Jamal Murray scores 42 points to lead Nuggets to victory over Wizards

DENVER (AP) — Jamal Murray scored 42 points on 15-for-24 shooting and the Denver Nuggets pulled away in the final minutes for a 121-115 win over the Washington Wizards on Saturday night.

With the game tied at 110, Murray hit a 3-pointer with 2:12 to play to put the Nuggets ahead to stay. He then added another jumper and a pair of free throws to extend the lead to 117-110.

Tim Hardaway Jr. had a season-high 30 points and Peyton Watson scored 21 as Denver, still playing without the injured Nikola Jokic (left knee bone bruise), won its fourth in a row and for the sixth time in its last seven games.

Kyshawn George had 29 points to lead the Wizards, who lost their sixth in a row including all four on this road trip. Khris Middleton and Alex Sarr scored 16 each.

The Nuggets shot 53% from the floor in the game including 40% from 3-point range.

The Nuggets made 14 3-pointers compared to the Wizards 11.

Murray scored 23 points in the first half and the Nuggets went into the break trailing 63-62. The Wizards held onto the lead through the third and entered the fourth up 86-83. Murray’s 16-point fourth quarter helped the Nuggets finish off the victory.

Up next

Wizards: Return home to face the Clippers on Monday.

Nuggets: Host the Hornets on Sunday night.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

Warriors cruise past Hornets

Brandin Podziemski smiling while looking over his shoulder and running down the court.

The Golden State Warriors Saturday night game against the Charlotte Hornets got off to an odd start. Or rather, it became odd before it even started.

Shortly before the game tipped off, the Hornets announced their starting five … and All-Star LaMelo Ball was not in it. And then, despite normal introductions for the Warriors in the minutes before the game began, the starting five that took the floor was not the starting five that had been announced … instead, Will Richard was on the court, and Jimmy Butler III was nowhere to be found.

It was an odd beginning that was later explained. Ball was, indeed, active, and is just having his minutes monitored, so he came off the bench for the second time this year, due to Charlotte having another game on Sunday. As for Butler, who wasn’t on the bench, it was announced that he would not be playing due to personal reasons. According to coach Steve Kerr, the Warriors didn’t find that out until after the opening introductions; more importantly, Kerr revealed that everything is fine with Butler, and the All-Star is expected to play on Monday.

With those oddities behind us all, the game began, and from there it was surprisingly normal. While fans surely kept one eye on the 49ers score (no spoilers here, don’t worry), and with new Giants coach Tony Vitello in attendance, the Warriors took an early lead and never relinquished it, coasting to a 136-116 win, and never once trailing.

The absences may have been ominous, but the actual start was encouraging: Moses Moody picked up where he left off on Thursday by draining a three on the very first possession of the game. After just two minutes, the Dubs led 8-2, and then pushed the lead to 14-5, with an unlikely source starring on offense: Draymond Green.

Simply put, the offense looked absolutely gorgeous. The ball was flying around, players were cutting and screening, and the team was springing free for open jumpers. It was beautiful, and an absolute joy to watch. They couldn’t really pull away though, because the Hornets started to find some offensive rhythm as well, following their cold start. With Butler absent, the Warriors struggled late in the quarter after Steph Curry went to the bench. But, thanks to some big minutes from Buddy Hield — who returned to the rotation with Butler and Gui Santos out — the Warriors figured things out late, and held a comfy 39-28 lead after the first quarter.

They were rolling to start the second, but Kon Knueppel — who is have an utterly superb rookie campaign — kept Charlotte in the game. Golden State would build the lead up, but the Hornets would reliably attack it, though they could never fully erase it. The non-Steph minutes were a bit smoother in the second quarter in the first, and the Dubs kept the energy and effort level very high, even when things weren’t working well.

Above all else, the depth — which Kerr praised effusively after the game — kept the Warriors ahead, as there were contributions from up and down the roster (per Danny Emerman, the Warriors became the first team in NBA history to have 10 different players make a three pointer in three consecutive games).

Both teams ended the half with highlights. With just 1.6 seconds remaining, Green made a brilliant pass to Brandin Podziemski, who sank a three from straightaway, giving the Warriors their largest lead of the night at 15. But the Hornets would respond, with Miles Bridges sinking a three-quarter court shot at the buzzer. Golden State led 69-57 at the break, and things were looking good.

There would be a brief scare to start the second half, though. Behind Brandon Miller, the Hornets started to close the gap in the third quarter. The Warriors responded, but Charlotte again started to close the gap. And then, finally, Golden State was able to turn a lead into total control, as they exploded for a high-energy 17-3 run, which gave them their largest lead of the night. They were surging on both ends of the court, and red-hot from deep.

Another superb performance from De’Anthony Melton was punctuated at the end of the third quarter, when he scored, then picked Ball’s pocket with just a few seconds remaining, dribbled the length of the court to try to beat the buzzer, and drew a foul with 0.2 seconds remaining. He would make both free throws, allowing the Warriors to carry a 112-94 lead into the fourth quarter.

It was a drama free final frame. Curry only played a handful of minutes, and both teams emptied their benches about halfway through. And the Warriors waltzed their way to a 136-116 victory.

It was one of the most balanced games of the year for the Warriors. Melton came off the bench to lead the team with 24 points on 8-for-16 shooting, while adding six rebounds and three assists. He’s fully finding his groove, as this was the fourth time in the last six games that he’s netted at least 19 points. The Hornets dared Green to score on them all night, and he responded — almost always to stop a Charlotte run — finishing with 20 points on 8-for-14 shooting, with three rebounds and six assists. In total, eight different Warriors scored in double figures: Melton and Green, plus Podziemski (16), Curry (14), Hield (14), Moody (12), Richard (11), and Al Horford (11).

As a team, the Warriors shot 44.2% from deep (23-for-52), as they got clean look after clean look. Remarkably, despite Curry shooting just 2-for-8 and Klay Thompson playing for Dallas, the Dubs set a franchise record by making 20 or more threes for the third straight game. Go figure!

Golden State made Charlotte look disjointed, but the Hornets young talent certainly reminded viewers that the future can still be bright. Miller finished with 28 points, six rebounds, and five assists, while Knueppel had 24 points and 11 rebounds, while shooting 4-for-5 from three-point range. There’s a lot of exciting young talent on that team.

The surging Warriors are now 25-19, and are 5-1 on their eight-game homestand. They’ve won 11 times in their last 15 games, and firmly have their eyes on escaping the Play-In Tournament now that their schedule has eased up. They’ll be back in action on Monday night, when they host the Miami Heat at 7:00 p.m. PT.

Yankees news: Bombers have seemingly put all their eggs in the Bellinger basket

New York Post | Greg Joyce: Considering the Yankees never really got past even the “checked in on” stage with Kyle Tucker and Bo Bichette, as far as free agents, it seems their priority has always been Cody Bellinger. However with the first two now off the board, the Yankees’ margin for error in regards to his pursuit is now small, with other teams, the Blue Jays and Mets possibly among them, now potentially more likely to focus on him as well. The Yankees have held firm on their five-year offer to Bellinger throughout the negotiation process, and it’ll be interesting to see if they stick to their guns should one of the other suitors cross that line.

USA Today | Gabe Lacques: Besides Bellinger, there still is a number of notable name free agents still out there on the market. Those range from the theoretical “aces” in the likes of Framber Valdez and Zac Gallen, some older guys looking to squeeze out one more season like Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer, and some relievers and role players. Here’s a look at what the market currently looks like.

NJ.com | Randy Miller: Ever since being the Yankees’ first round draft selection in 2024, George Lombard Jr. has been among the team’s highest ranked prospects. While he still has plenty of improving to do in order to get on the major league radar, he has all the raw tools, as he talked about in this interview. Lombard ended his season on a hot streak after struggling with the jump to Double-A last year, putting up promising numbers for a player just getting into his age-20 season, and now he’ll have the opportunity to show how well his adjustments have stuck in the upper half of the minors.

Andrew Wiggins' late 3-pointer secures Miami's 122-120 win over Oklahoma City

MIAMI (AP) — Andrew Wiggins’ 3-pointer with 31 seconds left put Miami up for good, Bam Adebayo scored 30 points with a career-best six 3s and the Heat defeated the NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder 122-120 on Saturday night.

Norman Powell scored 19 for Miami, while Pelle Larsson finished with 16. Simone Fontecchio and Myron Gardner combined for 24 points off the Miami bench.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 39 for Oklahoma City, which fell to 35-8 on the season. Aaron Wiggins scored 18 for the Thunder, which got 15 from Ajay Mitchell and 14 from Chet Holmgren.

The Thunder lost Jalen Williams midway through the second quarter with what the team said was right thigh soreness, even though the starting guard was grabbing at his right hamstring as he limped off the floor. He will be evaluated Sunday, Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said.

Oklahoma City had a chance to tie on the possession following Andrew Wiggins’ go-ahead 3, but Holmgren missed off a lobbed inbounds pass from Alex Caruso and Miami controlled the rebound. The Thunder got a stop on the ensuing Heat possession, calling time with 3.0 seconds remaining.

Caruso inbounded to Gilgeous-Alexander, who quickly sent the ball back to Caruso — whose 3-point try bounced off the backboard and rim as time expired. It was Oklahoma City’s first loss this season when scoring at least 120 points; they were 24-0 in such games entering Saturday.

Miami — which took 111 shots to Oklahoma City’s 77 — was without Tyler Herro (sore big toe, bruised rib) and Jaime Jaquez Jr. (sprained left knee).

Gilgeous-Alexander scored at least 20 points in his 113th consecutive regular-season game, moving within 13 games of tying Wilt Chamberlain’s record.

MAVERICKS 138, JAZZ 120

DALLAS (AP) — Klay Thompson scored all 23 of his points in the first half, including the 17,000th of his career, and six Mavericks scored in double figures in a win over Utah as Dallas completed a two-game sweep of the Jazz.

Dallas and Utah have played three times in 10 days. Utah won at home on January 8, 114-112. Dallas won 144-122 on Thursday.

The Mavericks were without Cooper Flagg (left ankle sprain) for a second straight game and the first injury absences of his rookie season. Dallas was also missing Anthony Davis (finger) and Kyrie Irving (knee) and forward P.J. Washington for personal reasons.

The rest of the Mavericks proved to be more than enough against the Jazz for a second straight game.

Thompson, coming off the bench, had a pair of 3-pointers and then hit a turnaround jumper in the lane with just under five minutes left in the first quarter to reach the 17,000-point plateau. He shot 7 for 12 overall and 6 for 11 from 3-point distance and led the Mavs in scoring for the second straight game in Flagg’s absence after scoring a season-best 26 in Thursday’s win.

Brandon Williams and Max Christie each scored 22 points, Naji Marshall added 16, Jaden Hardy pitched in with 12 and Dwight Powell had 10 for the Mavs, who entered Saturday with wins in just two of their last five games.

CELTICS 132, HAWKS 106

ATLANTA (AP) — Jaylen Brown scored 41 points, Sam Hauser led a 3-point barrage in the second quarter and Boston blew away Atlanta.

The Celtics put this one away with a 52-point outburst in the second quarter, stretching what had been a fairly competitive opening period to an 82-51 laugher at halftime.

Boston barely missed at all in the second, knocking down 19 of 25 shots — including 11 of 15 beyond the 3-point arc. Hauser was perfect on his six attempts from long range in the period, and Brown dazzled inside and out. On a strong drive to the hoop in the final seconds of the half, he flexed his muscles for the State Farm Arena crowd, as if to say the Hawks had no chance of stopping him.

Brown had 29 points by halftime, combining with Hauser (21 points) to nearly outscore the entire Hawks team. The Celtics reached triple figures well before the midway point of the third period and stretched their lead to 43 points before both teams cleared their benches.

Hauser tied his career high with 10 3-pointers, accounting his season-best 30 points. Anfernee Simons chipped in with 14 points, connecting on 4 of 8 outside the stripe.

PISTONS 121, PACERS 78

DETROIT (AP) — Duncan Robinson and Cade Cunningham each scored 16 points in limited minutes as Detroit routed shorthanded Indiana.

The 43-point margin matched the ninth-biggest win in Pistons franchise history.

The Pacers played without their four leading scorers, with Pascal Siakam resting and Benedict Mathurin (thumb), Andrew Nembhard (back) and Obi Toppin (foot) dealing with injuries. T.J. McConnell, who is sixth on the team in scoring and second in assists, also sat out with a knee problem.

Jalen Duren had 15 points and eight rebounds for Detroit, which got points from 13 players. as the Pistons won for the fifth time in six games.

Jarace Walker led Indiana with 13 points and Tony Bradley added 12. The Pacers had won four of five.

Detroit led by as many as 44 points in the third quarter, around the time that Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff pulled his starters for the night. Duren led the starters with 23 minutes and Cunningham and Robinson were the only others to reach 20.

SUNS 106, KNICKS 99

NEW YORK (AP) — Devin Booker scored 27 points after missing a game with a sprained left ankle, and Phoenix beat slumping New York.

Grayson Allen added 16 points and Mark Williams had 14 for the Suns, who had dropped the first two games on their six-game Eastern Conference road trip, including Thursday in Detroit when they played without Booker. He shot only 7 for 18 from the field, but was 12 for 14 on free throws.

Karl-Anthony Towns and Deuce McBride each scored 23 points for the Knicks, who were playing without starters Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart because of ankle injuries. They have lost three straight and eight of their last 10 games.

OG Anunoby added 21 points, but the Knicks committed 17 turnovers and fell to 16-5 at home.

In an ugly game with plenty of diving after loose balls — Allen appeared to badly hurt his nose in a collision on one of them — the Suns broke away from an 87-all tie when Collin Gillespie made a 3-pointer, Booker followed with a three-point play and Williams made two free throws to make it 95-87. The Knicks shot way too poorly to come back, going 1 for 10 on 3s in the fourth quarter with Towns hearing boos after shooting a airball on a wide-open attempt on one of them.

WARRIORS 136, HORNETS 116

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — De’Anthony Melton scored 24 points as Golden State had eight players reach double figures in its victory over Charlotte.

The Warriors hit 23 of their 52 3-point attempts and 10 Golden State players made at least one 3. Golden State now has had at least 10 players make at least one 3-pointer in three straight games, the longest streak in NBA history, per the Elias Sports Bureau. The 3-point arc was introduced for the 1979-80 season.

Golden State extended its winning streak to three games and improved to 5-1 on its eight-game homestand.

Draymond Green scored 20 points for the Warriors, who got 16 from Brandin Podziemski and 14 apiece from Stephen Curry and Buddy Hield.

The Hornets’ Brandon Miller scored a game-high 28 points and Kon Knueppel had 24.

Charlotte was down by a dozen at halftime, then cut its deficit to 82-79 on a layup by Knueppel midway through the third quarter.

Golden State responded with a 20-5 run capped by a Hield 3-pointer from the right corner to go up 102-84 with 2:27 left in the period.

SPURS 126, TIMBERWOLVES 123

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Victor Wembanyama had 39 points and nine rebounds, corralling a critical offensive rebound in the final seconds, enabling San Antonio to fend off Anthony Edwards’ season-high 55 points and beat Minnesota.

Donte DiVincenzo’s 24-foot, 3-pointer put the Timberwolves up 119-118 with 1:03 remaining. Wembanyama responded with a 20-footer and then blocked Joan Beringer’s reverse layup 13 seconds later to preserve the one-point lead.

De’Aaron Fox added 25 points and 12 assists as San Antonio avoided a season sweep of its three-game set against Minnesota. Keldon Johnson added 20 points for the Spurs.

Edwards had 26 points in the fourth quarter, going 5 for 7 on 3-pointers and nearly completed a repeat of Minnesota’s last game against San Antonio.

Recap: Wizards lose to Nuggets 121-115

The Washington Wizards lost to the Denver Nuggets on Saturday night, 121-115.

Washington began the first half with a slim 63-62 lead with Khris Middleton and Alex Sarr scoring in double figures and after getting out a first quarter rut. Washington also out-rebounded Denver 23-17 which proved key to the lead. The Wizards continued to outrebound the Nuggets in the third quarter though there wasn’t much movement to the lead though Washington still led.

But like many other Wizards games this season, the talent disparity ultimately went against Washington’s favor when it was the fourth quarter. Tim Hardaway and Jamal Murray scored 31 of the Nuggets’ 38 points in the period while the Wizards only scored 29, though Kyshawn George scored 14 of his team leading 29 points then.

While Washington kept things interesting for much of the game thanks to their 48-38 rebounding advantage, they still allowed Denver to shoot 52.9 percent from the field while only shooting 45.8 percent themselves.

The Wizards’ road trip is now complete but they still have more western conference opponents to play. Their next game is at home against the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday. Tip off is at 3 p.m. ET. See you then.

Wemby saves Spurs in the clutch as they nearly blow another huge lead to Timberwolves

It may officially be the second half of the season, but one thing that hasn’t change since the first is the Spurs’ inability to hold onto a large lead against the Minnesota Timberwolves. After a slow first quarter, the Spurs got hot in the second, leading by as much as 25, but just like their first two match-ups, they took their foot off the gas and let the Wolves back in it in the second half. Anthony Edwards went nuclear, scoring 26 of his 55 points in the fourth quarter as they eventually retook the lead, but fortunately for the Spurs, Victor Wembanyama was able to match his star power and pull his team back to victory from the jaws of what would have been another embarrassing defeat.

The Spurs took advantage of no Rudy Gobert, who was out with a bruised hip, by attacking the paint for 8 of their first 9 points, but ultimately neither team could find much offense early, with the score sitting at just 10-9 Spurs after six minutes. The Timberwovles were the first team to find some momentum, getting up by five at 17-12, but that seemed to wake the Spurs up as they responded with a 7-0 run, with all seven points coming from Keldon Johnson. Still, the Spurs found themselves down 22-21 at the end of the first after a 5-0 Wolves burst, including a three from Edwards off an offensive rebound, before a De’Aaron Fox floater at the buzzer.

The Spurs woke up to start the second quarter, with Wemby getting more involved in the offense, which opened things up for everyone else, and threes from Dylan Harper and Stephon Castle got them up by double digits, 41-31, forcing a Chris Finch timeout. The Spurs kept piling on, with Castle finding Luke Kornet on consecutive lobs to stretch the lead to 51-35, leading to another Wolves timeout with four minutes remaining. The onslaught continued, with Wemby scoring 13 of their final 16 points, including hitting four straight threes, and overall the Spurs had their highest scoring quarter of the season (and 4th highest in franchise history) with 48 points, including hitting 8 threes, to lead 69-44 at the half.

Of course, after second-half energy was a problem in their two losses in Minneapolis, the question would be if the Spurs could keep their foot on the gas this time The answer was an emphatic no, as the Wolves came out of halftime more determined while the Spurs looked complacent. Minnesota started the third quarter on a 14-3 run, sparked by French rookie Joan Beringer. They would keep chipping away throughout the second half while the Spurs struggled with turnovers and allowing too many transition buckets. The Wolves finally took their first lead since early in the second quarter on an Edwards jumper with 3:28 left in the game, but then, chaos ensued.

Wemby went into superstar mode, first responding to Edwards with a jumper of his own, and the same again on the next possession with them trading threes. Wemby then stole the ball and drew free throws to retake the lead after a frustrated Edwards pushed him down. The teams continued to go back-and-fourth until a big three from Johnson got the Spurs up by 4 with 18 seconds remaining, but this game just refused to end without drama.

Finch got a technical foul for unknown reasons during a timeout, Wemby missed the free throw, and Edwards hit another three with 11 seconds left. Fox then hit his free throws, and the Spurs decided to foul Edwards so he couldn’t get another three. He missed the second, which was grabbed by Wemby, but the usually-reliable Julian Champagnie missed both free throws. Wemby came to the rescue again and grabbed the offensive rebound and made his first free throw, but then he made the odd decision to miss the second, even though a make would have given them a four-point lead with under two seconds left and no Wolves timeouts. Instead, he committed a lane violation going for the rebound, giving the Wolves the ball, but fortunately Edwards missed on a half court heave, and the Spurs escaped 126-123.

Game Notes

  • A very confusing moment came in the third quarter, when the Timberwolves challenged a foul call on what looked like a clean block by Donte DiVincenzo on Castle. After video review, referee Mark Davis explained that the challenge was unsuccessful because the defender made “illegal contact with the ball while in the player’s hands,” which made no sense since that would be a block. Then, even more confusion was added when the refs had the Spurs inbounding the ball when the result of the call should have been free throws. Finally, Davis returned to the mic and explained that he misspoke, it was a successful challenge so no foul, but imminent possession belonged to the Spurs, hence why they were inbounding the ball.
  • This was quite the crazy game, and one of the biggest examples of a “tale of two halves” I can recall, but ultimately the Spurs stars did what they had to do. Wemby finished with 39 points and 9 rebounds and was the center of the Spurs’ two biggest offensive runs: to build their big lead and later get it back at the end. Fox showed it is possible for he and Wemby to both have big games on the same night and take turns dominating, with 25 points and 12 assists, and Johnson added 20 points off the bench, including that big three that was ultimately the game winner.
  • New feature: Did Carter Bryant miss a dunk? (We ask because he supposedly has a running bet with his teammates that after a spate of notoriously bad misses, if he misses three more dunks, he will have to shave his head.) He did not miss a dunk tonight because he didn’t attempt one, but to his credit he did grab two offensive rebounds on one possession in the second quarter, reminding everyone that hustle is his calling card.

Play of the Game

It’s that Keldon three, of course. You also have to love the reaction of the Bald Bros.


Up Next: Monday vs. Utah Jazz

7:00 PM CT on FanDuel Sports

The Spurs have a chance to get back at another team that was a thorn in their side during that 10-game slump (that they hopefully are out of) and sweep their three-game home stand before returning to the road.

Zibanejad's hat trick and record-breaking power-play goal lead Rangers to victory over Flyers

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Mika Zibanejad became the Rangers’ all-time leader in power-play goals and his three-goal performance tied the team record for most career hat tricks in New York’s 6-3 win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday.

The 32-year-old Swede scored with a man advantage at 5:38 of the second period, giving him 117 power-play goals and moving him past Camille Henry and Chris Kreider, who each had 116 for New York.

Zibanejad’s first-period goal at 7:26 put the Rangers ahead to stay at 2-1 and he completed his scoring at 8:25 of the second, matching Bill Cook with nine career hat tricks with the Rangers.

Artemi Panarin added two goals and an assist, and Brennan Othmann also scored for the Rangers, who snapped a five-game skid. The Rangers, whose last victory came January 2 against Florida, had lost eight of their last nine games. J.T. Miller, Alexis Lafreniere and Vincent Trocheck each had two assists. Spencer Martin made 25 saves and earned his first win of the season.

Rangers coach Mike Sullivan earned his 500th coaching win. Sullivan was a two-time Stanley Cup winner in his 10-year tenure with the Penguins. He parted ways with Pittsburgh after missing the playoffs for a third straight season and was hired by New York in May, after Peter Laviolette was fired.

Travis Konecny, Travis Sanheim and Trevor Zegras each had a goal and an assist for the Flyers, who lost their sixth straight game. Samuel Ersson made 22 stops.

WILD 5, SABRES 4, OT

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Mats Zuccarello scored 1:47 into overtime to lead Minnesota Wild to a win over Buffalo.

Zuccarello’s winning goal came on the power play after a pass from Kirill Kaprizov, who finished with three assists to help end the Wild’s three-game winless streak.

Marcus Foligno, Ryan Hartman, Vladimir Tarasenko and Quinn Hughes also scored, and Filip Gustavsson made 20 saves for the Wild.

Ryan McLeod, Peyton Krebs, Jack Quinn and Alex Tuch scored for the Sabres, who lost for only the third time in 18 games. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 20 saves.

Foligno gave the Wild a 1-0 lead at 9:19 of the first period but McLeod tied it 46 seconds later.

Hartman made it 2-1 with eight seconds left in the first when he tapped home a cross-crease pass from Hughes. Tarasenko gave the Wild a 3-1 lead at 1:08 of the second period.

Krebs cut the lead to 3-2 when he tipped a pass from Mattias Samuelsson past Gustavsson with 9:53 left and Quinn tied it up 1:27 later. Tuch’s power-play goal with 3:53 to go gave them a 4-3 lead.

Hughes’ slap shot goal with 2:56 to go in the second made it 4-4.

FLAMES 4, ISLANDERS 2

CALGARY, Alberta (AP) — Adam Klapka had a goal and an assist for his first multi-point game of the season as Calgary beat New York.

Yegor Sharangovich, Justin Kirkland and Yan Kuznetsov also scored for Calgary, which has won three of its last four. Kevin Bahl had his first multi-point game since Dec. 5, 2023, finishing with two assists. Dustin Wolf had 28 stops and snapped his five-game losing streak.

Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Anders Lee scored for New York, which is 2-2-1 with two games left in its seven-game trip, it’s longest of the season. David Rittich made 15 saves in the loss and slipped to 11-6-3.

Up 2-0 midway through the second period, the Flames doubled their lead when Kirkland and Kuznetsov scored two minutes apart.

In four games since sliding into Blake Coleman’s spot on a line with Mikael Backlund and Matt Coronato, Sharangovich has five points (two goals, three assists) for the Flames. Coleman (upper body) remains on injured reserve. While Backlund had his three-game point streak (2-3-5) snapped, Connor Zary extended his to a career-high five games.

Calgary’s Rasmus Andersson had an assist and became the seventh defenseman in Flames history to record five straight 20-assist seasons. He joins Al MacInnis, Gary Suter, Mark Giordano, TJ Brodie, Derek Morris, and Randy Manery.

MAMMOTH 6, KRAKEN 3

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Nate Schmidt scored two goals and assisted on two others to lead Utah to a victory over Seattle.

Lawson Crouse added a goal and two assists to help Utah win its third straight and for the sixth time in seven games. Kevin Stenlund, Nick Schmaltz and Barrett Hayton also scored for the Mammoth and Karel Vejmelka made 18 stops.

Jordan Eberle, Matty Beniers, and Chandler Stephenson scored goals for the Kraken, who lost their third straight and are 1-3-2 over their last six. Philipp Grubauer had 24 saves.

Schmidt snapped the puck past Ryker Evans’ stick and Grubauer’s glove with 5:30 left in the third after the Kraken had erased a two-goal deficit late in the second period to tie it at 3.

Eberle boosted his season tally to 17 goals only 69 seconds into the game, squeezing a backhand shot over Vejmelka’s shoulder to put Seattle up 1-0.

HURRICANES 4, DEVILS 1

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Andrei Svechnikov had a hat trick and Frederik Andersen made 28 saves as Carolina beat New Jersey.

Jackson Blake also scored for the Hurricanes, who improved to 6-1-1 in their last eight games. Sebastian Aho had three assists as Carolina won a night after routing the defending champion Florida Panthers 9-1 at home.

Timo Meier scored for New Jersey, which had its two-game winning streak snapped. The Devils are 4-8-1 since Dec. 19 when they won 2-1 at Utah.

Svechnikov broke a scoreless tie at 13:12 of the second, whipping a shot past Devils goaltender Jacob Markstrom, who had 29 saves. The 25-year-old Russian forward scored again 57 seconds later to make it 2-0 after two.

Aho leads the Hurricanes with 50 points, including 17 goals. Svechnikov is second on the team with 40 points. The 36-year-old Andersen improved 7-10-3 this season.

PANTHERS 5, CAPITALS 2

WASHINGTON (AP) — Sam Bennett had a goal and two assists, and Florida rebounded from a lopsided loss at Carolina with a victory over Washington.

A.J. Greer, Uvis Balinskis, Anton Lundell and Carter Verhaeghe also scored for two-time defending champion Florida, which lost 9-1 to the Hurricanes before traveling to Washington for the second game of a back-to-back. Jacob Chychrun scored twice to give the Capitals a 2-1 lead in the second, but Florida went back ahead before the period was over.

Washington is 6-10-3 in its last 19 games, and now the Capitals head west for a six-game trip.

Sergei Bobrovsky, who allowed all nine goals against Carolina, had the night off in favor of Daniil Tarasov in net. The Capitals had a goal overturned on an offside review in the first period, and then Florida quickly opened the scoring when Bennett tried to stuff the puck past goalie Logan Thompson and Greer put in the rebound.

Chychrun scored twice in the second, once from the left circle and once from just inside the blue line. Bennett tied it at 2, and after a penalty to Alex Ovechkin for putting the puck over the glass, Balinskis’ shot from just beyond the right circle found its way through.

Lundell and Verhaeghe had empty-netters in the third.

BLUE JACKETS 4, PENGUINS 3

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Charlie Coyle scored the deciding goal in the shootout and Columbus beat Pittsburgh.

Kent Johnson also scored in the shootout for the Blue Jackets, who won their fourth straight game. It was the third consecutive win under new coach Rick Bowness. Bowness is the third coach in team history to win his first three games with the team.

Kirill Marchenko scored to continue a four-game point. Danton Heinen scored his first goal with Columbus since he was traded from Pittsburgh last month, and Zach Aston-Reese, another former Penguin, also scored.

Zach Werenski continued his four-game point streak with an assist.

Elvis Merzlikins made 29 saves for the Blue Jackets, who matched their longest winning streak of the season.

Sidney Crosby had a goal and an assist for the Penguins. He recorded his 511th multipoint game, tying Gordie Howe for fifth place in NHL history.

Connor Clifton and Rickard Rakell also scored for the Penguins.

Arturs Silovs stopped 22 shots for the Penguins, who have lost four of their last five.

MAPLE LEAFS 4, JETS 3, OT

WINNIPEG, Manitoba (AP) — Max Domi scored at 3:08 of overtime on a 2-on-1 with Auston Matthews to lift Toronto past Winnipeg.

Domi also had an assist, Matthews scored his 24th goal of the season and Oliver Ekman-Larsson had a goal and two assists. Bobby McMann tied it in the third, and Morgan Rielly added two assists.

Dennis Hildeby stopped 27 shots as Toronto closed a four-game trip 2-1-1.

Alex Iafallo, Kyle Connor and Nino Niederreiter scored Winnipeg, and Connor Hellebuyck made 33 saves. The Jets had won four in a row.

The Jets led 3-1early in the third period. Ekman-Larsson scored at 5:58, and McMann’ tied it with 4:27 remaining.

CANADIENS 6, SENATORS 5, OT

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Montreal scored three straight goals, including Cole Caufield’s second of the game 33 seconds into overtime, to give the Canadiens a come-from-behind win over Ottawa.

Trailing 5-3 late in the third period, Montreal pulled goaltender Samuel Montembeault and got within one with 4:24 remaining when Juraj Slafkovsky tipped a Lane Hutson shot for his second goal of the game. Alexandre Carrier tied it 65 seconds later when he beat Leevi Merilainen glove side. Josh Anderson also had a goal and an assist for the Canadiens.

Jake Sanderson, who also had three assists, had given the Senators what appeared to be insurance when he scored his 10th at 7:55 of the third, beating Montembeault short side to give the Senators a 5-3 lead.

Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle, Dylan Cozens and David Perron also scored for the Senators. Merilainen stopped 13 shots.

BRUINS 5, BLACKHAWKS 2

CHICAGO (AP) — Mason Lohrei scored two goals and Boston beat Chicago to extend its winning streak to six games.

Charlie McAvoy, Viktor Arvidsson and Marat Khusnutdinov also scored goals while Joonas Korpisalo made 22 saves for the Bruins, who have won eight of their last 11 games.

David Pastrnak and Casey Mittelstadt had two assists each for Boston.

The Bruins rallied from a 2-0 deficit after one period with three second-period goals. McAvoy skated in from the point and beat Arvid Soderblom from 20 feet to cut Chicago’s lead in half at 1:58.

Lohrei converted Hampus Lindholm’s feed into the tying goal from the right circle at 14:51, and Arvidsson beat Soderblom for a 3-2 lead with 46 seconds left in the period.

Lohrei added his second goal 9:01 into the third, with Khusnutdinov redirecting David Pastrnak’s pass into a half-open net 2:01 later.

Soderblom stopped 18 shots.

GOLDEN KNIGHTS 7, PREDATORS 2

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Alexander Holtz and Shea Theodore scored in a 1:05 span late in the second period and Vegas had two more two-goal sprees to rout Nashville for its seventh straight victory.

Pavel Dorofeyev and captain Mark Stone added goals in a three-minute span in the third, with Dorofeyev scoring his 20th of the season and Stone getting his 10th goal in 11 games and 18th of the season. Stone has a career-best 11-game points streak.

Cole Reinhardt and Mitch Marner scored two more goals in quick succession, striking in a 50-second span, and Keegan Kolesar capped the five-goal third. Akira Schmid made 26 saves.

Luke Evangelista and Filip Forsberg scored for Nashville, and Justus Annunen stopped 29 shots. The Predators had won three straight, the last a 7-3 victory at Colorado on Friday night.

OILERS 6, CANUCKS 0

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Tristan Jarry made 31 saves for his first shutout for Edmonton, Jack Roslovic and Kasperi Kapanen each scored twice and the Oilers routed Vancouver.

Vancouver has lost 10 in a row (0-8-2) to fall to 16-27-5. The Canucks last lost 10 straight in the 1997-98 season.

The Oilers scored all six goals in the second period, four goals on four shots in a 4:52 span. Zach Hyman and Vasily Podkolzin also scored and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had two assists in his 999th regular-season game.

Jarry had his 23rd career shutout and his first since Edmonton acquired him Pittsburgh on Dec. 12 for fellow goalie Stuart Skinner.

Vancouver has lost 10 in a row (0-8-2) to fall to 16-27-5. The Canucks last lost 10 straight in the 1997-98 season.

Nikita Tolopilo made 29 saves.

DUCKS 2, KINGS 2, OT

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Mikael Granlund scored at 4:02 of overtime, and Anaheim beat Los Angeles to sweep a two-game weekend set in the Freeway Faceoff rivalry.

Rookie Beckett Sennecke created the winning score by swooping in on a backcheck to take the puck away from Los Angeles’ Kevin Fiala on a breakaway. Sennecke knocked the puck straight to Granlund, who beat Anton Forsberg for his ninth goal of the season.

Mason McTavish scored the first goal and Ville Husso made 17 saves for the Ducks. They have won three straight after a nine-game skid.

Adrian Kempe scored a power-play goal and Forsberg stopped 30 shots in the backup’s strong performance for the Kings, who have lost six of seven.

Sennecke played a major role for the second straight night when the Southern California clubs completed their back-to-back set by going to overtime for the third time in their four meetings this season. Sennecke had two assists and scored in the shootout as the Ducks rallied from a two-goal deficit for a 3-2 victory over the Kings in downtown Los Angeles on Friday night.

NBA Final Score – Spurs 126, Timberwolves 123: Edwards’ Double Nickel Still Short Changed

Game Story

Six days ago, the Minnesota Timberwolves were the talk of the NBA discourse after a ridiculous 19-point comeback over the San Antonio Spurs. It was filled with late game drama and a photo finish. Most of the talk was about the duel between two of the faces o the league, as Anthony Edwards slayed Victor Wembanyama. Since then, Edwards has nursed a nagging toe injury the past two games. Wembanyama, on the other hand, stewed over the loss while battling Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Giannis Antetokounmpo.

You can bet Wembanyama had this game circled as an opportunity for revenge.

Don’t believe me? Despite a pedestrian five minute stint in the first quarter, the Frenchman went on a tear in his 10-minute second quarter rotation. The Wolves began the game admirably despite missing Rudy Gobert due to a minor hip injury and losing Naz Reid, who started in his stead, just minutes into the action with a left shoulder issue. Jaden McDaniels and Anthony Edwards took charge, combining for 15 of the teams 22 points in the opening stanza to maintain a one-point lead, but San Antonio had a response.

The Wemby Show was in full effect when the second quarter began. It started with a parade to the charity stripe. It built up with an impressive step through shot. It all culminated in a trio of three-point makes, each more and more video game-esque. It seemed like in a blink of an eye, the Spurs sprinted ahead by 25.

Yes, it’s true that Wembanyama was on a heater. However, the Wolves were just as guilty allowing him to get hot. There was a ton of defensive miscommunication on one end and selfish one-pass, or no-pass, basketball on the other end. Minnesota was simply getting outclassed in every category.

Wolves Head Coach Chris Finch certainly got into his team between halves.

Joan Beringer, who was playing meaningful minutes in basically the second game of his career, was called up to join the starters in lieu of Gobert and Reid in the second half. Boy, did he answer the call. The 19-year-0ld had a number of hustle plays to either score or save possessions on both ends. It could essentially be summed up by this offensive rebound where he was initially ruled out of bounds, but it was overturned upon review.

His energy seemed to change the entire momentum of the game. There was a moment where Edwards finished a tough layup and came up limping, immediately asking to get subbed out of the game due to a left knee issue. Despite that, the Wolves kept it pushing. McDaniels took control of the wheel with a flurry of game-changing plays. He somehow blocked a Wembanyama mid-range jumper, then later gave one to Stephon Castle as well.

Minnesota lost the second quarter 22 to 48, but won the third quarter 40 to 27.

There was still plenty of work to be done. Through all of their hard work, the Wolves still trailed by a dozen to start the final quarter. The momentum they built in the previous stanza was still pulsing. A McDaniels block. A Beringer block. Randle bully ball. It was a beautiful crescendo of a comeback that was capped off by a flurry of Edwards three pointers, each more and more video game-esque.

That’s right. An old fashioned duel was unfolding behind our very eyes between Edwards and Wembanyama.

The final minutes of the game was straight out of a Rocky movie. The two superstars hit each other with haymaker after haymaker. Last Sunday, it was Edwards that had the last word. This Saturday, it was Wembanyama. A go-ahead mid-range jumper was coupled with a block on Beringer in the final minute of play.

There was quite a bit of late game shenanigans, including Edwards pushing his point total to a new career high of 55, but his final half court heave was never online. It felt like a crushing defeat in the heat of the moment, considering the Wolves battled back from a franchise-tying 25-point deficit, but just couldn’t top the immovable object that is Victor Wembanyama.

When you zoom out and take a breath…

  • They were on the tail end of a road-road, back-to-back.
  • The opponent is one of the best teams in the entire league.
  • They were fully healthy, while Minnesota was down both a Defensive Player of the Year candidate and Sixth Man of the Year candidate.
  • We all got to witness the continued and impressive progress of the center of the future.
  • The evolution of their two-way All-Defensive Team talent was on full display.
  • The two All-NBA starters showed a ton of heart to engineer a late fourth quarter lead.

We got this.


Box Score


Comment of the Night

I am totally satisfied with what I'm seeing in Beringer. He's eating up some frontcourt minutes and making positive contributions despite limited minutes with the big club. Kudos, TC - a pick well spent
<em>SoDakHmr knows ball!</em>

Up Next

The Wolves get a couple days off as they travel to visit the Utah Jazz on Tuesday, January 20 at 8:00 pm CT. This will be the third matchup between the two teams, as Minnesota won both their prior contests. Surely, Jazz fans will be excited to welcome Rudy Gobert, and more importantly, Joe Ingles back to Delta Center if they’re available. The game will be broadcast on FanDuel Sports Network.


Highlights

Blackhawks Let 2-0 Lead Slip Away, Lose 5-2 To Bruins

CHICAGO- The Chicago Blackhawks put on an incredible ceremony on Saturday night at the United Center. This was to celebrate "The Banner Years", which honored the teams that won the Stanley Cup in 2010, 2013, and 2015. 

Over 25 alumni who won at least one Cup with Chicago were in attendance. The ceremony, hosted by Pat Foley and Eddie Olczyk, was a successful way of celebrating the best era the Chicago Blackhawks ever had. 

The modern-day Blackhawks played poorly for the first 10 minutes of the first period, but Arvid Soderblom made some big saves to keep them in it. Then, they started to play like a team inspired by those who came before them and won championships. 

First, Ryan Greene ended a goal-drought with his 6th of the season at 16:14 of the first period. He scored it with a beautiful shot shortly after their power play expired. Andre Burakovsky made a nice pass to Greene after keeping the play alive in the corner.  

At 18:14 of the first period, Wyatt Kaiser found the puck high in the zone and skated it a bit closer to the net before sniping one home for a 2-0 lead. It looked like the Blackhawks were well on their way to victory at that point. 

It took very little time for the Bruins to get back on track once the second period began. At 1:55 of the middle frame, Elias Linholm made a pass as Charlie McAvoy was walking down the slot, and McAvoy took a great shot to get the Bruins on the board. From there, they were off and running. 

McAvoy's goal was the first of five unanswered for the Bruins. Mason Lohrei (twice), Viktor Arvidson, and Marat Khusnutdinov were the goal scorers for Boston. 

The Blackhawks have now lost three straight at the hands of the Bruins' sixth straight win. This stretch has seen their offense struggle to find the back of the net. 

Connor Bedard has been picking up assists since coming back from his injury, but he hasn't scored yet. The loss is not on him, but the team does have a much better chance to win if he finds ways to score. Expect a goal-scoring breakout from him soon. 

This young Blackhawks team is going to go through stretches like this. They are not a well-seasoned bunch, but they have an incredible amount of talent that should allow them to pull out of it in waves. 

Watch Every Chicago Goal

What’s Next For The Blackhawks?

The Blackhawks are back in action on Monday night, when Jonathan Toews makes his return to the United Center as a road player for the first time as a member of the Winnipeg Jets. 

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How many points did Anthony Edwards score? Timberwolves vs Spurs stats

Anthony Edwards produced a career-high night for the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday. Still, it didn’t result in a successful outing as they suffered a 126-123 loss to the San Antonio Spurs on the road.

Edwards reached 54 points after nailing a 3-point shot in the corner to make it a one-point game with 9.8 seconds left in regulation. He added one more free throw and finished the game with 55 points, a new career high.

The Timberwolves star scored 26 points in the fourth quarter after scoring 29 points through the first three quarters of play.

Victor Wembanyama led the way for the Spurs with 39 points.

Anthony Edwards stats vs. San Antonio Spurs

  • Points: 55
  • FG: 19-for-33
  • 3PT: 9-for-16
  • Free Throws: 8-for-10
  • Rebounds: 4
  • Assists: 3
  • Steals: 0
  • Blocks: 0
  • Turnovers: 2
  • Fouls: 4
  • Minutes: 40

Anthony Edwards, Timberwolves vs. Spurs highlights

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Anthony Edwards stats, points tonight, Timberwolves-Spurs highlights

Pinkins' floater with 18.8 seconds left helps Ole Miss beat Mississippi State 68-67

STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) — Ilias Kamardine and AJ Storr scored 17 points apiece, Patton Pinkins made the go-ahead jumper with 18.8 seconds left, and Mississippi beat Mississippi State 68-67 on Saturday night for its third win in a row.

Malik Dia had eight points on 3-of-10 shooting and 11 rebounds for Ole Miss (11-7, 3-2 SEC).

Mississippi State (10-8 2-3) has lost three in a row despite having a double-digit lead in each of those games.

Jayden Epps led the Bulldogs with 14 points on 4-of-18 shooting. Jamarion Davis-Fleming made 6 of 8 from the field and finished 13 points, eight rebounds and four blocks. Josh Hubbard, who went in averaging 22.8 points (No. 7 nationally), also scored 13 but made just 3 of 16 overall, 2 of 8 from 3, and 5 of 10 from the free-throw line.

Storr hit a step-back jumper that gave the Rebels a four-point lead with 1:16 to play before Hubbard answered 10 seconds later with a contested pull-up 3 from NBA range and then made two free throws with 34 seconds remaining to put Mississippi State up 67-66. Pinkins hit a baseline floater that capped the scoring.

Hubbard missed two free throws with 12 seconds left and, after Storr missed the front end of a 1-and-1, missed a potential winning layup before the buzzer.

Kamardine made a layup and James Scott followed with a two-hand dunk that gave Ole Miss its first lead of the game, 34-32, with 17:05 remaining.

The teams combined to make 7 of 47 (14.9%) from 3-point range in a game that featured 13 lead changes and seven ties, all in the second half.

Mississippi State is 152-121 against the Rebels in the 12th-most played rivalry in the history of college basketball.

Up next

Ole Miss: Hosts Auburn on Tuesday.

Mississippi State: Plays Wednesday at Texas A&M.

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Depleted Knicks suffer sloppy loss to Suns as downward spiral continues

Karl-Anthony Towns and OG Anunoby (inset)
Karl-Anthony Towns and OG Anunoby (inset)

Down by seven with just over a minute left, Karl-Anthony Towns had a wide-open three from the top of the key, a chance to cut the Knicks deficit to four and make it interesting. But he airballed. It was fitting, and the MSG crowd rained boos down on the court.

This is more than a rut. The Knicks — without Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart on Saturday — are beginning to spiral, as they fell 106-99 to the Suns at Madison Square Garden.

“You don’t ever want to have boos, but at the end of the day, the fans here are passionate and you respect and embrace their passion,” coach Mike Brown said. “But it hurts. It hurts the staff, it hurts the players.”

In a sign of just how poorly things are going for them at the moment, they went on a 16-0 run to go up by 10 points in the third quarter, but still managed to end the quarter down three. That’s because, after one of their best stretches in weeks, they let the Suns close the third quarter on a 13-0 run and undo all the good that they had done.

Karl-Anthony Towns argues with referee Suyash Mehta during the second half of the Knicks’ 106-99 loss to the Suns on Jan. 17, 2026 at Madison Square Garden. Robert Sabo for New York Post

That’s the way it’s been recently for the Knicks. Too many bad moments outweighing anything positive.

Yes, they were short-handed without Brunson and Hart, both sidelined with right ankle injuries. But the Knicks had over $134 million in firepower on the court in Towns, OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges. It’s hard to commit 17 turnovers and shoot as badly as the Knicks did, however, and win.

So the alarm bells only continue to ring louder and louder.

“A lot,” Towns said of the frustration level around the team. “I don’t like losing any games, so of course, for me, the concern is winning the next one. Just staying focused on the task at hand, winning games and giving our fans something to cheer for.”

It dropped them to 2-8 in their past 10 games and 7-10 since winning the NBA Cup. They’ve gone on a four-game and this current three-game losing streak since the in-season tournament.



It’s not just the dog days of the season. This is a prolonged stretch.

Devin Booker, returning after missing one game with his own ankle injury, hurt the Knicks with 27 points. Collin Gillespie made the Knicks dizzy in the fourth quarter – he scored eight in the period as the Suns pulled away.

Og Anunoby looks to make a move on Oso Ighodaro during the second half of the Knicks’ 106-99 loss to the Suns on Jan.17, 2026 at Madison Square Garden. Robert Sabo for New York Post

And the Suns got strong production from their bench, Grayson Allen and Jordan Goodwin adding 16 and 13 points. In total, the Suns bench outscored the Knicks bench 39-14.

There has been so much talk recently about the lax Knicks defense. But it wasn’t the biggest problem on Saturday. They shot just 40 percent from the field on offense and had a nine-point disadvantage in points conceded off turnovers. It’s the fifth game since Jan. 1 they’ve scored 107 or fewer points. It’s the third time they’ve scored fewer than 100 in that stretch.

Towns, Anunoby and Miles McBride’s final numbers look OK — they finished with 23, 21 and 23 points, respectively. But they went quiet in the fourth quarter, during which the Knicks were outscored by four points.

“It’s a long season,” Anunoby said. “Anyone who’s been in the NBA a long time knows it goes like this. Especially, an 82-game season, there’s gonna be ups and downs. You just continue pushing.”

Miles McBride reacts after hitting a 3-pointer during the Knicks’ loss to the Suns at the Garden. Robert Sabo for NY Post

The Suns entered Sunday fourth in the NBA in offensive rebounds per game. Without Hart, the usual Knicks advantage on the glass went missing. During a five-minute stretch in the second quarter, the Suns grabbed four offensive rebounds and converted them into nine second-chance points. They finished with a four-point advantage in second-chance points.

“There’s concern there, but not to the point where we’re gonna overhaul everything,” Brown said. “We gotta work. We gotta look in the mirror, see how we can individually help the group, starting with me.”

The Knicks left the West Coast with Draymond Green taunting Towns as a lasting image. And now, they began a homestand with their own fans fed up with what they saw.

Title contender? Right now, the Knicks are way closer to the play-in than the top of the East.

Jalen Williams injury update: Thunder star leaves game vs. Heat early

Jalen Williams left the Oklahoma City Thunder's game against the Miami Heat in the first half with right thigh soreness, according to the team. He was subsequently officially ruled out for the rest of the game.

The Thunder had a 52-46 lead against the Heat with 5:39 left in the second quarter at the time of Williams' exit. He struggled to move down the court after he attempted to drive toward the basket with the ball and two defenders in front of him. He did not make the basket.

It was initially thought that Williams injured his hamstring as he limped back to the locker room. It remains unclear if he will miss any upcoming games.

Williams finished with eight points, three rebounds and three assists in 14 minutes of play on Saturday night. He shot 3-for-5 from the field and was 2-for-2 from the 3-point line.

Williams has already been a regular name on the OKC injury report, having missed the first 19 games of the season after recovering from wrist surgery.

Jalen Williams' 2025-26 season stats

Williams has averaged 17.2 points, 5.7 assists and 4.9 rebounds per game in 23 games played.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jalen Williams injury update, what we know about Thunder star

Caufield scores in OT as Canadiens beat Senators 6-5

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Montreal scored three straight goals, including Cole Caufield’s second of the game 33 seconds into overtime, to give the Canadiens a 6-5 come-from-behind win over the Ottawa Senators on Saturday.

Trailing 5-3 late in the third period, Montreal pulled goaltender Samuel Montembeault and got within one with 4:24 remaining when Juraj Slafkovsky tipped a Lane Hutson shot for his second goal of the game. Alexandre Carrier tied it 65 seconds later when he beat Leevi Merilainen glove side. Josh Anderson also had a goal and an assist for the Canadiens.

Jake Sanderson, who also had three assists, had given the Senators what appeared to be insurance when he scored his 10th at 7:55 of the third, beating Montembeault short side to give the Senators a 5-3 lead.

Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle, Dylan Cozens and David Perron also scored for the Senators. Merilainen stopped 13 shots.

The Senators started the second period with a two-man advantage. Tkachuk scored his 10th of the season just 42 seconds in.

With 1:36 remaining in the second, Artem Zub fired a shot from just inside the blue line and it went off Perron’s skate in the crease to give Ottawa its first lead.

Montreal had a goal called back midway through the period but got it back late in the period, on the power play again, when Nick Suzuki won a puck battle along the boards and fed Caufield who wristed a shot past Merilainen.

Lane Hutson had three assists and passed Henri Richard (101) for the most assists by a Canadiens player at age 21 or younger in franchise history.

Up next

Canadiens: Host Minnesota on Tuesday.

Senators: Visit Detroit on Sunday.

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Birthday Blues: Senators Blow Late 5-3 Lead, Fall 6-5 To Montreal In Overtime

If that was meant to be the Senators' 30th birthday gift for their arena, the Canadian Tire Centre will be first in line to return it in the morning.

Cole Caufield had two goals and an assist, including the overtime winner, to give the Montreal Canadiens a 6–5 victory in Ottawa. Jake Sanderson had a goal and three assists for the Sens, who also lost to Montreal in the rink's first game 30 years ago tonight.

Ottawa overcame a slow start, some big mistakes, and some bad penalties, which is usually a recipe for disaster. But despite falling behind 2–0 after 20 minutes, the Senators generally controlled the rest of the game, outshooting the Canadiens 34–19 on the night and taking a 5–3 lead late into the third.

In hindsight, those mistakes cost the Senators some surplus room for error that they could have used during their late-game implosion.

Down by two, Montreal pulled their goalie early, and it paid off when Juraj Slafkovský scored his second goal of the game with 4:34 to play, deflecting a point shot with the shaft of his stick—one that just as easily could have ended up in the 10th row. Just over a minute later, Alexandre Carrier fired a slap shot from the point that somehow fooled Senators goaltender Leevi Merilainen, tying the game.

In overtime, the Sens had a great chance on a 2-on-1. A saucer pass attempt by Claude Giroux sailed over the stick of Tim Stützle, who was all in on a one-timer. When Stutzle missed it, he slid into the end boards and out of the play. Meanwhile, Giroux went off on a line change, leading to the easiest 2-on-1 the other way.

Caufield, who may have broken up Giroux's saucer pass, hustled up ice and was thinking shot all the way, and why wouldn't he be? He beat Merilainen with a slap shot to seal the win.

It was yet another rough outing for Merilainen, who allowed six goals on just 19 shots. In his 20 appearances this season, he's supplied .900 or better goaltending just five times. And there was no one defending him in the room either.

"It's hard to give him a pass," head coach Travis Green told the media after the game. "You know, six goals on 18 shots. I'm sure he'd like to have one or two back. I feel bad for him."

Jake Sanderson didn't mince words either, which is usually standard operating procedure in NHL dressing rooms.

"I think Leevi made some good saves," Sanderson said. "But I think at the end of the day, you got to make more than 10 saves to win a game."

Yikes.

If James Reimer can provide even average goaltending tomorrow in Detroit, Merilainen will almost certainly be Belleville-bound when Linus Ullmark returns to work, as he simply bears no resemblance to the goalie we saw last season.

In fairness, there were glitches in front of him too. Thomas Chabot had one of his worst games as a pro, and the coaching staff surely has to be reconsidering his role on the penalty kill. 

The team was also hampered early by a steady stream of dumb penalties.

After beating struggling teams this week like the Vancouver Canucks and New York Rangers, a victory over the rival Canadiens would have been much more of a statement win. They did come away with a point, but it was a highly discouraging evening for the club and its fan base, especially with the rink filled mostly with Habs fans.

We'll see what the Sens have left in the tank, physically and emotionally, for another rival game on Sunday. This one will be on the road against the rested Red Wings, who don't like the Senators any more than Montreal does. They'd love nothing more than to kick the rival Sens when they're down.

Steve Warne
The Hockey News - Ottawa