
Josh Yago turned in his second-straight four-point performance with two goals and two assists while freshman Teddy Lally also had a four-point afternoon with a goal and three assists.
In total, 16 Fighting Irish players found the back of the net in the game, with nine recording multiple goals.
The Notre Dame faceoff duo of Aidan Diaz-Matos and Tyler Spano also delivered big performances in the contest. Diaz-Matos won 13-of-17 battles at the dot to go along with seven ground balls while Spano finished 10-for-12 with six ground balls.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Notre Dame was full throttle from the opening whistle, scoring on the first two possessions of the afternoon courtesy of Yago and Luke Miller.
The Irish midfield then got in on the action, scoring the next five goals with two coming from Seymour, one from Matt Jeffery, Seymour and Maheras to push the lead to 7-0 with 4:48 left in the first quarter.
Lally, Seymour and Angrick each scored once more before the end of the opening 15 minutes of play to give Notre Dame a double-digit lead at 10-0 after the first quarter.
The Irish carried the momentum into the second stanza, outscoring the Knights 6-1 to push their lead to 16-1 at the halftime break. Behrman paced Notre Dame with two goals and Yago, Finley, Maheras and Miguel Iglesias each scored one.
Notre Dame started subbing liberally in the second half but still managed to score 13 goals in the final 30 minutes of action. Gavin Burlace, Gavin Lynch, Jake Vasquez and Ryan Sforzo each scored twice in the second half while Brady Pokorny and Colin Kenney each found the back of the net for the first time this season as the Irish cruised to the 29-10 victory.
STAT OF THE GAME
Not only did the Irish break the program’s all-time record for goals in a game but it also set the record for points in a game with 48 off 29 goals and 19 assists, breaking the previous mark of 46 in a win over Denver on April 20, 1992.
NOTRE DAME NOTES
Notre Dame’s 19 assists ties the program record for most assists in a home game and is the Arlotta Stadium record.
The Irish improved to 7-0 against Bellarmine in the all-time series.
Notre Dame has won all seven matchups by at least five goals.
All six offensive starters recorded at least one goal and five of the six players finished with multiple points.
With the win, the Irish are now 42-4 in home openers, including a 35-3 record under Baumer Family Head Men’s Lacrosse Coach Kevin Corrigan.
The Irish were perfect in transition, finishing 22-for-22 in the game.
Notre Dame also took care of the ball, totaling just eight turnovers.
The Irish outshot the Knights 64-23 in the victory.
The Irish defense finished with 12 caused turnovers and have now recorded double-digit caused turnovers in both games this season.
Behrman’s seven points are a season high for any Irish player and a career high for the junior.
Christopher Iuliano made his first start during his collegiate career.
UP NEXT
Notre Dame plays its first ranked matchup of the season this upcoming weekend, welcoming No. 3/4 Georgetown to Arlotta for a 12:30 p.m. ET tilt on Sunday, Feb. 22. The game will air on ACCNX and admission to the game is free.
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NOTRE DAME WOMEN’S LAX
IRISH AND PATTERSON NAMED ACC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Freshmen Maura Irish and Ceci Patterson were named Co-Offensive and Co-Defensive ACC Players of the Week, announced by the league office on Tuesday. The duo helped guide the Irish to two ranked wins with a win over No. 3 Boston College on Friday (12-9) and No. 25 Harvard on Sunday (10-7) as the Irish advance to 4-0 on the season with three ranked wins under their belt.
Irish was all over the field this weekend as she finished with an impressive stat line of 3 goals, 5 assists, 8 points, 4 ground balls, 7 draw controls, and 5 caused turnovers. She is now in the top three in the ACC in caused turnovers this season (9).
She finished with two goals and two assists for a career-best four points and four draw controls in the win at Boston College, followed by a performance of one goal, a career-high three assists, a career-high four ground balls, and a career-high four caused turnovers in the win at Harvard.
Patterson finished the weekend with 15 saves, holding two ranked opponents to an average of just eight goals a game. Patterson is now tied for first in the ACC with 24 saves this season.
She recorded a career-high 11 saves in the win at Boston College, with three saves in the fourth quarter as her defensive efforts helped hold the Eagles scoreless in the fourth where the Irish outscored the Eagles 6-0 in the final period.
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BUTLER BASEBALL
BUTLER DOWNS ILLINOIS 10-8 IN CHAMPAIGN
INDIANAPOLIS – Butler defeated the University of Illinois 10-8 on Wednesday afternoon in Champaign, Ill. The Dawgs scored 8 of their 10 runs in the first three innings, led by Will Burgess, who drove in three. With the win, Butler improves to 2-2 on the season while the Fighting Illini fall to 1-3 to open the season.
BULLDOG HIGHLIGHTS
Brock Buckley earned his first save of the season on the mound, closing out the ninth frame for BU.
Max Winders earned his first win of the season, throwing 5.1 innings in relief and giving up one earned run. The sophomore struck out six while allowing just five base runners.
Will Burgess hit his first home run of the season, in addition to a two-out single in the first that plated two for the Bulldogs.
Gavin Gilmore continued his hot start to the season with a two-run single. He also walked twice and scored a run.
Danny Gavin went 2-4 at the plate and scored two runs.
Alex Christie tallied an RBI Single and scored a run.
Logan Crock was 1-for-4 with an RBI double.
Charlie Schebler hit his first double of the season and scored a run.
Gunnar Duncan notches his first multi-hit game of the season, going 2-4 at the plate. He also drew a walk and scored two runs.
HOW IT HAPPENED
A two-out RBI single from Christie put the Dawgs on the board first against the Illini. In the ensuing at bat, Schebler hit his second double of the season, scoring Gavin. The Bulldog offense wasn’t done yet, as a Burgess single brought home Christie before Illinois was able to get the third out of the inning. BU held an early 3-0 lead over the home side. Illinois responded with an explosive first inning of its own, scoring five runs on five hits as the Illini took the 5-3 advantage into the second.
Gilmore hit a bases-loaded single in the top of the second that scored two runs for BU as the Dawgs were able to even the score at 5-5 heading into the bottom half of the frame. A 1-2-3 inning for the Bulldogs saw the score remain even at the end of the second.
Burgess got the third started with a leadoff solo shot as BU retook the lead at 6-5. BU was able to scratch across two more runs in the top of the third with the help of a wild pitch. Matthew Rhoades picked up an RBI with a sac fly in the inning as the two sides headed to the bottom of the third with Butler ahead 8-5.
The fourth frame was scoreless for both sides. Butler opened the fifth with a single from Duncan before David Ayers was hit by a pitch. Both runners were able to advance on a passed ball, as BU had runners on second and third with one out. Shortly after, Butler brought a run home by way of a balk as BU took the 9-5 lead into the bottom of the fifth. BU retired the Illini side in order taking the 9-5 advantage into the sixth.
Gilmore started the sixth with a walk and was aggressive on the base path, stealing second. After advancing on a groundout, Gilmore scored the lone run of the inning for BU on a passed ball from the home side. The BU lead stood at five heading into the bottom half of the frame. Illinois was unable to generate much offense in the inning, recording just one hit as the Butler lead stood heading into the seventh.
After a short top of the seventh, Illinois was able to get back on the board, scratching across two runs on two hits as the Butler lead shrank to three (10-7).
Illinois once again made a push in the bottom of the eighth, scoring another run on two hits in the frame. Butler took the 10-8 advantage into the ninth.
Butler was able to hold off the Illini’s comeback efforts in the ninth as Buckley closed the door on the mound, helping BU secure the 10-8 victory.
OF NOTE
This is Butler’s first win over a BIG 10 opponent since 2024 when BU took down Indiana 6-2, at Bulldog Park.
Butler recorded 11 hits in the contest.
The BU pitching staff recorded 12 strikeouts in the contest, marking a new season-high for the squad.
BU has now recorded a home run in four-consecutive games.
UP NEXT
Butler will return to action tomorrow as the Bulldogs host Eastern Illinois at Grand Park in Westfield, Ind. The game will be played on field D4 with first pitch scheduled for 6 p.m.
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BUTLER MEN’S TRACK
BUTLER MEN’S TRACK AND FIELD RANKS AMONG NCAA TOP 20 IN THE 5K AND 3K
At the first checkpoint of the indoor season, Butler Men’s Track and Field is ranked among the top 20 nationally in two events.
Butler Men’s 3000-meter group is 13th in the NCAA Event Ranking. Graduate senior Jesse Hamlin is ranked 10th in the nation leading the group with a mark of 7:39.70.
The Men’s 5,000-meter group is currently 19th in the NCAA Event Ranking. Senior William Zegarski is leading the group with a time of 13:33.23.
The event rankings will be released by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association throughout the season.
The Bulldogs will return to action next weekend in the Alex Wilson Invitational which will be held at the University of Notre Dame. More information on the event will be available on Butlersports.com.
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BUTLER WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
BUTLER HOSTS CREIGHTON AT HINKLE FIELDHOUSE ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT
INDIANAPOLIS – Butler will host the Creighton Bluejays on Wednesday, Feb. 18 at Iconic Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Ind. Tip-off between the two slides is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the game will be broadcast live on ESPN+ with Kelsie Kasper and Alexis Ayala on the call. Butler will have its annual Pink Game while also taking part in Project 44 night.
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Date: Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026
Time: 7 PM
Location: Indianapolis, Ind.
Live Stats: Butlersports.com
Watch: ESPN+
ABOUT THE BULLDOGS
Butler (9-17, 3-13 BE) is coming off a 58-47 loss against St. John’s on Saturday afternoon. McKenna Johnson and Caroline Dotsey led the Dawgs with nine points apiece in the contest. They were followed closely by Mallory Miller who chipped in eight.
Saniya Jackson leads the BU offense, averaging 9.5 points per game. The redshirt sophomore is shooting 48.7-percent from the floor and 28.8-percent from beyond the arc. Caroline Dotsey leads the squad on the glass, pulling down 5.1 rebounds per game.
Saniya Jackson was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll on Monday, Jan. 26, after an impressive week for the Dawgs. The redshirt sophomore tallied her first career double-double against DePaul (1/21), pouring in a career-high in points (22) and rebounds (10) en route to a 73-67 win over the Blue Demons.
The Fort Wayne native nearly posted her second double-double in as many games against Marquette (1/25), chipping in 12 points and nine rebounds in the contest. The redshirt sophomore averaged 17.0 points, 9.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game en route to her first BIG EAST Weekly Honor of her career.
Butler’s two freshmen, Addison Baxter and Wypych, have been solid contributors this season for BU averaging 19.1 and 15.9 minutes per game, respectively. Baxter, a 2025 Indiana All-Star from Columbia City, is averaging 5.9 points, 2.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 0.9 steals per game. She is shooting 43.6-percent from the floor and is sinking 77.4-percent of her attempts from the charity stripe. Wypych posts 4.9 points, 1.2 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. The Michigan native has been impressive from the floor, shooting 42.1-percent while sinking 36.6-percent of her shots from behind the arc.
Dotsey, Lily Zeinstra and Miller have all been pivotal pieces for Butler, averaging 8.5, 8.3 and 9.3 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 (74.8%; 67th).
Austin Parkinson is in his fourth season at the helm of the Bulldogs. Parkinson has led the squad to 42 wins in his first three seasons.
SCOUTING CREIGHTON
Creighton (12-14, 8-9 BE) is coming off a 74-64 loss against Villanova on Sunday evening. Kennedy Townsend led Creighton in the contest with 23 points.
Ava Zediker paces the Bluejay offense, averaging 13.6 points per game. Neleigh Gessert (12.3) and Kennedy Townsend (11.5) round out the Bluejays averaging double figures.
Grace Boffeli leads Creighton on the glass, averaging 8.9 rebounds per game.
ABOUT THE SERIES
Butler is 8-19 all-time against the Bluejays dating back to 2014. Earlier this season BU dropped a hard fought road battle in Omaha, Nebraska 67-59.
The last time the Bulldogs defeated the Bluejays was the 2019-2020 season at Hinkle Fieldhouse in a 76-61 victory. Kristen Spolyar scored a game-high 20 points and Genesis Parker chipped in with 19 to lead BU to victory.
Andrew Smith and Project 44
Butler annually partners with Project 44 at a home game to highlight the organization’s mission to create awareness for the national bone marrow registry.
Launched in 2016, Project 44 was created in honor of the late Andrew Smith. Wearing No. 44, Andrew was a beloved member of Butler’s two-time NCAA Men’s Basketball national championship game teams. On Jan. 12, 2016, at the age of 25, Andrew passed away following a two-year battle with cancer.
Having been a personal recipient of a bone marrow transplant in November of 2015, Andrew and his wife Samantha were blessed with an additional three months together.
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 Saturday, February 21, as BU travels to Washington, D.C., to take on the Georgetown Hoyas in the Dawgs second to last away game of the season. Tip-off between the two sides is scheduled for 2 p.m. and the game will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
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BUTLER MEN’S BASKETBALL
BUTLER TRAVELS EAST FOR WEDNESDAY CONTEST AT GEORGETOWN
Butler heads to Washington, D.C. for a Wednesday night tip with Georgetown. It’s the second meeting between the teams this season as Georgetown picked up a 77-64 win over Butler Jan. 31 in Indianapolis.
Butler Bulldogs (13-13, 4-11 BIG EAST) at Georgetown (13-12, 5-9)
Wednesday, Feb. 18 • 6:30PM
Capital One Arena; Washington, D.C.
Follow Along
TV/Stream: FS1 • Emmanuel Berbari & Donny Marshall
Radio/Audio: 93.5 & 107.5FM The Fan, Butler Sports App, SiriusXM 381, Sirius XM App, TuneIn Radio App & ButlerSports.com • @MarkMinner & Nick Gardner (@n_gardner)
Bipartisan Thoughts on Butler and the Team Based in the Nation’s Capital
• Michael Ajayi ranks third nationally with 16 double-doubles this season; he is fourth nationally in rebounds per game (11.3).
• Ajayi had 21 points and 12 rebounds in Sunday’s loss to Seton Hall.
• Ajayi has led Butler in rebounding in 25 of the team’s 26 games this season. Sunday’s game was his sixth 20-point game of the season and his ninth time leading Butler in scoring.
• Ajayi has played 93 collegiate games and has pulled down double-figure rebounds in 40 of them.
• In addition to leading the league in rebounding, Ajayi ranks seventh in the BIG EAST at 15.7 points per game. He is also among the conference Top 15 in minutes played (second), field goal percentage (sixth), blocked shots (eighth), and assists (13th).
• Finley Bizjack missed Sunday’s game against Seton Hall due to a left wrist sprain. His status remains day-to-day.
• Bizjack’s injury added to Butler’s depleted backcourt that also has lost Jalen Jackson and Azavier Robinson for the season with respective injuries.
• Bizjack is the BIG EAST’s second-leading scorer at 17.4 points per game. His 2.4 three-pointers per game also rank second in the conference.
• Bizjack has scored 20 or more points in seven of Butler’s BIG EAST games this season, including tying his career-high with 30 points Feb. 4 at Providence. Bizjack has 11 20-point games this season.
• Bizjack ranks second in the BIG EAST in free throw shooting at 85.6 percent. In conference games, his percentage jumps to 90.7 percent (78-for-86).
• Seton Hall’s defense limited Butler to 30-percent shooting in Sunday’s loss. The Bulldogs also made only five of their 21 attempts from three-point range in the contest. Over Butler’s last five games, the team is shooting only 29.5 percent from three-point range.
• Over the last two games, Butler has assists on 37 of their 44 made field goals.
• Butler has out-rebounded 18 of its 26 opponents this season. The Bulldogs have a +3.5 average rebounding margin on the season, which ranks third in the BIG EAST.
• Butler has attempted more free throws than their opponents in 22 of the 26 games this season. The Bulldogs average 25.5 free throw attempts per game, which ranks 16th nationally.
• Yame Butler handed out a career-high seven assists in Sunday’s game against Seton Hall; he had never handed out more than four assists in any of his 116 career games entering the contest.
• Jamie Kaiser Jr. matched his career-high with four steals Sunday vs. Seton Hall.
• Yohan Traore matched his season-high with seven rebounds Sunday vs. Seton Hall.
• Ajayi pulled down 19 rebounds at Marquette Feb. 7 and had a season-best 20 rebounds in the Dec. 20 win over Northwestern. Entering this season, there were only 15 games in Butler history where a Bulldog had 19 or more rebounds.
• Thad Matta enters Wednesday’s game with 499 career wins as a head coach.
• Ten different Bulldogs have scored at least 13 points in at least one game this season.
Capital Knowledge on Georgetown
• KJ Lewis (15.5 points per game) and Malik Mack (14.2) lead the Hoyas in scoring.
• Lewis is tops in the BIG EAST in steals, averaging 2.3 swipes per game (a mark that is also Top 20 nationally).
• The Hoyas commit only 10.1 turnovers per game, a figure that is tied for the BIG EAST lead.
First Time Around
• Georgetown won the first match-up, 73-64, Jan. 31 in Indianapolis.
• The Hoyas shot 55 percent from the field and made 10-of-20 three-point attempts.
• The Bulldogs were only able to hit 37 percent of their attempts from the field, including just 5-for-27 in the second half.
• Jamie Kaiser Jr. led the Bulldogs with a career-high 19 points.
• Vincent Iwuchukwu and KJ Lewis led Georgetown with 17 points apiece
History with the Hoyas
• Twenty-five (25) of the 27 match-ups between the two teams have come as BIG EAST opponents once the Bulldogs joined the conference prior to the 2013-14 season.
• The teams first met in the 2009 Jimmy V Classic at Madison Square Garden and also played at the 2014 Battle 4 Atlantis, as both teams had agreed to be part of the event before Butler joined the BIG EAST.
• Each team has found success on the road as Butler is 8-4 in the nation’s capital, while Georgetown is 8-5 at Hinkle Fieldhouse.
The Series: Butler leads, 14-13
Streak: Georgetown, W1
In D.C.: Butler leads, 8-4
First Meeting: Dec. 8, 2009; Georgetown, 72-65 (at Jimmy V; MSG)
Last Meeting: Jan. 31, 2026; Georgetown, 77-64 (at BU)
Up Next
The Bulldogs return to Hinkle to host Xavier Saturday (Feb. 21).
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IU INDY SWIMMING AND DIVING
IU INDY SET TO HOST HORIZON LEAGUE SWIM AND DIVE CHAMPIONSHIPS
INDIANAPOLIS – The IU Indy men’s and women’s swim and dive teams kick off the 2026 #HLSD Championships this week on Wednesday, February 18. The event will last all week until Saturday, February 21.
The men’s team enters the week with a 16-0 mark on the 2025-26 season. The Jags have come close to upsetting the reigning champs, Oakland, the past three years, finishing in second. Logan Kelly leads the men’s team in the pool as the top seeded swimmer in the 100 breast with a NCAA D1 cut time of 51.56 and the 200 breast, also a NCAA D1 time of 1:54.28.
On the boards for the men’s team, Sebastian Otero will attempt to stay undefeated in the Horizon League. The senior will look to defend his title once again and become a four-time champion in both the 1-meter and 3-meter diving events.
The women’s team enters the week with a 15-3 mark on the season. Bella Tufts enters the meet with the third fastest time in the 500 free at 4:56.47 while Victoria Surdyka currently holds the second fastest time in the 100 breast (1:03.34).
Alaina Heyde currently sits at the top of the Horizon League in the 1-meter diving event with a score of 283.50 as well as the 3-meter event at 303.08.
The event will begin on Wednesday, February 18 at 1:00 PM with the women’s 3-meter diving prelims. For the full schedule visit the 2026 Horizon League Swimming and Diving Championship Central page.
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BALL STATE MEN’S BASKETBALL
MEN’S BASKETBALL FALLS AT OHIO DESPITE EARLY SECOND HALF RALLY
ATHENS, Ohio – The Ball State men’s basketball team started the second half on a 9-0 scoring but couldn’t finish off the comeback attempt in a 69-57 setback to Ohio on Tuesday night at the Convocation Center.
The Cardinals led 13-9 following a 7-0 rally capped by a layup from Davion Hill at the 8:45 mark of the first half but were limited to two more points the remainder of the period as the hosts took a 32-15 advantage into halftime. Four different Ball State players scored in the early second half run, which made the score 32-24 and forced an Ohio timeout following Preston Copeland’s layup with 17:38 to play.
Ball State (8-18, 3-10 Mid-American Conference) cut its deficit to seven points on two occasions after a layup from Hill made the score 41-34 and two free throws made it a 43-36 game with 8:58 on the clock. A 3-pointer by Devon Barnes at the 2:38 mark of the second half cut the Ohio lead to 62-54, but the Bobcats (13-13, 8-6 MAC) scored the next five points to take the home win.
Barnes led the Cardinals with 17 points, getting 15 of those in the second half on 6-for-7 shooting from the field (3-for-3 on triples). Hill followed with 16 points and five rebounds, while Copeland tallied seven points and 10 boards on the night.
Ball State outrebounded Ohio 35-34 and enjoyed a 30-20 edge on points in the paint. The Cardinals committed one more turnover (9-8) and allowed the Bobcats to gain a 12-4 advantage on points from turnovers.
Aidan Hadaway (18 points, eight rebounds) and Jackson Paveletzke (18 points, six assists) paced the Ohio offense, which shot 42.3 percent (22-52) on field goals, 38.1 percent (8-21) on 3-pointers and 81.0 percent (17-21) at the foul line.
Ball State went 40.7 percent (22-54) from the field including 27.8 percent (5-18) from distance and 57.1 percent (8-14) on free throws.
The Cardinals will next return home to play Akron at 6:30 p.m. on Friday.
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BALL STATE MEN’S VOLLEYBALL
MACHADO NAMED AVCA NATIONAL COLLEGIATE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
MUNCIE, Ind. – The Ball State men’s volleyball program’s dominant start to the 2026 season continues, as junior setter Lucas Machado has been recognized as the American Volleyball Coaches Association National Collegiate Player of the Week. Machado is the first Cardinal since Angelos Mandilaris in 2022 to earn the award.
Machado earns his second weekly award of the season, being named the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association Defensive Player of the Week on Feb. 3.
Machado guided the Cardinals to advance to a nine-match win streak and a 4-0 conference start with a total of 81 assists this past week versus No. 12 McKendree and No. 13 Lindenwood. Versus the Bearcats, Machado had 44 assists with six kills and seven digs while hitting .600. The next night versus the Lions, Machado tallied 37 assists to go along with seven kills on a .778 clip and seven digs. With 10.12 assists per set through the week, the junior led Ball State to an average hitting percentage of .406.
The Cardinals look to continue its momentum on the road with conference matchups against No. 13 Ohio State on Feb. 19 at 7 p.m. and Northern Kentucky on Feb. 21 at 5 p.m.
SCHERER HONORED WITH MIVA DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK AWARD
MUNCIE, Ind. – As the Ball State Men’s Volleyball Program prepares to hit the road for a pair of away matches this week, senior libero Victor Scherer has been named the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association Defensive Player of the Week, announced by the league Tuesday morning. Scherer earns the honor for the first time in his career.
The 2023 national dig leader aided the Cardinals with 22 this past week, helping Ball State secure a 4-0 mark to open conference play while remaining unbeaten inside Worthen Arena. Versus McKendree (Feb. 12) Scherer posted a season-high 13 digs, followed by a nine-dig performance versus Lindenwood (Feb. 13). His 2.75 digs per set average between the two contests ranked second in the conference.
The ninth-ranked Ball State men’s volleyball team travels to No. 13 Ohio State on Feb. 19 and Northern Kentucky on Feb. 21. First serve against the Buckeyes starts at 7 p.m. and action versus the Norse begins at 5 p.m.
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BALL STATE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL TAKES FIRST-PLACE MOMENTUM TO BUFFALO FOR #MACTION SHOWCASE
Wednesday’s game against Buffalo will mark the 42nd time in program history the two schools have met, with the Cardinals leading the all-time series, 25-16. Ball State and Buffalo’s first-ever meeting was on Jan. 30 at Buffalo in 1998-99.
– The Ball State women’s basketball team showcased unmatched offensive firepower and defensive intensity in their first meeting this year with Buffalo, securing a commanding 103-61 victory at Worthen Arena. The Cardinals’
defense stifled the Bulls, forcing 24 turnovers and holding them to 39% shooting from the floor.
– The Cardinals typically carry on their success throughout the month of February in preparation for the Mid-American Conference Tournament. Under head coach Brady Sallee the Cardinals own a 65-39 (.605) record in February with his best season being in 2019-20 as Ball State posted a 7-1 ledger that year.
– The Cardinals officially clinched its spot in the 2026 Mid-American Conference (MAC) Tournament with a commanding 83–68 victory over EMU last Tuesday. The win also secured head coach Brady Sallee’s ninth 20-win season in program history. This achievement marks the fourth consecutive year the Cardinals have reached at least 20 victories, a stretch that includes a program-record 28 wins during the 2023–24 season.
MAC Tournament Facts:
The Cardinals continue to be a staple of March Madness in the MAC, securing their 36th program appearance in the conference tournament. Ball State’s dominance is especially clear over the last quarter-century, having advanced to Cleveland for 24 of the past 26 seasons. With an all-time tournament record of 27–33, the team has fought their way to seven championship games, ultimately crowning their efforts with titles in 2009 and 2025. Under head coach Brady Sallee, the Ball State women’s basketball team has made it to Cleveland for the MAC Tournament 11 times, including reaching the championship game in 2014, 2022, and 2025. The 2025 championship was a historic milestone, marking Sallee’s first conference tournament title in 21 years of head coaching and the program’s first since 2009.
Strong Shooting Under Sallee:
Brady Sallee is known for developing his players into strong shooters, over the years. In the last two seasons the Cardinals have ranked in the top 75 nationally in offense. In 2023-24 the Cardinals were 53rd in offense averaging 72.7 points per game while in 2024-25 Ball State finished the year ranked 72nd averaging 72.5 points per game. This season the Cardinals rank in the nation: 18th in field goal percentage (46.7), 51st in field goal defense (37.1) and 24th in scoring offense (79.0).
Where We Rank in the MAC:
Ball State remains at the top of the charts in assists per game (19.2),assist/turnover ratio (1.13), field goal percentage (46.7), field goal percentage defense (37.1), defensive rebounds per game (30.4), rebounds per game (43.58), scoring offense (79.0) and winning percentage (80.8).
Road Warriors:
Under head coach Brady Sallee the Cardinals have played well on the road for the last 14 years under his watch. The Cardinals are 121-77 (.599) from 2012 until present on the road. Ball State’s best season playing away from home was in 2020-21 when the Cardinals posted an 11-2 mark. Ball State is 11-3 this season on the road including neutral site games.
International Success:
The Cardinals have had plenty of international success under 14th year head coach Brady Sallee. We all remember Nathalie Fontaine the 6-2 guard from Stockholm, Sweden became Ball State’s all-time leading scorer with 2,166 points. The 2016 MAC Player of the Year and AP honorable mention averaged 21.0 points per game and 10.2 rebounds while making over 50 percent of her shots. After Fontaine was Carmen Grande a native from Madrid, Spain who held onto the all-time assists record with 697 until Ally Becki surpassed her last season with 721 and we also cannot forget Thelma Dis Agustsdottir from Keflavik, Iceland who holds the all-time 3-point record with 325 treys. Agustsdottir also competed at the Celsius 3-point championship at the NCAA Tournament.
Bree Salenbien Earns MAC Player of the Week Honors For Third Time This Season:
Salenbien turned in a star-studded week for the Cardinals which was highlighted by a historic performance on Saturday, February 14, after she exploded for a career-high 32 points in an 82–67 victory over Bowling Green. This scoring outburst tied her for the eighth-highest single-game total in program history. Salenbien was efficient across the board, shooting 11-of-18 from the field and adding 8 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 blocks in the win. Earlier in the week, Salenbien set the tone on the road against Eastern Michigan, tying for a team-high 22 points while contributing 5 rebounds, 3 steals, and 2 blocks in an 83–68 win. Over the two-game span, she averaged 27 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks while shooting 54 percent from the field and 76 percent from the charity stripe, propelling Ball State to its sixth consecutive victory and also a first-place standing in the MAC with a 12–1 league record.
Scouting Buffalo:
– The Bulls are second in the MAC and rank 40th in the nation in offensive rebounds per game (14.4). UB has started four freshmen in six straight games and has started three rookies 12 times. They are one of two teams in the MAC to have a rookie leading the squad in minutes played.
– Head coach Kristen Sharkey is in her first year at the helm of the Bulls after a standout playing career at UB, followed by seven seasons on staff where she helped lead the Bulls to three MAC championship titles and a Sweet 16 appearance.
– Brady Sallee owns a 14-8 record against the Bulls dating back to his first season at BSU.
– Ball State has won six-straight over the Bulls dating back to 2022-23.
– Aniya Rowe is the lone Bull who is averaging double-figure points as she scores 13.2 points per contest. Defensively, Meg Lucas brings down 9.9 rebounds a game.
What’s Next:
The Cardinals head to Oxford, Ohio, this Saturday for a high-stakes rematch against their “Red Bird” rivals, the Miami RedHawks (20–5). This matchup carries major Mid-American Conference (MAC) implications after Miami snapped Ball State’s long-standing home dominance earlier this season. The game is slated to begin at 1 pm ET in Millette Hall.
BREE SALENBIEN EARNS THIRD MAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONOR
CLEVELAND, Ohio – Ball State women’s basketball senior Bree Salenbien has been tabbed the Mid-American Conference Player of the Week. This is the third time this season Salenbien has earned the accolade.
Salenbien turned in a star-studded week for the Cardinals, which was highlighted by a historic performance on Saturday, February 14, after she exploded for a career-high 32 points in an 82–67 victory over Bowling Green. This scoring outburst tied her for the eighth-highest single-game total in program history. Salenbien was efficient across the board, shooting 11-of-18 from the field and adding 8 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 blocks in the win.
Earlier in the week, Salenbien set the tone on the road against Eastern Michigan, tying for a team-high 22 points while contributing 5 rebounds, 3 steals, and 2 blocks in an 83–68 win. Over the two-game span, she averaged 27 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks while shooting 54 percent from the field and 76 percent from the charity stripe, propelling Ball State to its sixth consecutive victory and also a first-place standing in the MAC with a 12–1 league record.
The Ball State women’s basketball team will play at Buffalo on Wednesday at 6 pm ET in Alumni Arena.
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INDIANA STATE MEN’S BASKETBALL
SYCAMORES PREPPED FOR THE VISITING PANTHERS ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State men’s basketball plays the Panthers of Northern Iowa on Wednesday night inside Hulman Center for the team’s second-to-last regular-season home game.
| Indiana State Men’s Basketball vs Northern Iowa | |
| Date | Wednesday, February 18 // 7 p.m. ET |
| Location // Venue | Terre Haute, Ind. // Hulman Center |
| Game Notes | Indiana State Notes // UNI Notes |
| Live Stats | Live Stats Link |
| Watch | ESPN+ |
| Listen | Radio |
| Social Media | @IndStBasketball // @IndStAthletics |
Last Time Out
Indiana State men’s basketball dropped their Sunday afternoon matchup at Valparaiso, 76-75. Valpo hit a game-winner with under 10 seconds left in the game to secure the win.
The Sycamores finished with five in double-digit scoring, led by Sterling Young with 16 on 6-for-11 shooting, adding in four rebounds. Xavier Hall scored 14 on 5-of-9 shooting, adding five assists and no turnovers in 34 minutes of action. Ian Scott finished with 13 points, eight rebounds, and five assists.
Series History
This will be the 72nd meeting between the two teams and the second of the season. Indiana State opened 2026 in Cedar Falls with a 75-66 defeat. Despite the nine-point deficit, the Sycamores were with a possession with just over two minutes remaining in the game.
Northern Iowa has won the last three games by an average margin of 14.33. Overall, the Sycamores hold a slight lead, 37-34, and in Terre Haute own a 22-10 record.
Quick Hits
From Last Game:
Indiana State shot 54.4% from the field (31-for-57), the sixth-best effort this season and the best percentage in a loss. The 64.3% (27-for-42) two-point percentage is the best since making 66.7% at UIC on January 27.
The Sycamores scored 54 points in the paint Sunday afternoon, the best effort all season against Division I opponents (60 against Illinois Tech). It’s the most in a game for the Sycamores since last season when the team played at Valparaiso, scoring 56 in the paint on January 8 in a 98-95 overtime loss.
Thursday’s game was only Camp Wagner’s third time with 15+ points in 2026 (12 games). From the start of this season through 12/31, he did s eight times in 14 games.
Xavier Hall with 14 points recorded back-to-back double-digit games; hasn’t done so since a streak of four straight from December 7-21 (four games). Hall now has five assists in four-straight games, and five assists in five of the six games. In the last six games, he is shooting 20-for-38 (52.8%) from the field, better than his season average entering the game (42.7%).
With six rebounds in today’s game, Enel St. Bernard has eight games in the last 10 with six or more rebounds. He has 6+ in each of the last five games.
The Sycamores in conference play moved to 3-13. In conference games alone, the average margin in -4.1.
Following the Valparaiso game, INS is 8-1 when giving up 73 points or less & 2-16 when allowing 74+ points.
Gameday Promotion
Blue Out
Indiana State Faculty/Staff Night
Up Next
Indiana State plays two games on the road, first heading to Nashville on Saturday for an 8 p.m. ET tip at Belmont.
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PURDUE FT. WAYNE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
BLACK AND GOLD HOST GOLD AND BLACK ON WEDNESDAY
FORT WAYNE, Ind. – Purdue Fort Wayne women’s basketball will play host to the Oakland Golden Grizzlies on Wednesday (Feb. 17) with a 7 p.m. tip in the Gates Sports Center.
Game Day Information
Who: Oakland Golden Grizzlies
When: Wednesday, February 17 | 7 PM
Where: Fort Wayne, Ind. | Gates Sports Center
Live Stats: Link
Watch: ESPN+
Listen:95.7 WELT
Tickets:Link
Game Notes: Purdue Fort Wayne | Oakland | Horizon League
Know Your Foe
Oakland is 8-18 and 5-11 in Horizon League play. The Golden Grizzlies have lost their last five games to Youngstown State, Northern Kentucky, Detroit Mercy, IU Indy and Wright State. Horizon League Freshman of the Year candidate Makenzie Luehring is averaging 14.0 points per game and an improved 17.6 in league play. The latter mark is second-best in the Horizon League.
Series History
Oakland leads the series 19-16, but the Mastodons have won the last six. In the last five, the ‘Dons have won by an average of 25.4. The Mastodons won 84-64 earlier this year in Rochester thanks to 24 points from Alana Nelson.
A Win Would…
• Improve the Mastodons’ record to 17-19 against Oakland all-time
• Give the Mastodons their seventh win a row over Oakland
• Improve the Mastodons’ record at home to 12-1
• Give Maria Marchesano her 58th Horizon League win and 90th win as Mastodon head coach
Watch Out For Alana
Alana Nelson was selected for the Celsius Women’s 3-Point Championship Watch List. The event will be held on April 3 at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Nelson and Green Bay’s Jenna Guyer were the only two representatives for Horizon League on the list.
Assists Here!
Lauren Lee’s 3.4 assists per game this season ranks fifth in the Mastodons’ Division I history. Her 2.05 assist-to-turnover ratio ranks as the second-best in the program’s Division I era.
Anyone’s Night
The Mastodons have six different players that have scored 20 points or more in a game this season: Rylee Bess, Lili Krasovec, Alana Nelson, Hillary Offing, Jordan Reid and Ella Riggs.
Alotta Alana
Alana Nelson ranks in the top-70 nationally with a field goal percentage of 50.5. She is also top-90 with 16.6 points per game and 40th in 3-point percentage at 41.1.
Even More Alana
When Alana Nelson scores 15 or more, the Mastodons are 14-2. The two losses were at Xavier and at Wright State.
Look at Lee!
Lauren Lee is second in the HL with 4.3 assists per league game. She also has a 2.6 assist-to-turnover ratio in league play, a league-best. Her 2.05 assist-to-turnover for the entire season is first in the league and 40th in the country.
The Latest of Lili
Over the last six games, Lili Krasovec averaged 14.5 points per game.
Last Time Out
Jordan Reid scored a team-high 20 points to lead Purdue Fort Wayne to an 84-68 win at Detroit Mercy. Lili Krasovec registered her first-career double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds.
Next Time Up
Purdue Fort Wayne will play host to Youngstown State on Saturday (Feb. 21) for its annual Pink Out game. Prior to the contest, there will be a luncheon honoring survivors.
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EVANSVILLE MEN’S BASKETBALL
MEN’S BASKETBALL HOSTS UIC ON WEDNESDAY EVENING
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Set for its final handful of regular season contests, the University of Evansville men’s basketball team plays host to UIC Wednesday evening at 7 p.m. at the Ford Center. ESPN+ and Purple Aces Radio Network will have the broadcast.
| UE vs. UIC | |
| Game Information | Wednesday, February 18 | 7 p.m. CST | Ford Center | Evansville, Ind. |
| Game Coverage | ESPN+ | Live Stats | Live Audio | Game Notes | Virtual Game Program |
| UE Basketball | Men’s Basketball Home Page | Twitter |
Last Time Out
– Southern Illinois scored 22 consecutive points in the first half last week before pulling away for an 86-60 win in Carbondale
– Trailing by a score of 33-9 with nine minutes left in the first half, UE got as close as seven before SIU pulled away in the final minutes
– Bryce Quinet matched his career high with 20 points while Josh Hughes scored 14
Matching his Mark
– In the road game at SIU, Bryce Quinet matched his career scoring mark scoring 20 points while setting highs in field goal makes (9) and attempts (16)
– His first 20-point game came in the home game versus Bradley
– Quinet has reached double figures in 10 of his first 15 MVC games
– In the win over Illinois State, he posted 17 points going 6-for-11 from the field
– Quinet is averaging 11.1 PPG in his last 13 contests; he scored a team-high 13 points at Illinois State before posting 16 on the road at Drake
Top Performance
– AJ Casey scored a career-high 28 points in the win over Illinois State marking the highest tally for a UE player this season
– Casey was 10-of-15 from the field and 3-of-5 from outside; he is 7th in the MVC shooting 51.3%
– He has scored 7+ points in 17 of the last 18 games and is averaging 14.9 PPG against MVC foes after scoring 7.8 PPG in non-conference play
– Casey reset his career mark with four steals at Valpo and is 7th in the league with 1.31/gm
Series Notes
– UIC holds an 11-2 lead in the overall series against UE and has won 10 of the last 11
– Both Aces wins have come at home including 77-60 on 1/31/24 and a 73-68 win on 11/22/02
3-Point Success
– Over his last nine games, Alex Hemenway has converted 19 of his 56 outside attempts while averaging 7.7 points per game
– During that time, Hemenway has hit multiple triples in eight of those contests
– For the season he is shooting 33.6% from long range
– Hemenway scored 12 points at Indiana State and 11 against Bradley
Scouting the Opponent
– UIC comes into Wednesday’s game with a 15-12 mark and stand at 10-6 in Valley play
– After opening their league slate with four consecutive losses, the Flames have been gone 10-2
– On Sunday, UIC earned an 83-56 home win over Illinois State following an 80-70 home triumph over Drake
– Three players average double figures for the Flames with Ahmad Henderson II leading the way with 12.5 PPG
– Elijah Crawford has recorded 12.1 PPG while Andy Johnson has posted 11.5 PPG
– Crawford was the top performer in the first meeting between the squads as he scored 16
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EVANSVILLE SOFTBALL
MALIYAH WILKINS NAMED MVC PLAYER AND NEWCOMER OF THE WEEK
ST. LOUIS – University of Evansville sophomore Maliyah Wilkins was named the Missouri Valley Conference Player and Newcomer of the Week on Tuesday afternoon.
Wilkins put together a stellar offensive week for the Purple Aces in the 901 Classic. In four games, Wilkins batted .500 with seven hits in 14 at-bats. She belted three home runs while finishing with nine RBI, five runs, and two walks. Despite going hitless in the weekend opener against Kansas City, Wilkins picked up an RBI.
From that point on, she went 7-for-10 from the plate while leading UE to a pair of victories. In Friday’s game versus Miami Ohio, Wilkins went 2-3 with a home run, three RBI, and a run. Wilkins followed that up with another 2-for-3 effort versus USI with her second homer of the weekend and two more runs.
She wrapped up the weekend with her top effort of the season going 3-4 with another home run, three RBI, and two runs.
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SOUTHERN INDIANA MEN’S BASKETBALL
USI STARTS FOUR-GAME ROAD SWING THURSDAY
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Men’s Basketball team begins its four-game season-ending road swing Thursday with a visit to Western Illinois. Thursday’s matchup on Macomb, Illinois, is set for 7:30 p.m.
USI will finish the first half of the road swing Saturday in Charleston, Illinois, with a 3:30 p.m. game at Eastern Illinois. The second half of the road trip is February 24 when the Screaming Eagles pay a visit to Morehead State and conclude the season February 28 at Little Rock.
Both games are scheduled to be streamed on ESPN+, while the USI-TSU game Thursday will be telecast regionally on selected Gray Media affiliates. All USI games are aired live on ESPN 97.7FM and The Spin 95.7FM.
The Screaming Eagles (5-21, 2-14 OVC) are looking to snap a losing streak and end the season on a winning note. USI has lost six-straight, including a loss to Tennessee State, 73-71, and Tennessee Tech, 82-74, at home last week.
USI senior guard Cardell Bailey led the Screaming Eagles in the scoring column with 16.5 points per game. Senior guard Ismail Habib followed with 15.0 points per contest, while junior guard/forward Amaree Brown rounded out the double-digit scorers with 11.0 points per outing.
For the season, Habib has been posting 15.6 points per game to lead USI in scoring. Brown is second with 13.6 points per outing, while Bailey is third on the team in scoring with 13.4 points per contest this season.
Western Illinois (5-22, 1-15 OVC) has been idle since falling at Little Rock, 77-58, at home last Thursday. The Leathernecks are 4-8 at home and 1-15 on the road in 2025-26.
WIU leads the all-time series USI, 6-3, after the Screaming Eagles took the first meeting of this year, 96-64.
Eastern Illinois (11-16, 7-9 OVC) is coming off a win over Little Rock, 78-72, at home Saturday. EIU leads the all-time series with USI, 5-4, after winning the first meeting of the season, 59-51, in overtime. The Panthers have won four of the last six matchups with the Screaming Eagles.
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SOUTHERN INDIANA BASEBALL
USI OPENS 2026 HOME SCHEDULE WITH WEATHER CHANGES
EVANSVILLE, Ind. — University of Southern Indiana Baseball opens the 2026 home schedule this weekend when it hosts Oakland University for a four-game series. The first pitch of the series, which is sponsored by Fairfield Inn West, will be a day early as the Screaming Eagles and the Grizzles will start play on Thursday at 5 p.m. at the USI Baseball Field.
The new game schedule for this weekend is a single game Thursday; a doubleheader Friday at 1 p.m.; and a single game Saturday at 1 p.m. The series was originally slated for Friday through Sunday.
The series will be the first meeting between USI, which was 2-2 after the first weekend, and Oakland, which was 1-2, since 2023 when the Grizzlies took two of three from the Screaming Eagles.
Links to follow the Eagles during the opening weekend of 2026 can be found on USIScreamingEagles.com and the USI Baseball Schedule.
USI Baseball Notes:
USI opens season with series split. The USI Screaming Eagles split the opening weekend on the road in Bakersfield, California, versus Cal State Bakersfield. USI took game two, 7-6, and three, 14-8, while missing a chance to take game one, 8-7, with a runner thrown out at the plate, and game four, 11-10, stranding the bases loaded.
USI hitters roll into 2026. The Screaming Eagles were on a roll at the plate to start the year, batting a combined .329 (51-155) with 35 RBIs. Senior infielder Patrick McLellan hit a blistering .471 with seven RBIs, six runs scored, two doubles, and a home run.
McLellan has perfect night. Senior infielder Patrick McLellan had a perfect night in game two, going six-for-six, with five RBIs. The six hits were a career-best for the senior.
Pitching has battles in first series. USI pitching had a tough start with a 7.15 ERA through the first four games. The Screaming Eagles’ hurlers did strikeout 35 Roadrunners in 34 innings of work and held Bakerfield hitters to a .246 batting average (31-126).
USI predicted 7th in 2026 OVC. The USI Screaming Eagles are predicted to place seventh in the Ohio Valley Conference in 2026 by a vote of the league’s coaches and communications directors and by D1Baseball.com.
USI advanced to OVC Championship for third-straight season: The Eagles earned a third trip to the OVC Championship during their third season of transitioning to NCAA Division I. The Eagles will be eligible for the NCAA postseason in 2026.
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VALPO WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
BEACONS HEAD TO DRAKE THURSDAY EVENING
Valparaiso (0-26, 0-15 MVC)
Game #27 – February 19, 2026 – 6 p.m.
at Drake (7-17, 6-8 MVC)
Knapp Center (6,424) – Des Moines, Iowa
Next Up in Valpo Basketball: The Valpo women’s basketball team continues its final road swing of the regular season Thursday evening when it makes the trek to Des Moines to take on Drake.
Previously: The Beacons closed their weekend road trip against the top two teams in the Valley with a 77-37 loss at Belmont Sunday afternoon in Nashville, Tenn. Fiona Connolly paced Valpo with 11 points.
Following Valpo Basketball: Video: ESPN+
Links for live coverage: Available via ValpoAthletics.com
Head Coach Courtney Boyd (0-26 at Valpo, 1st season; 180-94 [.57] overall, 9th season): Courtney Boyd was named the ninth head coach of the Valparaiso University women’s basketball program on April 4, 2025. A national championship-winning head coach and player, an NAIA National Coach of the Year, and a two-time conference Coach of the Year, Boyd has won 20 or more games in seven of her first eight seasons as a head coach. She spent the last two seasons at the helm of the Quincy University program after six seasons as head coach at Clarke University, leading the latter program to the NAIA national title in 2022-23.
Series Notes: Drake leads the all-time series with Valpo, 19-3, including a 66-56 victory at the ARC last month. Milana Nenadic scored a team-high 18 points off the bench in that contest, while Kayla Sullivan (11) and Kayla Preston (10) scored in double figures as well. Valpo owns just one win in program history in 10 games at the Knapp Center.
@ValpoWBB…
…at Belmont
– The Bruins got out to a 19-2 lead less than seven minutes into the ballgame.
– Valpo scored eight in a row on a 3-pointer by Mor Shabtai and five points from Milana Nenadic before Belmont scored in the final seconds to lead 21-10 at the end of one quarter.
– A 3-pointer from Allia von Schlegell on Valpo’s second possession of the second quarter made it a single-digit game, and it was still an eight-point deficit at 23-15 with 7:25 to play in the half on a drive and finish by von Schlegell.
– Belmont ended the half on a 16-3 run to take a 39-18 advantage into halftime.
– Fiona Connolly hit all four of her field-goal attempts for 10 points in the third quarter, but the Bruins extended their lead to 62-32 with 10 minutes to play.
– Connolly scored a team-best 11 points, her 14th double-figure effort of the season. She also matched her career high with nine rebounds, sharing team-high honors with Nenadic, and tallied three steals to tie for a game high.
– Mikayla Huffine grabbed five rebounds and handed out four assists while committing just one turnover.
– The Beacons shot just 19.4% from the field Sunday and were 6-for-33 from 3-point range, while the Bruins hit at a 36.5% clip and were 14-for-40 from deep.
– Valpo grabbed 17 offensive rebounds, its highest total since recording 22 at Missouri State Feb. 18, 2018. The Beacons held a 10-9 advantage in second-chance points over the Bruins, who had 18 offensive boards of their own.
– Valpo did hold two-time All-MVC performer Tuti Jones without a point in her 22 minutes of action.
…at Murray State
– Murray State held a pair of early five-point leads, but coming out of the first quarter media timeout, Valpo reeled off six in a row on an Allia von Schlegell basket and a pair of drives to the bucket by Fiona Connolly to go ahead 12-11 with 2:39 to play in the period.
– After the teams traded baskets, Murray State scored eight of the next ten to pull ahead by five points again. von Schlegell responded with a 3-pointer on Valpo’s final possession of the first quarter to bring it within 21-19 at period’s end.
– The Beacons limited the Racers to just four points over the first three-plus minutes of the second quarter, but on the offensive end, a von Schlegell triple accounted for the only points on Valpo’s side of the board.
– Murray State went on an 11-2 run to pull out to a 36-24 lead with 2:10 to play in the half. Another 3-pointer by von Schlegell made it a single-digit game, and after the Racers scored with 30 seconds to play, Milana Nenadic converted a hook shot in the final seconds to make it a 38-29 game at halftime.
– von Schlegell connected again from deep less than a minute into the second half, shrinking the deficit to eight points at 40-32.
– Murray State scored on each of its next nine possessions, outscoring the Beacons 25-7 in that stretch, to lead 65-39.
– The Racers’ advantage was 78-47 at the end of the third quarter, and while they led by as many as 38 points in the final period, Valpo battled back to cut the deficit to the final margin.
– von Schlegell led the Beacons with 22 points on 9-of-16 shooting, including 4-of-7 from 3-point range. It was her 15th double-figure scoring game of the season and the 12th time she has dropped at least 15 points.
– Connolly scored in double figures for the 13th time this season, finishing with 13 points on 6-of-12 shooting.
– Nenadic hit double digits for the ninth time with a 10-point evening and also paced Valpo on the glass with six rebounds.
– Valpo hit at a 43.5% clip from the field and was 7-of-24 from 3-point range, while the Racers shot 47.4% from the floor and were 11-of-29 from 3-point range.
– The Beacons were limited to three free throw attempts, going 2-of-3 from the stripe, while Murray State was 12-of-19.
…looking ahead
– Valpo’s next game is at UNI, but that game won’t be played until next Thursday.
– The Beacons then face a quick turnaround to return home for next Saturday afternoon and Senior Day against Illinois State.
…on the road
– Thursday’s game is the ninth of 10 road games in MVC play for the Beacons, who played six true road games as well in the nonconference slate.
– Valpo is currently 0-14 in true road games.
– Last season’s squad posted a 3-11 mark in true road games.
….and @ValleyHoops
– Valpo is in its ninth season as a member of the Missouri Valley Conference.
– Valpo was picked outside the top-four of the MVC preseason poll, as the Valley released only the top four selections.
– The Valley finished last season ranked seventh in the NET, matching the conference’s highest NET/RPI ranking in Valpo’s time as an MVC member (2020-21).
…looking back at last year
– Valpo finished last season with a 13-19 overall record and went 9-11 in MVC play to finish in eighth place.
– Among the Beacons’ 13 victories were a thrilling rally from a 20-point deficit for a home win over Drake which entered the game ranked 69th in NET, the program’s highest-ranked win since a win over #54 UNI in 2021-22.
– Leah Earnest was tabbed a First Team All-MVC honoree as she concluded a decorated career that saw her finish first in program history in career rebounds and third in career scoring.
– The 2024-25 Beacons hit 245 3-pointers, third-most in a single season in program history, and tallied 314 steals, seventh on the program’s single-season chart and the most since 2001-02.
@DrakeWBB
– Drake enters Thursday’s game at 6-8 in Valley play and owns a 7-17 overall record.
– The Bulldogs had dropped five games in a row before earning an 88-70 home win over Indiana State last time out.
– Abbie Aalsma averages a team-best 14.8 points/game, while Ana Becker adds 11.2 points/game.
Allia’s Big Day(s)
– Freshman Allia von Schlegell has been the Beacons’ leading scorer in MVC play, but took it to another level in Valpo’s last home game against Southern Illinois.
– von Schlegell’s 29 points bested her previous career high of 19 points by 10, as she established a career high for field goals made and matched her career best for 3-pointers made.
– von Schlegell scored the most points by a Valpo freshman since Ali Saunders scored 32 against UAB Nov. 21, 2022. It also matched the most points by an MVC freshman this season.
– 15 of von Schlegell’s points came in the fourth quarter alone as she outscored SIU in the final period. It is the most points in a single period by a Valpo player this season.
– Even more impressively, von Schlegell scored those 29 points while not committing a single turnover in 35 minutes of action. She is one of just five D-I freshmen this year with a game with 29 or more points and no turnovers.
– von Schlegell followed last Friday at Murray State with another big effort, going for a team-high 22 points on 9-of-16 shooting, including four 3-pointers.
The Freshman Fills It Up
– von Schlegell has made a big impact in her rookie season.
– She has scored in double figures 15 times this year – 12 times, von Schlegell has dropped at least 15 points – the most 15+ point games by a Valpo freshman since Dani Franklin hit the 15-point mark 12 times in the 2014-15 season.
– von Schlegell currently ranks second among MVC freshmen in scoring (11.5 points/game) and is first in 3-pointers made (55).
– She ranks 49th nationally in freshman scoring and is eighth among freshmen nationally in 3-pointers made.
– von Schlegell scored in double figures six times in nonconference action, tied for seventh-most in program history by a freshman in nonconference games since Valpo joined the North Star Conference for the 1987-88 season.
– Notably, the six players ahead of von Schlegell on that list all went on to earn All-Freshman/Newcomer Team honors and closed their time at Valpo among the top-12 in program history in career scoring.
Freshman Scoring Leaders
– von Schlegell has put herself in position to challenge Valpo’s freshman scoring record.
– Sarrah Stricklett scored 377 points as a rookie in 1996-97, a mark which von Schlegell enters Thursday 77 points back of:
377 – Sarrah Stricklett, 1996-97
365 – Dani Franklin, 2014-15
351 – Debbie Bolen, 1989-90
331 – Tabitha Gerardot, 2010-11
329 – Meredith Hamlet, 2015-16
326 – Jeanette Gray, 1999-2000
322 – Ali Saunders, 2022-23
302 – Jasmyn Walker, 2014-15
300 – Allia von Schlegell, 2025-26
Connolly’s Career Best Too
– von Schlegell wasn’t the only Valpo player to set a career high in the home game against SIU.
– Senior Fiona Connolly edged past her previous career best of 21 points, accomplished twice earlier this season, with a 22-point effort against the Salukis.
– It is the first time two Valpo players scored 20+ points in the same game since Leah Earnest tallied 24 points and Layla Gold 21 versus Detroit Mercy Dec. 21, 2024.
– von Schlegell and Connolly combined for 51 points against the Salukis, the highest combined scoring output for two Valpo players since Tabitha Gerardot (32) and Gina Lange (24) combined for 56 in a win over Cleveland State Feb. 2, 2013.
Nenadic’s Night
– It was truly a night to remember for Milana Nenadic at Illinois State Jan. 15, coming off the bench to deliver 34 points on 16-of-25 shooting.
– The 16 field goals made broke the program record for baskets in a single game, as the previous mark was shared at 15 by Deb Lahti (Feb. 19, 1983 vs. Carthage) and Lyn Swanson (Feb. 8, 1986 at Carthage).
– Nenadic is tied for ninth among NCAA D-I players this season for field goals in a game.
– Nenadic’s 25 field goal attempts are tied for eighth-most in a single game in Valpo history.
– The junior now shares fifth on Valpo’s single-game scoring chart with Dani Franklin, who dropped 34 at Stetson Nov. 12, 2016. Those two are the only Valpo players to score at least 34 in a game since 1992. Nenadic’s 34 points are the most by a player coming off the bench in program history.
– The 34 points is tied with Murray State’s Halli Poock for the highest-scoring game by an MVC player this season.
– Nenadic’s previous career best was 20 points earlier this year while facing All-American Audi Crooks at Iowa State.
– Nenadic is just the fourth MVC player in the last nine seasons with at least 16 baskets in a game, and joins a few pretty solid players in that department — Drake’s Katie Dinnebier, Belmont’s Destinee Wells and Murray State’s Katelyn Young.
– Nenadic went on to score 18 points later that weekend against Drake and was named MVC Newcomer of the Week Jan. 19 for her efforts, becoming Valpo’s first MVC weekly award winner in over four years.
Skip the Second?
– Four times in MVC play, the second quarter has proven to be the Beacons’ undoing.
– Most recently, the Beacons were outscored by SIU at the ARC 25-13 in the second quarter, while the other three quarters saw Valpo hold the 60-57 edge.
– Drake outscored Valpo at the ARC 19-7 in the second quarter, while the Beacons outscored the Bulldogs 49-47 in the other three periods.
– At Illinois State, a 31-12 second quarter for the Redbirds accounted for the entire final margin, as Valpo matched ISU 62-62 in the other three quarters.
– At Indiana State, the Sycamores’ 24-13 advantage in the second quarter offset Valpo’s 65-64 edge in the other three periods.
Shifting Starters
– Valpo has used ten different starting lineups this year, the most recent change coming at home versus SIU, as Nenadic joined Huffine, von Schlegell, Connolly and Sullivan.
– Ten different players have been a part of at least one starting five this year, with only one – Huffine – starting every game. All ten have started at least three games apiece.
– The Beacons have not used the same starting lineup in more than four consecutive games this season.
The Tall and the Short
– This year’s Valpo roster features recent extremes on both ends of the height spectrum.
– Mor Shabtai and Mikayla Huffine both are listed at 5-4, making them the shortest Valpo players since 5-3 Rashida Ray (2007-11).
– On the flip side, Kamryn Winch and Milana Nenadic both check in at 6-3, making them the tallest Valpo players since 6-5 Nicole Johanson (2018-19).
International Flavor
– Valpo has a trio of international players on its 2025-26 roster: sophomore Mor Shabtai (Israel) and transfers Milana Nenadic (Ontario, Canada) and Kennedy Sproule (Manitoba, Canada).
– Prior to Shabtai’s arrival last year, the Valpo program hadn’t had an international player since Sharon Karungi (Uganda) roamed the paint from 2013-15.
Sister Act
– For the third straight season, the Beacons have a pair of sisters on their roster, as freshman Nuala Connolly joins senior sister Fiona on this year’s squad.
– The last two years featured identical twins Nevaeh and Saniya Jackson.
– Before that, the last set of sisters to suit up together in the Brown and Gold were the trio of Hamlet sisters: Annemarie (2013-16) overlapped with both older sister Elizabeth (2013-14) and younger sister Meredith (2015-19).
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VALPO WOMEN’S TENNIS
VALPO TENNIS CONTINUES TO LOAD UP ON MVC WEEKLY AWARDS
The Valparaiso University tennis team continued its Missouri Valley Conference weekly awards haul on Tuesday as the Beacons swept the honors for the second time this season, with senior Moira Silva (Houston, Texas / Westside) earning MVC Singles Player of the Week and Silva joining sophomore Brynn Steven (Wichita, Kan. / Bishop Carroll) to form the league’s Doubles Team of the Week.
Silva turned in a perfect 2-0 week at No. 1 Singles, winning both of her matches in straight sets. Her singles play helped Valpo recover from dropping the doubles point in both matches to win the team match on both occasions. On Saturday vs. Marian, Silva achieved a “double bagel” at the top singles spot with a 6-0, 6-0 win over Marian’s Yasmin Imamniyazoa. On Sunday, Silva’s 6-2, 6-4 victory over Martyna Piechowicz at No. 1 Singles was crucial in Valpo’s 4-3 victory over Oakland. Silva now has 60 career singles wins including a 12-2 overall and 10-0 dual-match record this season. She has won six straight singles matches to start her spring season.
Valpo’s No. 2 doubles team of Silva and Steven went 2-0 this week, prevailing 6-1 over Marian’s Rivera Flores/Irigoyen on Saturday before a 6-2 victory over Bulut/Klimas on Sunday. Steven and Silva own a perfect 5-0 record playing doubles together. Silva moved into sole possession of fifth in program history with her 52nd career doubles win on Sunday.
Silva now has 13 career MVC weekly awards and five this season, including three MVC Singles Player of the Week nods. Silva and Steven won the league’s doubles award for the second time in 2026.
The Beacons will play their final match prior to spring break on Saturday at 2 p.m. as they host St. Thomas at The Courts of Northwest Indiana.
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VALPO WOMEN’S GOLF
SKIBINSKI LEADS BEACONS ON FINAL DAY IN LONE STAR STATE
Valparaiso University women’s golf senior Taylor Skibinski (Michigan City, Ind. / Michigan City) turned in her best round of the week, leading the team on the third and final day of the Islander Classic, hosted by Texas A&M Corpus Christi at the par-72, 6112-yard Corpus Christi CC in Corpus Christi, Texas.
How It Happened
Skibinski climbed four spots on the player leaderboard, moving into a tie for 35th thanks to her round on Tuesday. She posted a Round-3 score of 79 to lead the Beacons, including birdies on Holes 2 and 7. She used 242 strokes over the 54 holes.
The team’s second-best score both for the round and for the tournament came from fellow senior Katelyn McCoy (Chesterton, Ind. / Chesterton), who posted an 84 to finish at 246, tied for 40th in the field.
Valpo finished with a Round-3 team score of 338 and a total score of 1,002, placing 10th in the tournament. Houston Christian won the event at 902, with Elsa Tornvall of Texas A&M Corpus Christi taking medalist honors with a 5-over 221.
Thoughts from Head Coach Jill McCoy
“The conditions were tougher today. As we get farther into the spring, it’s going to be important to manage the wind better.”
Up Next
The Beacons will return to the course on Monday, March 23 to play in Northern Kentucky’s The Julie at Elks Run GC in Batavia, Ohio. A link to live scoring will be available on ValpoAthletics.com.
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UINDY SOFTBALL
GREYHOUNDS CONTINUE ASCENT OF NFCA POLL
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The undefeated UIndy softball team once again moved up the NFCA/GoRout Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll, released Tuesday. After a six-spot leap last week, the Greyhounds climbed one spot to No. 15, matching their highest ranking since the final poll of 2024.
UIndy is off to a perfect 6-0 start to the season, with all six wins coming versus in-region competition. The Hounds are one of two GLVC school in this week’s rankings, as McKendree University came in at No. 24.
NFCA DII COACHES POLL
| RK | TEAM (1st-place votes) | PTS | REC | PREV |
| 1. | AUM (15) | 399 | 10-0 | 1 |
| 2. | Cal State San Marcos (1) | 382 | 12-1 | 3 |
| 3. | Cal State East Bay | 359 | 14-1 | 5 |
| 4. | Tampa | 349 | 4-2 | 4 |
| 5. | West Texas A&M | 344 | 10-2 | 6 |
| 6. | Francis Marion | 307 | 9-1 | 10 |
| 7. | Missouri Southern | 294 | 15-1 | 17 |
| 8. | North Georgia | 287 | 8-2 | 8 |
| 9. | Angelo State | 269 | 11-4 | 2 |
| 10. | Southern Arkansas | 257 | 13-1 | 11 |
| 11. | Saginaw Valley State | 239 | 4-2 | 9 |
| 12. | West Florida | 216 | 11-2 | 13 |
| 13. | Rogers State | 213 | 10-3 | 12 |
| 14. | Oklahoma Christian | 203 | 9-1 | 14 |
| 15. | UIndy | 169 | 6-0 | 16 |
| 16. | Concordia | 154 | 10-4 | 15 |
| 17. | Central Oklahoma | 148 | 11-4 | 7 |
| 18. | Shippensburg | 114 | 0-0 | T-18 |
| 19. | Pace | 101 | 0-0 | T-18 |
| 20. | Colorado Christian | 99 | 10-2 | 21 |
| 21. | Saint Leo | 83 | 7-2-1 | 20 |
| 22. | Oklahoma Baptist | 58 | 12-2 | 24 |
| 23. | Kutztown | 45 | 3-1 | 22 |
| 24. | McKendree | 28 | 6-2 | 25 |
| 25. | Montevallo | 22 | 11-1 | RV |
Others receiving votes: Carson-Newman (19), Pittsburg State (19), Northwest Nazarene (10), Wilmington (7), East Stroudsburg (5), UAH (1).
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UINDY WOMEN’S LAX
GRAHAM GARNERS FIRST GLVC WOMEN’S LACROSSE WEEKLY AWARD
INDIANAPOLIS – UIndy junior goalie Ava Graham has been named the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC)/Athletic Solutions Players of the Week in women’s lacrosse, it was announced by the league office Tuesday.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Ava Graham, #91 Indianapolis
Jr. | GK | Baldwinsville, NY
Major: History
Team Result: 10-6 W vs. #1 Tampa (2/14)
Led UIndy to a win over top-ranked and reigning National Champion, Tampa.
Notched nine saves for a 60% save percentage on 25 shots faced.
Had two ground balls and one caused turnover
Had three fourth quarter saves, including one free position attempt save in the final minutes
Six goals are the fewest Tampa has scored since March 4, 2024, when Pace only allowed five.
Earns first career Defensive Player of the Week Award
Last Greyhounds’ Defensive Player of the Week: Mekayla Montgomery (4/24/23)
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MARIAN TRACK AND FIELD
CROSSROADS LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP PREVIEW: MARIAN MEN’S & WOMEN’S TRACK AND FIELD GEAR UP FOR INDOOR CL CHAMPIONSHIPS
Indianapolis, Ind. – The Marian men’s and women’s track and field teams begin their postseason runs this weekend, as the Knights are set to compete at the annual Crossroads League Indoor Track and Field Championships. Indiana Wesleyan serves as the host this season, with competition running on February 20 & 21 from the Troyer Fieldhouse.
Marian is the defending champion in both the men’s and women’s, as the programs look to run it back once again in 2026. The men’s track and field team is looking to earn its seventh consecutive championship in program history, while the women aim to bring home its sixth indoor Crossroads League championship and fifth consecutive title.
Marian broke three individual meet records last season, with one belonging to Jeremiah Brown in the 60m in prelims. Katie Woods also broke the league meet record in the one-mile race, and Nina Marinkovic broke the pentathlon record.
Last season, Marian’s men and women broke the meet records for most team points scored in a championship. The men broke their own record by 61.5 points, scoring 315 total, while the women broke their record by 54.5 points, totaling 248 as a team.
Live stream and results information can be found above in the story. The meet will be streamed by Indiana Wesleyan on the Urban Edge Network for free. The Heptathlon and Pentathlon start at approximately 10:30 am on Friday, while the field and running events start at 1 pm. On Saturday, the Heptathlon starts at 10 am, and the field events start at 1 pm.
Recaps for each day will be posted on MUKnights.com.
Below are Marian’s entries for both the men and women for the Crossroads League Championships.
Men
60m: Will Osafo, Jeremiah Brown, Ricardo Mateo
200m: Jeremiah Brown, Jonathon Phillips, Michael Hunter
400m: Eric Materna, Eli Givens, Tre Jones
600m: Eric Materna, Rick Williams, Dexter Parker
800m: Tristan Trevino, Charlie Leedke, Ben Riehle
1000m: Mason Piatt, Rick Williams, Everett Carlisle
Mile: Preston Markley & Lucas Steward
3000m: Ben Moster, Preston Markley, Sam Sienkowski
5000m: Marc Hernandez, Alex Lopez, Clark Chustz
4x400m: Malik Ferdinand, Dexter Parker, Tre Jones, Michael Hunter, AJ Kelly
4x800m: Tristan Trevino, Charlie Leedke, Mason Piatt, Everett Carlisle, Ben Riehle
DMR: Ben Riehle, AJ Kelly, Ben Moster, Michael Hunter, Preston Markley
60m Hurdles: Micah Williams, Emory McClellan, Henry Dixon
Pole Vault: Jake Grangier, Brennan LaBelle, Brenden Endres
High Jump: Victor Dailey, Ayden Eckstein, Gunner Kovach
Long Jump: Emauri Hines, Marko Brajovic, Tevares Frierson
Triple Jump: Marzeion Jones, Cameron Parsley, Emauri Hines
Shot Put: Javian Jones, Markevious Keys, Traeh Young
Weight Throw: Markevious Keys, Tobi Soneye, Sam Runholt
Heptathlon: Michael Runions, Peyton Doty, Gus Martinez
Women
60m: Catalla Jones, Armoney Clay, Jovana Milosevic
200m: Catalla Jones, Jovana Milosevic, Kathy Soriano
400m: Emma Edwards, Hanna Reuter, Holli Reuter
600m: Hanna Reuter, Claire Lange, Holli Reuter
800m: Katie Woods, Isabella Murch, Liz Fischer
1000m: Summer Rempe, Gracynn Hinkley, Grace Goecke
Mile: Emma Beimfohr
3000m: Lainey Roth, Josie Fledman, Sabrina Siems
5000m: Lainey Roth, Josie Feldman, Sabrina Siems
4x400m: Emma Edwards, Kathy Soriano, Catalla Jones, Kamiah Hunt, Kaylana Jackson
4x800m: Katie Woods, Summer Rempe, Graycnn Hinkley, Isabella Murch, Liz Fischer
DMR: Gracynn Hinkley, Kamiah Hunt, Gracie Fields, Isabella Murchh, Liz Fischer, Grace Goecke, Vivienne Siefker
60m Hurdles: Nina Marinkovic, Kaylana Jackson, Claire Lange
Pole Vault: Delaney Teachnor, Quynh Sedlacek, Ashlyn Schwab
High Jump: Brooke Coffman, Nina Marinkovic, Taylor Aselage
Long Jump: Hanna Reuter, Nina Marinkovic, Holli Reuter
Triple Jump: Ciarra Moore, Shirmara Anderson, Alivia Lilly
Shot Put: Ozofu Magaji, Hadleigh Filipovich, Gabi Bilbrey
Weight Throw: Nhaydia Watson, Ozofu Magaji, Hadleigh Filipovich
Pentathlon: Bella Dean, Taylor Aselage
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SMALL INDIANA COLLEGE SPORTS WEB SITES
UINDY ATHLETICS: https://athletics.uindy.edu/
MARIAN ATHLETICS: https://muknights.com/
INDIANA WESLEYAN ATHLETICS: https://iwuwildcats.com/
EARLHAM ATHLETICS: https://goearlham.com/
WABASH ATHLETICS: https://sports.wabash.edu/
FRANKLIN ATHLETICS: https://franklingrizzlies.com/
ROSE-HULMAN ATHLETICS: https://athletics.rose-hulman.edu/
ANDERSON ATHLETICS: https://athletics.anderson.edu/landing/index
TRINE ATHLETICS: https://trinethunder.com/landing/index
BETHEL ATHLETICS: https://bupilots.com/
DEPAUW ATHLETICS: https://depauwtigers.com/
HANOVER ATHLETICS: https://athletics.hanover.edu/
MANCHESTER ATHLETICS: https://muspartans.com/
HUNTINGTON ATHLETICS: https://www.huathletics.com/
OAKLAND CITY ATHLETICS: https://gomightyoaks.com/index.aspx
ST. FRANCIS ATHLETICS: https://www.saintfranciscougars.com/landing/index
IU KOKOMO ATHLETICS: https://iukcougars.com/
IU EAST ATHLETICS: https://www.iueredwolves.com/
IU SOUTH BEND ATHLETICS: https://iusbtitans.com/
PURDUE NORTHWEST ATHLETICS: https://pnwathletics.com/
INDIANA TECH ATHLETICS: https://indianatechwarriors.com/index.aspx
GRACE COLLEGE ATHLETICS: https://gclancers.com/
ST. MARY OF THE WOODS ATHLETICS: https://smwcathletics.com/
GOSHEN COLLEGE ATHLETICS: https://goleafs.net/
HOLY CROSS ATHLETICS: https://www.hcsaints.com/index.php
TAYLOR ATHLETICS: https://www.taylortrojans.com/
VINCENNES ATHLETICS: https://govutrailblazers.com/landing/index
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“SPORTS EXTRA”
TODAY IN SPORTS HISTORY
On February 18 in …
1899 – Stanley Cup of hockey: Montréal Shamrocks sweep Queens University (Kingston Ontario) in two games.
1909 – Boston Red Sox trade Cy Young, at age 41, to Cleveland Naps.
1919 – Cy Denneny of NHL Ottawa Senators scores record 52nd goal.
1922 – Kenesaw Mountain Landis resigns his judgeship to work for baseball.
1924 – US female Figure Skating championship won by Theresa Weld Blanchard.
1924 – US male Figure Skating championship won by Sherwin Badger.
1932 – Sonja Henie wins her 6th straight World Women’s figure skating title.
1936 – NHL record 62 points scored in a game, New York Americans (28) and Montréal Maroons (24).
1943 – William D Cox buys Philadelphia Phillies.
1944 – Cincinnati Reds sign youngest baseball player, 15-year-old Joe Nuxhall.
1951 – Three City College of New York basketball players admit to accepting bribes.
1960 – (to February 28) The VIII Olympic Winter Games are held in Squaw Valley, California, USA.
1960 – Walter O’Malley, Los Angeles Dodgers’ owner, purchases Chavez Ravine for US$494,000.
1962 – Louise Suggs wins LPGA Saint Petersburg Golf Open.
1965 – Frank Gifford announces his retirement from football for broadcasting.
1967 – Bob Seagren sets pole vault record at 17 feet 3 inches.
1967 – Softball pitcher Eddie Feigner strikes out six straight major league players.
1968 – X Olympic Winter Games close at Grenoble, France.
1969 – Doug Walters scores second innings century after 242 in first.
1973 – Belgian Emile Puttemans runs 3000 metre indoor record 7:39.2.
1973 – Sandra Palmer wins LPGA Pompano Beach Golf Classic.
1977 – Test Cricket debuts of Colin Croft and Joel Garner versus Pakistan Bridgetown.
1978 – First Iron Man Triathlon (swim, bike ride, marathon) held, Kona, Hawaii.
1979 – Amy Alcott wins LPGA Elizabeth Arden Golf Classic.
1986 – San Antonio Spurs’ Alvin Robertson scores NBA second quadruple double-20 points, 11 rebounds, ten assists and ten steals against Phoenix Suns.
1989 – Sherri Turner wins LPGA Orix Hawaiian Ladies Golf Open/Itoki Pro-Am.
1990 – Jane Crafter wins LPGA Phar-Mor at Inverrary Golf Tournament.
1991 – Edmonton Oilers’ goalie Grant Fuhr returns to NHL after season-long suspension for substance abuse and shuts out New Jersey Devils 4-0.
1994 – Dan Jansen skates world record 1000 metre (1:12.43).
1994 – Shreveport Pirates join Canadian Football League as fourth US team.
1995 – Angela Kennedy swims world record 100 metre butterfly.
1995 – Barb Thomas Whitehead wins Cup o’ Noodles Hawaiian Ladies Golf Open.
1995 – Warnecke swims world record 50 metre freestyle.
1996 – Tendulkar scores 127 in India’s Cricket World Cup win over Kenya.
1998 – New York Rangers fire head coach Colin Campbell.
2009 – Meseret Defar of Ethiopia breaks the world indoor record in the women’s 5,000-metres at the GE Gala meet in Stockholm, Sweden, covering the distance in a time of 14:24.37.
2022 – At T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, NHL regular season game: Los Angeles Kings beats Vegas Golden Knights by score 4-3.
2022 – At United Center in Chicago, Illinois, USA, NHL regular season game: Dallas Stars beats Chicago Blackhawks by score 1-0.
2022 – At Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA, NHL regular season game: Florida Panthers beats Minnesota Wild by score 6-2.
2022 – At PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina, USA, NHL regular season game: Carolina Hurricanes beats Nashville Predators by score 5-3.
Births of sports figures on February 18
1895 – Birth of George Gipp AKA The Gipper; Notre Dame football star.
1909 – Birth of Matti Jarvinen in Finland; javelin thrower (Olympics-gold-1932).
1926 – Birth of Len Ford; NFL end (Cleveland Browns, Green Bay Packers).
1927 – Birth of Fazal Mahmood; cricket player (Pakistani medium-pace workhorse 1952-62).
1928 – Birth of Jim McElreath; auto racer (1970 Ontario 500).
1933 – Birth of Bobby Robson; British soccer coach (PSV).
1937 – Birth of Jeff Farrell; American swimmer (Olympics-2 gold-1960).
1938 – Birth of Barry Knight; cricket player (England all-rounder mid-60s).
1938 – Birth of Manny Mota; baseball outfielder (Los Angeles Dodgers).
1945 – Birth of Judy Rankin in Saint Louis, Missouri, USA; LPGA golfer (Vare Trophy 1976-77).
1947 – Birth of Carlos A Lopes in Portugal; marathon runner (Olympics-gold-1984).
1948 – Birth of Bruce Francis; cricket player (Australian opener in three Tests 1972).
1957 – Birth of Marita Koch in German Democratic Republic; 400-metre sprinter (Olympics-gold-1980).
1958 – Birth of Peter Koech in Kiliburani, Kenya; 3000m steeplechaser (Olympics-silver-1988).
1960 – Birth of Andy Moog; NHL Goalie (Edmonton Oilers, Boston Bruins, Olympics-Canada-1988).
1960 – Birth of Roger Wijesuriya; cricket player (bowling average 294 in four Tests for Sri Lanka).
1962 – Birth of Gary Reasons; NFL linebacker (New York Giants).
1962 – Birth of Simon Fletcher; NFL linebacker (Denver Broncos).
1963 – Birth of John Gesek; NFL center (Washington Redskins).
1963 – Birth of Rob Andrew; English rugby player.
1964 – Birth of Kevin Tapani in Des Moines, Iowa, USA; pitcher (Chicago White Sox, Minnesota Twin).
1966 – Birth of Kris King in Bracebridge, Ontario, Canada; NHL left wing (Winnipeg Jets).
1966 – Birth of Phillip De Freitas; cricket pace bowler (in Dominica England 1986-95).
1967 – Birth of Colin Jackson in Cardiff, England; 100 metre hurdler (Olympics-silver-1988).
1967 – Birth of John Valentin in Mineola, New York, USA; infielder (Boston Red Sox).
1967 – Birth of Matt Turner; US baseball pitcher (Florida Marlins).
1968 – Birth of Chris McKendry; ESPN sportscaster.
1969 – Birth of Alexander Mogilny in Khavarovsk, USSR; first soviet hockey star to defect to NHL (Buffalo Sabres).
1969 – Birth of Igor Larionov in Voskresensk, Russia; NHL forward (Team Russia, Detroit Red Wings).
1970 – Birth of Tyler Green; US baseball pitcher (Philadelphia Phillies).
1971 – Birth of George Teague; NFL safety (Miami Dolphins, Green Bay Packers).
1971 – Birth of Reggie Holt; WLAF safety (London Monarchs).
1972 – Birth of Lubomir Rybovic in Kosice, Czechoslovakia; hockey forward (Team Slovakia).
1972 – Birth of Marc Lillibridge; WLAF linebacker (Amsterdam Admirals).
1975 – Birth of Scott Tucker in Birmingham, Alabama, USA; 400 metre/800 metre freestyle relay (Olympics-1996).
1976 – Birth of Chanda Rubin in Lafayette, Louisiana; tennis star (1996 Australian Open doubles).
1976 – Birth of Jason Podollan Vernon; NHL center (Florida Panthers).
1976 – Birth of Volker Schenk; WLAF running back (Frankfurt Galaxy).
1979 – Birth of Julia Greville, Perth, Australia; swimmer (Olympics-1996).
1980 – Birth of Alison Rachel Fitch in Hamilton, New Zealand; swimmer (Olympics-1996).
Deaths of sports figures on February 18
1911 – Bill Murdoch, cricket player, dies while watching Australia versus South Africa Test.
1933 – James Corbett (Gentleman Jim), heavyweight boxing champion (1892-97), dies.
1975 – Syed Nazir Ali, cricket player (two Tests for India, four wickets), dies.
1993 – Death of Kerry Von Erich, American professional wrestler (suicide) (born 1960).
1998 – Death of Harry Caray, American television and radio broadcaster (Chicago Cubs), at age 77 (born 1917).
2001 – NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt is killed instantly in a crash on the last lap of the Daytona 500 while his DEI cars driven by his son, Dale Earnhardt Junior, and Michael Waltrip, finish second and first, respectively.
2001 – Death of Eddie Mathews, baseball player (born 1931).
On February 19 in …
1928 – II Olympic Winter Games close at Saint Moritz, Switzerland.
1928 – Canadian hockey team wins third consecutive Olympic gold medal.
1942 – Bill Longson beats Managoff and Sandor Szabo, to become wrestling champion.
1942 – New York Yankees announce 5,000 uniformed soldiers will be admitted free at each of their upcoming home games.
1946 – New York Giants’ outfielder Danny Gardella is first major league player to announce he is jumping to the “outlaw” Mexican League.
1956 – Kathy Cornelius wins LPGA Saint Petersburg Golf Open.
1961 – Henk van der Grift (Netherlands) becomes world champion all-around skater.
1965 – NFL adds sixth official.
1967 – Stien Kaiser becomes world champion lady’s skater.
1970 – American League Cy Young winner Detroit Tigers’ pitcher Denny McLain is suspended, effective April 1, for three months for his alleged connection bookmakers.
1971 – Walt Wesley becomes the first Cleveland Cavaliers’ player to score 50 points in a game.
1972 – Glenn Turner carries his bat for 223 versus West Indies at Kingston.
1977 – Oakland Athletics sell pitcher Paul Lindblad to the Texas Rangers for $400,000.
1977 – Doug Walters scores 250 versus New Zealand, 217 stand for 7th wicket with Gilmour.
1978 – Brigitte Kraus runs world record 1000 metre indoor (2:34.8).
1980 – Eric Heiden skates Olympics record 1000 metre in 1:15.18.
1980 – Botham a century and 13 wickets in Jubilee Test Cricket at Bombay.
1982 – Sharie Langford, California, sets women’s bowling series record of 853.
1983 – Vladimir Salnikov (USSR) sets 400-metre freestyle swimming record.
1983 – Fernando Valenzuela wins his salary arbitration of US$1 million.
1984 – First brother combo to win Gold and Silver in same event at the Olympics (Phil and Steve Mahre-Slalom).
1984 – XIV Olympic Winter Games close at Sarajevo, Yugoslavia.
1987 – Less than a month after re-signing, Oakland Athletics pitcher Vida Blue retires.
1988 – Helga Arendt, Silke-Beate Knoll, Mechthild Kluth, and Gisela Kinzel walk indoor female world record 4×200 metre (1:32.55).
1994 – Marta Figueras-Dotti, wins Cup o’ Noodles Hawaiian Ladies Golf Open.
1995 – Irina Privalova runs indoor woman’s European record 200 metre (22.10 seconds).
1995 – Linford Christie runs European record 60 metre indoor (6.47 seconds).
1995 – Linford Christie runs world record 200 metre indoor (20.25 seconds).
1998 – US hockey team destroys their rooms at Olympics village in Japan.
2022 – At Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, NHL regular season game: Anaheim Ducks beats Vancouver Canucks by score 7-4.
2022 – At Scotiabank Saddledrome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, NHL regular season game: Calgary Flames beats Seattle Kraken by score 2-1.
2022 – At Gila River Arena in Glendale, Arizona, USA, NHL regular season game: Los Angeles Kings beats Arizona Coyotes by score 5-3.
2022 – At Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, NHL regular season game: Saint Louis Blues beats Toronto Maple Leafs by score 6-3.
2022 – At Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, NHL regular season game: Boston Bruins beats Ottawa Senators by score 3-2.
2022 – At Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, NHL regular season game: Edmonton Oilers beats Winnipeg Jets by score 4-2.
2022 – At KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York, USA, NHL regular season game: Colorado Avalanche beats Buffalo Sabres by score 5-3.
Births of sports figures on February 19
1891 – Birth of J C “Farmer” White; cricket player (Somerset slow lefty 1909-37).
1894 – Birth of Herb Pennock; hall of fame pitcher (New York Yankees, 243 career wins).
1909 – Birth of Charlie Walker; South Australia cricket wicket-keeper (toured but no Tests).
1916 – Birth of Eddie Arcaro; jockey (1958 Racing Hall of Fame, two triple crowns).
1924 – Birth of Bruce Norris; NHL owner (Detroit Red Wings).
1925 – Birth of Leslie Laing in Linstead, Jamaica; 4X400 metre relayer (Olympics-gold-1952).
1937 – Birth of Norman O’Neill; cricket player (great Aussie bat of 1960s Brilliant field).
1956 – Birth of Steve Randell; Tasmanian cricket Test umpire (international panel).
1957 – Birth of Dave “Smoke” Stewart in Oakland, California, USA; pitcher (Oakland Athletics).
1962 – Birth of Alvaro Espinoza in Venezuela; baseball shortstop (New York Yankees, New York Mets).
1962 – Birth of Hana Mandlikova in Prague, Czechoslovakia; tennis player (1985 US Open).
1965 – Birth of John Commins; cricket player (South African Test batsman vs New Zealand 1994-95).
1966 – Birth of Matthew Ryan in Port Jefferson, New York, USA; team handball circle (Olympics-1996).
1966 – Birth of Paul Haarhuis in Eindhoven, Netherlands; tennis star (1994 US/Australian doubles).
1966 – Birth of Peter Douris in Toronto, Ontario, Canada; NHL right wing (Anaheim Mighty Ducks).
1966 – Birth of William White; NFL safety (Kansas City Chiefs, Atlanta Falcons).
1967 – Birth of Roel Liefden; soccer player (Dordrecht 1990, FC Groningen).
1968 – Birth of Rob Dimaio in Calgary, Alberta, Canada; NHL right wing (Philadelphia Flyers).
1970 – Birth of Garland Hawkins; NFL defensive end (Chicago Bears).
1970 – Birth of Ruwan Kalpage; cricket off-spinner (Sri Lankan).
1971 – Birth of Becky Dyroen-Lancer in San Jose, California, USA; synchronized swimmer (Olympics-gold-1996).
1971 – Birth of Glyn Milburn; NFL running back/kick returner (Denver Broncos, Detroit Lions).
1971 – Birth of Wally Williams; NFL center/guard (Cleveland Browns, Baltimore Ravens).
1971 – Birth of William Henderson; NFL running back (Green Bay Packers-Superbowl 31).
1972 – Birth of Andrey Pchelyakov; hockey forward (Team Kazakhstan Olympics-1998).
1973 – Birth of Masafumi Kawaguchi; WLAF linebacker (Amsterdam Admirals).
1973 – Birth of Terrence Rencher; NBA guard (Phoenix Suns).
1973 – Birth of Tommy Bennett; safety (Arizona Cardinals).
1974 – Birth of Yevgeny Kafelnikov in Sochi, Russia; tennis star (1995 doubles-Hamburg).
1975 – Birth of Paul Frey in Boston, Massachusetts, USA; dance skater (and Ponte-1995 Eastern Junior champion).
1975 – Birth of Raymond Graanoogst; Suriname/Dutch soccer player (FC Utrecht).
Deaths of sports figures on February 19
1892 – Monty Bowden, cricket Captain (England versus South Africa 1889), dies at age 26.
1941 – Alexander Josiah Webbe, English cricket keeper (v Australia 1879), dies.
1996 – Charles O Finley, baseball owner (Oakland Athletics), dies at age 76.
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TV SPORTS
Wednesday, 2/18/26
| OLYMPICS | TIME ET | TV |
| Men’s Curling | 3:05am | Peacock |
| Cross-Country Skiing: Women’s, Men’s Team Sprint | 3:45am | USA Peacock |
| Alpine Skiing: Women’s Slalom | 4:00am | USA Peacock |
| Freestyle Skiing: Women’s Aerials Final | 5:30am | USA Peacock |
| Cross-Country Skiing: Women’s, Men’s Team Sprint Free Final | 5:45am | USA Peacock |
| Men’s Hockey Quarterfinals | 6:10am | Peacock |
| Snowboarding: Men’s Slopestyle Final | 6:30am | USA Peacock |
| Alpine Skiing: Women’s Slaloml | 7:30am | USA Peacock |
| Men’s Curling | 8:05am | USA Peacock |
| Biathlon | 8:45am | Peacock |
| Men’s Hockey Quarterfinals | 10:40am | USA Peacock |
| Men’s Hockey Quarterfinals | 12:10pm | USA Peacock |
| Women’s Curling | 1:05pm | Peacock |
| Short Track | 2:15pm | USA Peacock |
| Men’s Hockey Quarterfinals | 3:45pm | NBC Peacock |
| MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL | TIME ET | TV |
| Southeastern Louisiana at East Texas A&M | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Colgate at Boston University | 6:00pm | CBSSN |
| New Orleans at UIW | 6:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Syracuse at Duke | 7:00pm | ESPN |
| Bethune-Cookman at Jackson State | 7:00pm | ESPNU |
| Grambling State at Prairie View A&M | 7:00pm | SWAC TV |
| Wagner at LIU | 7:00pm | NEC Front Row |
| South Alabama at Marshall | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Coppin State at South Carolina State | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Louisiana at Old Dominion | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Morgan State at North Carolina Central | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Lamar at UTRGV | 7:30pm | ESPN+ |
| McNeese at Northwestern State | 7:30pm | ESPN+ |
| Drexel at Stony Brook | 8:00pm | CBSSN |
| UAPB at Alabama A&M | 8:00pm | SWAC TV |
| Nicholls at Houston Christian | 8:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Abilene Christian at Tarleton | 8:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Stephen F. Austin at A&M-Corpus Christi | 8:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Houston at Iowa State | 9:00pm | ESPN |
| SOCCER | TIME ET | TV |
| UEFA Champions League: Qarabağ vs Newcastle United | 12:45pm | Paramount+ |
| Serie A: Milan vs Como | 2:45pm | Paramount+ |
| EPL: Wolverhampton Wanderers vs Arsenal | 3:00pm | Peacock |
| La Liga: Levante vs Villarreal | 3:00pm | ESPN+ fuboTV |
| UEFA Champions League: Club Brugge vs Atlético Madrid | 3:00pm | Paramount+ |
| UEFA Champions League: Olympiakos Piraeus vs Bayer Leverkusen | 3:00pm | Paramount+ |
| CONCACAF Champions Cup: Defence Force vs Philadelphia Union | 6:00pm | FS2 fuboTV |
| CONCACAF Champions Cup: Universidad O&M vs Cincinnati | 8:00pm | FS2 fuboTV |
| CONCACAF Champions Cup: Cartaginés vs Vancouver Whitecaps | 10:00pm | TUDN Tubi VIX |
Thursday, 2/19/26
| OLYMPICS | TIME ET | TV |
| Men’s Curling | 3:05am | Peacock |
| Ski Mountaineering | 3:50am | USA Peacock |
| Freestyle Skiing: Men’s Halfpipe | 4:30am | Peacock |
| Freestyle Skiing: Men’s Aerials Final | 5:30am | USA Peacock |
| Ski Mountaineering: Women’s, Men’s Sprint: Finals | 6:55am | USA Peacock |
| Nordic Combined | 8:00am | USA Peacock |
| Women’s Curling | 8:05am | Peacock |
| Speed Skating: Women’s 5000m | 10:30am | Peacock |
| Women’s Hockey: Bronze Medal Match | 8:40am | USA Peacock |
| Speed Skating: Bronze Medal Match | 10:30am | USA Peacock |
| Figure Skating: Women’s Free Skate | 1:00pm | NBC Peacock |
| Men’s Curling Semifinals | 1:05pm | Peacock |
| Women’s Hockey: Gold Medal Match | 1:10pm | USA Peacock |
| Freestyle Skiing: Women’s Halfpipe | 1:30pm | Peacock |
| NBA REGULAR SEASON | TIME ET | TV |
| Houston Rockets vs Charlotte Hornets | 7:00 PM | SCHN FanDuel Sports CHA |
| Brooklyn Nets vs Cleveland Cavaliers | 7:00pm | YES FanDuel Sports Ohio |
| Atlanta Hawks vs Philadelphia 76ers | 7:00pm | NBCS-PHI FanDuel Sports ATL |
| Indiana Pacers vs Washington Wizards | 7:00pm | FanDuel Sports IND MNMT |
| Detroit Pistons vs New York Knicks | 7:30pm | Prime MSG |
| Toronto Raptors vs Chicago Bulls | 8:00pm | CHSN SN |
| Phoenix Suns vs San Antonio Spurs | 8:30pm | AFSN KENS |
| Boston Celtics vs Golden State Warriors | 10:00pm | Prime NBCS-BOS NBCS-BAY |
| Orlando Magic vs Sacramento Kings | 10:00pm | FanDuel Sports FL NCBS-CA |
| Denver Nuggets vs Los Angeles Clippers | 10:30pm | FanDuel Sports SoCal ALT |
| MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL | TIME ET | TV |
| FIU at Liberty | 6:00pm | CBSSN |
| Binghamton at Bryant | 6:00pm | ESPN+ |
| New Hampshire at UMass Lowell | 6:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Vermont at UMBC | 6:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Marshall at App State | 6:30pm | ESPN+ |
| USC Upstate at Winthrop | 6:30pm | ESPN+ |
| Memphis at South Florida | 7:00pm | ESPN2 |
| UNC Asheville at High Point | 7:00pm | ESPNU |
| Drexel at Northeastern | 7:00pm | NESN |
| William & Mary at Campbell | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Stonehill at New Haven | 7:00pm | NEC Front Row |
| Wagner at Mercyhurst | 7:00pm | NEC Front Row |
| LIU at Saint Francis U | 7:00pm | NEC Front Row |
| Le Moyne at Central Connecticut | 7:00pm | NEC Front Row |
| Fairleigh Dickinson at Chicago State | 7:00pm | NEC Front Row |
| Alabama State at Bethune-Cookman | 7:00pm | SWAC TV |
| Longwood at Presbyterian | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Chattanooga at Mercer | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Gardner-Webb at Radford | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| UAlbany at NJIT | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Samford at The Citadel | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Austin Peay at North Florida | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| IU Indianapolis at Wright State | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Charleston at North Carolina A&T | 7:00pm | FloCollege |
| Monmouth at UNCW | 7:00pm | FloCollege |
| Hampton at Hofstra | 8:00pm | CBSSN |
| Kansas City at North Dakota | 8:00pm | MidCo Sports |
| Central Arkansas at Stetson | 8:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Southern Utah at Tarleton | 8:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Utah Tech at UTA | 8:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Texas State at South Alabama | 8:00pm | ESPN+ |
| UT Martin at Little Rock | 8:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Arkansas State at Louisiana | 8:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Georgia Southern at Georgia State | 8:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Morehead State at Eastern Illinois | 8:30pm | Gray Media |
| Texas Southern at UAPB | 8:30pm | SWAC TV |
| SIUE at Tennessee Tech | 8:30pm | ESPN+ |
| Lindenwood at Tennessee State | 8:30pm | ESPN+ |
| Southern Indiana at Western Illinois | 8:30pm | ESPN+ |
| Tulane at North Texas | 9:00pm | ESPN2 |
| Idaho at Portland State | 9:00pm | ESPNU |
| South Dakota at Denver | 9:00pm | ALT2 |
| CSUN at UC Santa Barbara | 9:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Montana State at Weber State | 9:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Montana at Idaho State | 9:00pm | ESPN+ |
| UC Davis at Cal State Fullerton | 10:00pm | Spectrum |
| CSU Bakersfield at UC Riverside | 10:00pm | ESPN+ |
| UC Irvine at Long Beach State | 10:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Eastern Washington at Sacramento State | 10:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Cal Poly at Hawai’i | 11:59pm | ESPN+ |
| GOLF | TIME ET | TV |
| PGA Tour: Genesis Invitational | 4:00pm | GOLF |
| LPGA Tour: LPGA Thailand | 10:00pm | GOLF |
| SOCCER | TIME ET | TV |
| UEFA Europa League: Brann vs Bologna | 12:45pm | Paramount+ VIX |
| UEFA Europa League: Dinamo Zagreb vs Genk | 12:45pm | Paramount+ VIX |
| UEFA Europa League: Fenerbahçe vs Nottingham Forest | 12:45pm | Paramount+ VIX |
| UEFA Europa League: PAOK vs Celta de Vigo | 12:45pm | Paramount+ VIX |
| UEFA Conference League: Noah vs AZ | 12:45pm | Paramount+ VIX |
| UEFA Conference League: Zrinjski vs Crystal Palace | 12:45pm | Paramount+ VIX |
| UEFA Conference League: Sigma Olomouc vs Lausanne Sport | 12:45pm | Paramount+ VIX |
| UEFA Conference League: KuPS vs Lech Poznań | 12:45pm | Paramount+ VIX |
| UEFA Europa League: Panathinaikos vs Viktoria Plzeň | 3:00pm | Paramount+ VIX |
| UEFA Europa League: Ludogorets vs Ferencváros | 3:00pm | Paramount+ VIX |
| UEFA Europa League: Lille vs Crvena Zvezda | 3:00pm | Paramount+ VIX |
| UEFA Europa League: Celtic vs Stuttgart | 3:00pm | Paramount+ VIX |
| UEFA Conference League: Jagiellonia Białystok vs Fiorentina | 3:00pm | Paramount+ VIX |
| UEFA Conference League: Omonia Nicosia vs Rijeka | 3:00pm | Paramount+ VIX |
| UEFA Conference League: Škendija 79 vs Samsunspor | 3:00pm | Paramount+ VIX |
| UEFA Conference Drita vs Celje | 3:00pm | Paramount+ VIX |
| CONCACAF Champions Cup: Sporting San Miguelito vs LA Galaxy | 8:00pm | FS1 fuboTV |
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