Author: NBA Basketball News, Scores, Standings, Rumors, Fantasy Games

The Dallas Mavericks lost 111-107 to the Houston Rockets Saturday night, the Mavericks fourth loss in a row. Cooper Flagg had another outstanding game, but it wasn’t enough as other Mavericks struggled to support the superstar rookie.

Flagg had 34 points, 12 rebounds, and five assists. The Rockets had a much more balanced attack, with all their starters in double-figures, with Amen Thompson leading them with 21 points.

This was a back-and-forth game, with the Rockets extending to double-digit lead in the fourth quarter, only for the Mavericks to make a furious rally to tie the game in the final minute, before Alperen Sengun made the game-winning layup with 28.6 seconds left.

Dallas still sits outside the play-in picture at 11th and is now four games back of 10th. Onto the stats we noticed.

1: Teenagers with consecutive 30-point double-doubles

Cooper Flagg is ridiculous. He scored a historic 49 points against the Hornets on Thursday, the highest points scored in a single game by a teenager in NBA history, and the Mavericks record for points by a rookie. His encore was a delicious 34-point, 12 rebounds, five assist performance against a great Rockets defense — on the road no less.

Flagg started off a bit slow (for his rising standards), but exploded in the fourth quarter. According to the box score, Flagg was 9-of-13 in the paint. He continually went straight at the Rockets best perimeter defenders like Thompson and Tari Eason. Flagg stumbled a bit in the final possessions, and his final attempt to tie the game was wild drive at the rim right at Thompson, but Flagg will learn. It’s just crazy how polished he is as a scorer, without his jumper being consistent.

27.3: Naji Marshall’s field-goal percentage

Marshall had an absolutely killer January shooting nearly 60 percent from the field entering tonight, but this was a rough one. Marshall was 3-of-11 from the floor and scored only eight points. It’s his lowest point total of the month.

Dallas desperately needed someone else to join Flagg in his scoring barrage, and Marshall has usually been the guy. It was an off night for Marshall, and Dallas couldn’t recover.

18: Houston offensive rebounds

Houston leads the league in offensive rebounding, and they dominated the Mavericks on the glass tonight, even without injured Steven Adams.

The Rockets had 18 offensive rebounds, and combining that with only six total turnovers, they won the possession game decisively. Houston had 108 shot attempts compared to 92 for Dallas.

Flagg and Marshall were Dallas’ leading defensive rebounders, with 11 and seven respectively. Starting center Daniel Gafford had another poor defensive rebounding game. He had 11 overall, but only six of those were defensive boards. The Mavericks simply needed more from their starting center in this one.

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz are both chasing history in the Australian Open men's final on Sunday night.

Djokovic, who shares the all-time record of 24 Grand Slam singles titles, is chasing an unprecedented 25th major championship to become the most decorated tennis player of all time.

Top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz, a 22-year-old Spaniard, is bidding to become the youngest man ever to complete a career Grand Slam.

They both survived grueling five-setters in the semifinals on Day 13. Alcaraz held off No. 3 Alexander Zverev on Friday. Djokovic’s epic win over two-time defending Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner ended after 1:30 a.m. Saturday.

The 10-time Australian Open winner was still doing interviews at 3 a.m. inside the depths of Rod Laver Arena.

Djokovic's record in finals at Melbourne Park is 10-0. Alcaraz is playing his first Australian final.

Rod Laver Arena was sold out, with ticket prices surging ahead of the championship decider. Formalities for the final were due to start at 7:30 p.m. local time (0830 GMT).

Conditions were cool and cloudy with some gusting breezes, and light rain showers possible.

___

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

The Orlando Magic have a winning record, but after taking a small leap last season and with powerhouses like the Boston Celtics and Indiana dealing with serious injuries, some pundits envisioned them finding their way into a top four spot in the East. That hasn’t been the case so far, in no small part due to injury woes. Orlando’s two cornerstone players, Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner, have both missed significant time this season. This is especially true for Wagner, who has appeared in just 26 of the Magic’s 47 games this year due to a lingering ankle injury. Overall, their offense has improved compared to last year even with the injuries, but the defense has fallen significantly, going from 2nd to 16th in defensive rating.

Coming off a bad loss to the (admittedly hot right now) Charlotte Hornets on the road yesterday, the Spurs should have some fire in their bellies for yet another early game. One bad quarter in that game was enough to doom the Spurs, yet another reminder in a season full of the importance of playing a full 48 minutes. In the Western Conference, every win is an important one.

San Antonio Spurs (32-16) vs Orlando Magic (25-22)

February, 1 2026 | 6:00 PM CT

Watch: FDSS | Listen: WOAI (1200 AM)

Spurs Injuries: Jeremy Sochan, quad (OUT)

Magic Injuries: Franz Wagner, ankle (OUT)

What to watch for

• San Antonio was supposed to sleep in their own beds last night, but the snowstorm that pushed their game with the Hornets up earlier left them stranded in Charlotte for one more night than originally expected. For all we know, tonight’s game could be a case of the Silver and Black landing at the airport and heading straight to the arenas for warm-ups and game prep. One would think that this will have to have some sort of impact on San Antonio’s game, especially with Orlando likely already in town following their win Friday night in Toronto.
• At 6’10 and still so young, it’s easy to see the tremendous upside that the 2022 No. 1 pick Paolo Banchero has. He’s more than capable of putting the ball in the basket, but plenty of questions remain, with some pundits considering him an, “empty calories,” player that can put up numbers, but leading to little team success. His shot attempts are down this year as is his scoring (down nearly 4 points), while his jump shot remains a work in progress, shooting under 30% from beyond the arc.
• Victor Wembanyama had a pretty subpar game by his standards in the loss to Charlotte, getting up just 15 shots and only attempting 4 FTs in a game that the Spurs were in down the stretch. It was also the third time in his last 10 games that he failed to register a block, a rarity for the Frenchman. Like most teams do, Orlando will likely send waves of bodies at him in the hopes of forcing him into long jumpers or kicking it out to other players. Wembanyama has shown the ability to respond all season, but can he do it in spite of San Antonio’s unique travel itinerary these last few days?

---

If you’d like to, you may follow along with the game on our Twitter profile (@poundingtherock) or visit our Game Thread!

The Cleveland Cavaliers made their first move of what could be a busy trade deadline. De’Andre Hunter, who’s been in trade rumors for weeks, was dealt to the Sacremento Kings in exchange for Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis. The Cavs also had to send the Denver Nuggets’ 2027 second-round pick to the Chicago Bulls to make the deal work.

There are three main benefits to this deal for the Cavs:

1. It adds a proven backup point guard who can attack off the dribble
2. Bolsters a poor perimeter defense
3. Helps the Cavs save money this season and possibly next

Schroder will help the Cavs immensely. The Lonzo Ball experiment has been a disaster. The scoring just hasn’t been there as his three-point shot has completely fallen off a cliff. That has been problematic since he doesn’t have the athleticism to get inside and finish in the paint anymore.

Ball wasn’t brought in for his scoring, but, you can’t be the orchestrator of an offense if defenses don’t respect that you can make them pay for leaving you open. This has led to him being benched recently for Craig Porter Jr., who isn’t ready to be a top-eight rotation player on a contending team.

Schroder solves this issue. He’s a bona fide backup point guard who can create for himself and others off the dribble. He also brings plenty of playoff experience, which is something this group needs.

The 6’4” Ellis is more of a wildcard. He’s a 26-year old, undrafted fourth-year swingman who’s an incredible perimeter defender. That’s an area where the Cavs could use help.

There's a reason why Keon Ellis is one of the best guard defenders in the NBA.

Look at that footwork. Tremendous last step. Always in balance.

Two stocks and a steal off the bench against Boston. pic.twitter.com/3jYuqyQQAY

— Ersin Demir (@EDemirNBA) January 31, 2026

To say Ellis is disruptive is an understatement. He’s currently in the 95th percentile for blocks and 96th percentile for steals for wings.

Despite his defensive skills, the Kings weren’t giving Ellis the minutes he deserved. He was averaging just 17.6 minutes with Sacremento this season, which is down from the 24.4 he was getting the year before.

Ellis isn’t a well-rounded offensive player, although he is a three-point threat. He’s a career 41.6% outside shooter and is connecting on 36.8% of his threes this season.

The move also saves the Cavs nearly $50 million in luxury tax payments this season, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks. That number could be more if the Cavs can find someone to take Lonzo Ball’s $10 million contract for this season.

This trade doesn’t get the Cavs out of the second apron. They’re still over by $13.9 million. However, it does give them more breathing room this offseason.

Schroder is making $10 million less than Hunter next season. Ellis will be an unrestricted free agent in the summer, but is eligible for an extension starting next week. How much future money the Cavs save for next season remains to be seen. This move could help them get under the second apron in the offseason if that’s their goal.

Those benefits came at the cost of Hunter.

Things weren’t working between the Cavs and Hunter. He struggled with his shot at the start of the season, and it never really felt like he bought into the team’s vision after he was moved back to the bench. Still, it’s fair to wonder if the Cavs ever put Hunter in a position to truly succeed.

The ideal version of Hunter was someone who could fit alongside their core four of Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen. Hunter had the shooting and size to be the perfect small forward that the team has been looking for to complete that group. That said, he wasn’t given a chance to prove that.

The Cavs played that five-man group just a combined 90 minutes over the last two seasons. That unit did well. They outscored opponents by an outstanding 46 points when they all shared the floor.

Hunter was given a fair shot in the starting lineup. He opened up 23 games with the Cavs this season with just three alongside the core four. Injuries to the other members of that group are mostly to blame for that, but the Cavs didn’t make the most of their various opportunities to see how Hunter worked with that group. That’s frustrating since the little we saw was tantalizing.

Instead, Hunter was mostly asked to be a small-ball power forward — a role that he struggled with immensely. Hunter doesn’t rebound well for his size, which is essential to playing power forward on a team that doesn’t have good guard rebounding.

Moving on from Hunter leaves little depth at small forward. Jaylon Tyson’s emergence makes Hunter more expendable, but the only other players you’re okay giving small forward minutes to in the playoffs are Ellis, Dean Wade, and Max Strus. If you could guarantee perfect health for Wade and Strus in the playoffs, that wouldn’t be a concern.

Still, the Cavs are a more well-rounded team after the move. They needed the skills that both new players bring, and are also in a better financial position because of it. It’s not easy to find deals that accomplish both goals.

Overall, this trade was a win, but it’s difficult to see it as a homerun. Not figuring out how to make things work with Hunter was a swing and a miss. The Cavs gave up two key rotation players, Caris LeVert and Georges Niang, to acquire Hunter at the deadline last season. In hindsight, that move looks like a disaster.

There’s no reason to throw good money after bad, but last season’s failed trade is going to bump the grade of this one down slightly.

Grade: B+

Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd was not feeling a reporter's question about rookie Cooper Flagg following the Mavericks' 111-107 loss to the Rockets on Jan. 31 at Houston's Toyota Center.

Kidd was asked about reports of "criticism" he'd received for playing Flagg, the top pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, at point guard. Dallas' fifth-year coach interrupted the question, responding with a profanity-filled rant slamming those reports while flexing his career resume.

"I don't give a (expletive) about the criticism. Criticism? That's your opinion. You guys write that bull(crap)," Kidd said. "That's not ... I've done this. I've played this game. I've played it at a very high level. I know what the (expletive) I'm doing.

"But I don't give a (expletive) what you guys write. Because you guys have never played the game. And so, I build players. So, I know what the (expletive) I'm doing. So, to take criticism, it only makes me better. Because if I wasn't doing it right you guys wouldn't be poking holes in what I've done."

Flagg had 34 points, 12 rebounds, five assists and a block in the loss. In his prior outing he set an NBA record for a teenager, scoring 49 points in a loss against the Charlotte Hornets.

The Mavericks have lost four consecutive games. Their next matchup is Tuesday, Feb. 3 against the Boston Celtics at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jason Kidd rant after Cooper Flagg question: What set him off?

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Slovenian Ziga Sesko lifted his game after a shaky first set to beat favored American Keaton Hanse 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 on Sunday in the junior boys final at the Australian Open.

Sesko had little time to savor his victory, other than to lift the trophy over his head at the after-match presentation. He was due to board a flight home hours after the final to join the Slovenian team for a Davis Cup tie against Turkey, starting Friday.

The seventh-seeded 17-year-old started a slight underdog against fourth-seeded Hanse, from Torrance, California.

Hanse looked the stronger and more steady player in the first set, breaking for a 3-2 lead in the fifth game and comfortably holding to take the set in 38 minutes.

Sesko lifted strongly in the second set, gaining more purchase on serve and beginning to crush his forehand while also mixing in a difficult backhand slice. He broke Hanse in the sixth game and took the set in 37 minutes.

The Slovenian dominated the final set, breaking Hanse in the third game. While he was broken in the sixth game for 3-3, he broke back immediately to lead 4-3. Sesko had two championship points on Hanse's serve in the ninth game and conceded only one point in his last service game to take the final on his third match point.

Hanse and Sesko are close friends on tour and have warmed up together all week. Both were playing for the first time on the Rod Laver Arena, the roof of which was closed against the possibility of rain.

“I'd like to congratulate Ziga on an amazing tournament and really well-deserved win,” Hanse said. “I hope I can get revenge on him somewhere in the future.”

Sesko is the third Slovenian to reach a Grand Slam junior singles final and the first since Katarina Srebotnik won the Wimbledon and US Open titles in 1998.

“Keaton is an amazing man, an amazing tennis player,” Sesko said. “I hope we will play many more times and I hope you don't get the revenge.”

Junior Girls

Ksenia Efremova of France beat Ekaterina Tupitsyna of Russia 6-3, 7-5 in the junior girls final, which was the first meeting of the pair.

She’s a very, very good player,” said Efremova, who is the first French girl to reach a Junior Grand Slam final since Elsa Jacquemot won the Roland Garros girls’ title in 2020.

“You maybe don’t hear a lot from her but I know that she’s practicing a lot in Russia and she’s competing there. She doesn’t really travel much," Efremova said ahead of the final. “It’s going to be a very great and interesting match between us because she’s an aggressive player."

Tupitsyna showed that aggression in hitting 21 winners agaisnt 45 unforced errors in the final. But Efremova was steadier, put 72% of first serves in play and won 58% of first serve points.

___

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

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — David Fuchs scored 30 points to lead San Francisco to an 87-82 victory over Pacific on Saturday night.

Fuchs made 11 of 18 shots with a 3-pointer and 7 of 9 free throws for the Dons (14-10, 6-5 West Coast Conference), adding nine rebounds.

Tyrone Riley IV added 16 points and six rebounds for San Francisco, which led 35-32 at halftime. Junjie Wang and Legend Smiley both scored 11. Ryan Beasley had 11 assists to go with eight points.

Elias Ralph scored 23 points to pace the Tigers (15-9, 6-5). TJ Wainwright had 15 points, Justin Rochelin scored 14 and JJaion Pitt added 10 points and six rebounds off the bench.

___

Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college basketba spurtll: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Nate Ament had 22 points, Jaylen Carey came off the bench to score 13 and Tennessee beat Auburn 77-69 on Saturday night.

Ament made only 4 of 16 shots with two 3-pointers for the Volunteers (15-6, 5-3 Southeastern Conference), but he went 12 for 15 at the free-throw line, adding eight rebounds. Carey hit 5 of 9 shots and 3 of 4 free throws and also grabbed eight rebounds.

Ja'Kobi Gillespie added 11 points and five assists for Tennessee, while DeWayne Brown II totaled 10 points and seven rebounds.

Keyshawn Hall had 21 points to pace the Tigers (14-8, 5-4), who saw a four-game winning streak end. Tahaad Pettiford had 11 points and seven assists.

Ament and Carey both had 11 points as Tennessee jumped in front 13-4 on its way to a 41-31 advantage at halftime.

Sebastian Williams-Adams and Kevin Overton both had three-point plays in the first 1:46 as Auburn quickly cut it to 43-37 to begin the second half.

Hall hit a 3-pointer and Elyjjah Freeman followed with a dunk to cut it to 53-49 with 11:19 remaining. Evans made two free throws and J.P. Estrella and Bishop Boswell had back-to-back baskets as the Volunteers pushed the lead to 59-49 with nine minutes left.

Freshman Filip Jovic turned an offensive rebound into a three-point play and Auburn trailed 59-56 with seven minutes to go. Gillespie scored the final four points as Tennessee answered with a 6-0 run and maintained a two-possession lead to the finish.

Up next

Tennessee: Hosts Mississippi on Tuesday.

Auburn: Hosts No. 23 Alabama on Saturday.

___

Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college basketba spurtll: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball

EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Quinn Hughes had a goal and an assist to set a franchise record for defensemen by extending his point streak to eight games in the Minnesota Wild's 7-3 win over the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday night.

Joel Eriksson Ek, Mats Zuccarello and Brock Faber also had a goal and an assist apiece for Minnesota, which won its third straight game and now has points in five straight games. Kirill Kaprizov, Vladimir Tarasenko and Tyler Pitlick rounded out the scoring for the Wild, while Jesper Wallstedt stopped 39 shots.

Leon Draisaitl, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Jack Roslovic scored for the Oilers, who had their three-game win streak halted.

Edmonton's Tristan Jarry gave up five goals on 20 shots before getting the hook midway through the second period. He was replaced by Connor Ingram, who made seven saves in relief.

Penalty killing has been a problem for Edmonton recently and the Oilers gave up two power-play goals to Minnesota and have surrendered six goals on 14 penalties over the last four games.

The game was tied at 2-2 after one period but the Wild took control in the second period with three straight goals.

The Wild took the lead 35 seconds into the second period and never looked back. Ryan Hartman won a faceoff, sliced a pass to Zuccarello and the winger sent a shot soaring over Jarry’s glove to put Minnesota up 3-2.

Draisaitl left the bench for several minutes early in the second, but returned and finished the game. Evan Bouchard extended his point streak to four games with four goals, eight assists across the stretch.

Minnesota swept the three-game season series against the Oilers.

Up next

Wild: Host the Montreal Canadiens on Monday night.

Oilers: Host the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday night.

___

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

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Kaapo Kakko scored the go-ahead goal 3:18 into the third period and the Seattle Kraken held on for their fourth straight victory, 3-2 over the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday night.

Eeli Tolvanen and Jared McCann scored in the first period for the Kraken and Joey Daccord made 27 saves. Chandler Stephenson had two assists.

Ivan Barbashev and Mitch Marner tied it at 2 with goals in the second period for the Golden Knights, who have lost four in a row and six of seven. Jack Eichel had two assists and Akira Schmid stopped 20 shots.

With the game tied at 2, Kakko backhanded the rebound of Adam Larsson’s shot past Schmid to put Seattle back on top. The Kraken have won five of their last six.

Tolvanen scored at 6:50 of the first period to give Seattle a 1-0 lead. McCann made it 2-0 at 13:04 on the power play when he took a pass from Vince Dunn and put it over Schmid for his 200th career goal.

Barbashev cut it to 2-1 at 8:52 of the second period. Marner tied it with 12 seconds left in the period on the power play with a wrist shot past Daccord.

Up next

Kraken: Play at Anaheim on Tuesday night.

Golden Knights: At Anaheim on Sunday night.

—

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

The Cleveland Cavaliers have been reshaping the middle and backend of their roster over the past week. They recently traded De’Andre Hunter for Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis, waived Chris Livingston, and signed Tristan Enaruna to a two-way spot.

That trend continued as ESPN’s Olgun Uluc reported late Saturday evening that the team is also waiving former second-round pick Luke Travers.

As part of this three-team trade, the Cleveland Cavaliers are waiving Australian forward Luke Travers, sources told ESPN. He had been on a two-way deal with the Cavs. https://t.co/fBvabEeD11

— Olgun Uluc (@OlgunUluc) February 1, 2026

The Cavs selected Travers with the 56th pick in the 2022 draft. He spent the next two seasons playing in Australia’s NBL before signing a two-way deal with Cleveland in August 2024.

Travers spent the majority of the last two seasons playing with the Cleveland Charge, the Cavs’ G League affiliate. This season, Travers averaged 18.1 points, nine rebounds, and 5.1 assists on .430/.284/.636 shooting splits with the Charge in 14 games.

Travers has struggled to make the transition to the NBA game. He’s a good team defender and rebounder, but hasn’t found his role on the offensive side. Travers doesn’t have the handle or athleticism to continually get to the basket, so he needed to develop as an outside shooter. So far, that hasn’t happened. Travers shot just 28.4% from three this season with the Charge and shot 26.2% the year before.

The offensive limitations kept him from getting meaningful minutes with the Cavs. He played just 24 games and 191 minutes in two seasons combined with the Cavaliers. Most of which were in garbage time.

With the move, the Cavaliers currently have one open two-way spot with Enaruna and Nae’Qwan Tomlin currently occupying the other two. Tomlin will likely not be in that role for long. He’s eligible for just six more games with the Cavaliers under his current contract, which will presumably be converted to a standard deal after the All-Star break.

The Cavaliers acquired some depth ahead of what they envision being another chance at a postseason run.

They traded De’Andre Hunter to the Kings — the last-place team in the Western Conference — on Saturday in exchange for guards Dennis Schröder and Keon Ellis, with the Bulls also joining the deal as a third team who ended up with a pair of second-round picks and forward Dario Saric, according to ESPN.

The move also reportedly freed up around $50 million in salary and luxury tax space, while also allowing them to get under the second apron next season, the outlet added.

Ellis, a 26-year-old, has averaged 5.6 points per game this season while also carving out a key role defensively for the Kings. 

Schröder, a former Net for 52 games who will play for his 11th different team when he officially suits up for the Cavaliers, has contributed 12.8 points and 5.3 assists per game in Sacramento this season.

He also has logged 74 postseason appearances throughout his career — including last year, when he and a pesky Pistons team took the Knicks to six games.

During that first-round showdown, Schröder averaged 12.5 points while playing over 27 minutes per game.

Those additions cost the Cavaliers the presence of Hunter, who started 23 of the 43 games he logged for them while averaging 14.0 points per game — down from the 17.0 he averaged with the Hawks and Cleveland last year en route to finishing fourth in voting for the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award.

Though this deal didn’t serve as a blockbuster by any means, it still served as a domino to fall ahead of the NBA’s trade deadline Feb. 5.

The Cavaliers sit in fifth place in the Eastern Conference and are tied with the fourth-place Raptors in winning percentage, with the path to the NBA Finals still wide open in a year that hasn’t featured the Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton and the Celtics’ Jayson Tatum as they recover from torn Achilles.

Another major domino that could fall before the deadline features Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, who reportedly indicated that he’s ready for a trade from the only team he has ever played for.

The Knicks are expected to make a bid for Antetokounmpo and serve as one of his preferred destinations, according to The Post’s Stefan Bondy — but it’s unclear if they possess enough to out-bid other teams and win the sweepstakes.

For now, though, the smaller deals will continue to happen.

SYDNEY (AP) — In a masterful performance, as he’s done so many other times, Alexander Volkanovski successfully defended his featherweight title with a unanimous decision over Diego Lopes at UFC 325 on Sunday afternoon.

New South Wales native Volkanovski (29-4-0) won on all three judges’ scorecards 49-46, 49-46 and 50-45, much to the delight of the crowd inside Sydney Olympic Park.

With precision punches and stellar footwork, Volkanovski looked even more dominating than he did during his unanimous decision victory over Lopes (27-8-0) at UFC 314 on April 12 in Miami.

“We were ready for him to make the right adjustments; his team did a good job,” Volkanovski said. “Last (fight), we moved to the right, he did a great job of cutting that off. But that just means I’m going to use all my other tools.”

Which he did, dominating nearly all 25 minutes of the fight, something the 37-year-old admitted he would have rather not needed against his younger foe.

“I wanted to grab a hold of him and put him down, but he was strong; I didn’t want to stand for 25 minutes, I’ll be honest,” Volkanovski said. “But we got the job done.”

After an uneventful first round that was littered mostly with layered feints from both fighters, the action picked up in the second round.

Volkanovski even attempted a jumped guillotine that Lopes slipped out of before attempting a rear-naked choke at the end of the round.

Both fighters landed massive right hands in the third round, the champion with a double-right that staggered Lopes and the challenger with a quick strike that briefly dropped Volkanovski to his knees.

Volkanovski, who tied Jose Aldo for the most title fight wins in UFC featherweight history with eight, was methodical over the final two rounds to seize the win in front of his hometown fans.

“I almost had my moment in Perth,” Volkanovski said, referring to his lightweight championship loss to Islam Makhachev at UFC 284 on Feb. 12, 2023. “But I got my moment here in Sydney.”

In the co-main event, No. 8 lightweight Benoit Saint Denis (17-3-0) got his fourth-straight victory when he scored a technical knockout of No. 6 Dan Hooker (24-14-0) at the 4:45 mark of the second round.

Saint Denis, who hasn’t seen a third round since his UFC debut in 2021, began a ground and pound with several brutal elbows before finishing with a bevy of punches.

In a lightweight bout, No. 14 Mauricio Ruffy (13-2-0) used a flurry of punches that began with a thunderous right hand to score a technical knockout of No. 9 Rafael Fiziev (13-5-0) at the 4:30 mark of the second round.

In what culminated with a bloodied slugfest in the third and final round of their heavyweight battle, No. 15 Tallison Teixeira (9-1-0) earned a unanimous decision over No. 12 Tai Tuivasa (15-9-0).

Quillan Salkilld (11-1-0) opened the main card by making quick work of Jamie Mullarkey (18-9-0) with a rear-naked chokehold in the first round. It was Salkilld’s fourth-straight win.

___

AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports

After a few days of speculation, the Cleveland Cavaliers have traded away De’Andre Hunter to the Sacremento Kings in a three-team deal. They’ll be receiving Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis from the Kings. Dario Saric, a 2029 second-round pick from the Kings, and the Denver Nuggets’ 2027 second-round pick — which the Cavs previously owned — are being sent to the Chicago Bulls.

BREAKING: The Cleveland Cavaliers are trading De'Andre Hunter to the Sacramento Kings for Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis, sources tell ESPN. The three-team deal includes the Chicago Bulls acquiring Kings forward Dario Saric and two future second-round picks. pic.twitter.com/Hoc6bP0hhj

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 1, 2026

The Cavs acquired Hunter at the deadline last season, but it simply didn’t work out long-term. Hunter was good for the remainder of last regular season. That didn’t carry over to the second round series against the Indiana Pacers. He missed Game 2 with a thumb injury and wasn’t himself when he returned to the lineup. Hunter averaged just 9 points and 4.5 rebounds on 36.7% shooting from the floor that series.

That carried over to this season. Hunter was given a chance to prove that he could fit with the starting lineup, but struggled to find his role. As a starter, Hunter averaged 15.4 points on .429/.303/.843 shooting splits. The inefficient shooting and lack of effort on defense resulted in him being moved back to the bench.

Switching to a reserve role didn’t do much to help him regain his shot. Overall, Hunter averaged 14 points and 4.2 rebounds on .423/.308/.869 shooting splits in 43 games with the Cavs.

Perimeter defense has been an issue for Cleveland after trading away Isaac Okoro this summer. Ellis should help. He’s known as one of the better defenders for his position, and should help an area of need.

Ellis is only 6’4”, which puts his natural position at shooting guard. That’s a spot on the depth chart that is already clogged with that being Donovan Mitchell, Sam Merrill, and Max Strus’s best position.

On the season, Ellis is averaging 5.6 points and 1.3 rebounds on .397/.368/.625 shooting splits.

Schroder should help shore up the backup point guard position with Lonzo Ball seemingly on his way out. The journeman guard is averaging 12.8 points and 5.3 assists per game on .408/.343/.820 shooting splits.

The move will also save Cleveland $50 million in luxury tax payments this season. How much it helps them financially in the longrun remains to be seen. Schroder is owed $14.8 million next season and $15.5 million (with just $4.3 million guaranteed) in 2026-27. Ellis will be an unrestricted free agent this offseason if his contract isn’t extended with the Cavs.

The Cavaliers are still over the second apron by $13.9 million after the completion of the deal. We’ll see if additional moves are made before the trade deadline on Feb. 5.