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Bulls 120, Timberwolves 115: A Foul Effort at Target Center

On a freezing cold Thursday night in Minneapolis, the Minnesota Timberwolves desperately needed a win. They had lost their previous three games and had fallen to seventh place in the Western Conference. They were unable to get it as they were taken down by the middling Chicago Bulls 120-115.

Just like the previous game against the Utah Jazz, the Wolves got out to a great start. They took a 14-point lead a little more than eight minutes into the game on the back of hounding defense. Minnesota forced misses on 10 of the first 12 Chicago shots, allowing them to get easy baskets on the other end of the court.

As the game went on, though, that defensive intensity went away. The largest indicator for this was the Wolves’ inability to avoid fouling. So often, the Wolves were not in the correct position to defend their man. Instead of moving their feet to defend properly, they either committed blocking fouls or reached in and made contact with a Bulls player’s arms.

In the second quarter, the Bulls were in the bonus with 8:48 left. In the third quarter, they were in the bonus with 6:56 remaining. Overall, Minnesota committed 27 fouls (plus a Naz Reid technical foul), which led to 33 Chicago free throws.

“Our inability to contain drives right now is really hurting us,” Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch said about his team’s defesive performance. “Kind of over helping in places that we didn’t want to over help in, and a readiness to contain the next drive.”

The Wolves trailed by three points heading into the fourth quarter, and as they have so often this season, they came storming back. Midway through the fourth quarter, the defense finally started to get some stops, and the offense found a rhythm as a Naz Reid dunk gave them a six-point lead with five minutes left.

The Wolves were unable to put the game away from that point, as they missed their next four shots, allowing the Bulls to cut the lead to one. The Wolves stopped the bleeding there, though, after an Anthony Edwards floater and a 3-pointer from Jaden McDaniels, the Timberwolves found themselves up four with a minute and a half left.

That is when the game came crumbling down for the Wolves, as Edwards fell asleep guarding his man in the corner. Coby White drilled the 3-pointer from the corner to cut the Minnesota lead to just one.

“Josh Giddey made a good pass,” Edwards said about the play. “I wasn’t expecting that pass. So my reaction was like Bones [Hyland] said I was stuck in quicksand when he caught the ball. It felt like it. So, I couldn’t really get a contest. I know I’mma get cussed out about that one.”

The Wolves followed that up with turnovers on their next two possessions, allowing Tre Jones to streak to the rim off an inbounds pass to give Chicago a one-point lead. With the game on the line, on the next possession, Ant used up most of the shot clock and threw up a heavily contested three that came nowhere close to going in.

That would be as close as the Wolves would come to winning the game, as a pair of Jalen Smith free throws and an Edwards on a game-tying 3-pointer, the game was out of reach.

Edwards finished with just 20 points, struggling to find his shot as he finished the game 9-25 from the field. Julius Randle led the Wolves in scoring with 30 points to go along with seven rebounds and six assists. Naz scored 20 points, including four 3-pointers, but aside from him, the Wolves’ bench scored eight points on 3-14 shooting.

The loss was the Wolves’ fourth straight. The first two against the Houston Rockets without Edwards, and against the San Antonio Spurs on the second night of a back-to-back, were understandable. These last two versus the Jazz and Bulls, on the other hand, do not come with nearly the same benefit of the doubt.

“We know what we have to do to be better in that department,” Julius Randle said about the team’s energy. “It’s a long season. There’s going to be ups and downs. A week ago we could’ve looked like the best team in basketball and this week we can look like the worst. We just gotta find a way to find a consistency.”

There is still plenty of season left, but this recent stretch may have cost the Wolves a top seed in the Western Conference, and they are now fighting to just stay out of the Play-In Tournament.

The Wolves did this all a season ago. They struggled for most of the regular season, but turned in on late and made the Western Conference Finals after finishing as the sixth seed. They still have the ability to go on a similar run, but maybe that is what is holding this team back. It doesn’t seem like the Wolves feel the urgency in fighting for a top seed because last year proved they don’t need it. At least that’s what it feels like they think.

Up Next

With the local temperatures set to dip below negative ten over the weekend, the Timberwolves stay home for a pair of games against the Golden State Warriors. The first is a Saturday matinee at 4:30 PM CT at Target Center. Wolves fans can watch the game on ABC.

Highlights

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San Antonio vs. Utah, Final Score: Spurs explode in fourth quarter to put Jazz away, 126-109

After blowing a 16-point lead and completely falling apart in Houston likely left the Spurs with a bad taste in their mouths for the last 48 hours ago, they made sure it didn’t happen again against the Utah Jazz tonight, although they still made everyone sweat a little first. After the Spurs got ahead by as much as 15 in the first half, the Jazz came all the way back in the third quarter. Things were still tied several minutes into the fourth, but Utah could never gain the lead, and the Spurs finally turned things back on in the final seven minutes to but the young but pesky Jazz away, 126-109.

De’Aaron Fox led five Spurs in double figures with 31 points on 6-9 from three, Victor Wembanyama had 26 points with four threes, and Keldon Johnson scored 21 off the bench. For the Jazz, Ace Bailey had on of his best games of his young career with 25 points while continuously slicing through the Spurs defense, and Jusuf Nurkic had a 17-11-14 triple-double.

Observations

  • Recent events have conditioned me to not get excited when the Spurs are hot from three, but they did it again tonight, hitting 5 of their first 6, with two from Julian Champagnie and Fox and one from Wemby. Of course, they then went 2-8 for the rest of the first quarter, although a third from Champagnie helped them tie things back up a 31 apiece after they had gone cold when the bench came in and gave up a 7-point lead.
  • Jordan McLaughlin got some minutes to start the second quarter for unclear reasons other than Mitch Johnson either wanted to make a point or find a spark after the slow end to the first quarter, but whatever the reason, they got the memo and came out with much more energy and aggressiveness, building the lead up to 15 with him on the floor. He recorded three rebounds, two assists and a steal and is just one of those players who doesn’t make mistakes and does the little things that can help steady the ship.
  • Luke Kornet joins Devin Vassell with adductor tightness, and the Spurs missed him badly. Kelly Olynyk got the back-up center minutes in the first half, and while he didn’t do much, good or bad, he was a net negative for a reason. It seemed like everything bogged down every time Wemby left the floor. Jeremy Sochan, who was questionable with an illness, got the back-up center minutes in the second half, and unsurprisingly the energy level and feistiness was higher.
  • It’s not a Spurs game without a blown double-digit lead. In a reverse from the first half, this time it was the starters that gave up the entirety of what was once a 15-point lead, and the bench unit that did the stabilizing. They never allowed the Jazz to take the lead and even got it back up to 8 before a Kyle Filipowski three before the third quarter buzzer got it down to five. Overall, the Spurs were outscored 39-32, so it was definitely a turd quarter on defense, but credit to the bench for getting the offense going again and preventing it from being a full-blown turn quarter.
  • Similar to their loss in Houston, the Spurs opened the fourth quarter by carelessly jacking up threes, missing their first five before Wemby finally got one to fall. Fortunately for them, while the Jazz again tied things back, unlike Houston, they couldn’t hit any shots that would have given them the lead before the Spurs got their act back together and pulled back up by 10 with 7 minutes left. Fox and Wemby then traded haymakers to put the Jazz away. Overall, they finished on a 22-9 run after that Wemby three.
  • Stephon Castle’s shots continue to be short. I wonder how much that thumb is bugging him, especially after he re-aggravated it in Houston. Still, other than shooting 4-12, he had a solid night by getting to the line for 16 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals and just 1 turnover.
  • Random thought that jumps in my head every time three seconds is called, offensive or defensive: I get why the rule exists, but it’s dumb because it’s almost never called more than once a game, sometimes not at all, but it probably happens on at least 25% of possessions. It just feels like something that is called when the refs feel like they need to remind everyone that it exists. It’s like they need to meet an allotment by calling it every so often.
  • Wild stat that was revealed during the game: Wemby is the Spurs’ franchise leader in three-pointers made per game at 2.2. That shocks me. I know it’s a small sample size, and there have certainly been players that averaged more makes than that in a single season, but it’s so hard to imagine that shooting specialists like Bruce Bowen, Danny Green, Patty Mills, etc. didn’t average more across their Spurs careers. I guess it’s just a combination of the rise in attempts since their playing days, not being in the main rotation the entire career meant small appearances hurt their career averages, etc.
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Recap: Hollow Utah Jazz spurred by, you guessed it, the Spurs

One look at the injury report, and it was clear that the Utah Jazz were welcoming Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio into the Delta Center for a 48-minute formality. We can do the whole song and dance, or you can kindly take your victory and go.

No Lauri Markkanen, as he is still absent with the bubonic plague, or polio, or smallpox, or whatever illness has kept him sidelined for the past chunk of games. Cody Williams and Svi Mykhailiuk were officially in the starting lineup for this one, but with Keyonte George fresh off a 43-point season-high, and Jusuf Nurkic having just posted a triple-double in the same century win for head coach Will Hardy.

But that was the only win Utah had picked up without the Finnisher to that point in the season, and it took all-world performances from George, Nurkic, and a 15-point fourth quarter comeback. Still, with all the confidence of a wild west gunslinger standing 20 paces from Fingerless Floyd at high noon, Keyonte George is enjoying the type of season where he can seemingly beat anybody when he’s on his game.

Keyonte George is often on his game these days.

So, it’s sort of challenging to define expectations for the Utah Jazz as the 2nd-best team in the West, San Antonio, entered the Salt Lake Valley with their full lineup of Fox, Castle, Harper, and some French fellow named Victor all available. The Spurs are both young and legitimate threats for the title this year — well ahead of schedule and joining Oklahoma City as the youthful leaders of the Western Conference, with a disturbingly wide window for contention.

Utah’s situation is… different. It’s been a slow burn, but the youth of Utah are beginning to find solid ground. George and Sensabaugh, especially, are giving observers reason to believe in their upside. Those players are in their third seasons — the fifth pick in the 2025 draft, however, is really beginning to put it together.

Squaring off against his old Rutgers teammate, Ace Bailey started hot, knocking down his first four shots in the first quarter and tallying 10 points in the opening frame.

Then, in the second half, in the midst of a San Antonio separation act, Cody Williams uncorked the Delta Center with a coast-to-coast yam in rush-hour traffic.

It feels like Cody is good for a pair of dunks per game these days, but that? No, your honor, I cannot identify Cody Williams in that video, but I believe I spotted Giannis Antetokounmpo wearing number 5 in white.

But Cody’s flight was but a gentle distraction as the Spurs pushed their lead to double-digits and entered halftime with a 12-point advantage.

I say this with only the slightest hint of irony: Jusuf Nurkic may actually be the love child of Nikola Jokic and 2016-17 Russell Westbrook. For the second straight game, the Bosnian Beast posted a triple-double. His dominance was so potent that even as the Spurs carried a double-digit advantage in the fourth quarter, they sent double-teams on his late-game touches.

If this were the first basketball game someone had ever watched, they might think that Nurkic was the best player on planet Earth. Victor Wembanyama was not enough to neutralize his offensive powers. 17 points, 14 assists, and 11 rebounds. Yeesh.

Meanwhile, Ace Bailey messed around and posted yet another career high, notching 25 points just after his previous high. He’s high-flying as always, feasting off a healthy helping of off-ball movement and cuts to the rim, while being more selective with his jump shots.

Alas, the Spurs controlled late, pushing their lead and leading 126-109 as time expired.

Calvin Barrett is a writer, editor, and prolific Mario Kart racer located in Tokyo, Japan. He has covered the NBA and College Sports since 2024.

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Warriors vs. Mavericks player grades: Steph Curry stars in loss

Steph Curry crouched over, dribbling, defended by Klay Thompson.

The Golden State Warriors lost their second game in a row on Thursday night, and unfortunately, it was distinctly different than their Tuesday loss to the Toronto Raptors. In that game, the Warriors played decently — you could even argue they played well — but an outlier shooting performance from the Canadians doomed the Dubs. But on Thursday, the Warriors lost 123-115 to the Dallas Mavericks because they simply didn’t play all that well. Which is, in fairness, the most common way to lose a basketball game.

So let’s grade the group that moved the Dubs to 0-2 in the post-Jimmy Butler III era. As always, grades are based on my expectations of each player, with a “B” grade representing the average performance for that player.

Note: True-shooting percentage (TS) is a scoring efficiency metric that accounts for threes and free throws. Entering Thursday’s games, league average TS was 58.1%.

Moses Moody

23 minutes, 12 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, 2 fouls, 4-for-7 shooting, 3-for-6 threes, 1-for-1 free throws, 80.6% TS, -5

A pretty solid game for Moody, who continues to shoot very efficiently. In his last six games, Moody is shooting 29-for-48 from the field, including 21-for-37 on threes. I would stop short of calling his defense great, but it’s been reliably good, bordering on very good. This was just a very solid all-around game for Moody.

Grade: A-

Gui Santos

17 minutes, 5 points, 4 rebounds, 1 block, 1 foul, 2-for-5 shooting, 1-for-4 threes, 50.0% TS, -5

Santos got to partake in the starting lineup, and that was fun to see. His energy on the glass was necessary to keep the Warriors in the game, though he had some struggles on offense.

Grade: B

Draymond Green

23 minutes, 4 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, 3 turnovers, 6 fouls, 1-for-5 shooting, 0-for-1 threes, 2-for-2 free throws, 34.0% TS, -15

I don’t know if it’s a generic slump or if he’s feeling deflated following the Butler news, but Green did not look like Green in this one. He just didn’t appear to be moving at his usual speed, especially with his decision-making. He had some very rough turnovers, and fouled out despite playing less than half the game. His defense wasn’t up to his standard, and the game shifted a bit when he collected a flagrant foul. Just a bad game. No two ways about it.

Grade: D

Brandin Podziemski

33 minutes, 9 points, 4 rebounds, 10 assists, 2 steals, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 4-for-13 shooting, 0-for-4 threes, 1-for-2 free throws, 32.4% TS, +10

Podziemski is more of a do-the-little-things player than a go-to scoring option, but sometimes he plays like he should be the secondary scorer. Occasionally that works out well, but often it does not. On Thursday, it did not, as he could not buy a bucket, though he kept trying.

In Podz’s defense, he also played the role of elite playmaker, with a 10-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio that the Warriors will take eight days a week. He really showed off his quarterbacking chops in this game, and also played some really strong defense. Honestly, it was a really good game minus the atrocious shooting. We’ll call it even.

Grade: B
Post-game bonus: Led the team in assists.

Steph Curry

34 minutes, 38 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 turnovers, 2 fouls, 14-for-27 shooting, 8-for-15 threes, 2-for-2 free throws, 68.1% TS, -24

This game was the ultimate display of things changing and things staying the same. There was Steph, donning his hero’s cape, just like old times. There was Steph, draining an absurd number of threes, while carrying the team and putting up a gaudy points total, just like old times. And there were the Warriors, losing to a bad team despite his efforts, unlike old times. And there was his running mate Klay Thompson, scoring just six points while coming off the bench for the opposing team, very unlike old times.

Enjoy Steph while he’s still doing it, folks. He’s a treasure, even in an increasingly lost season.

Grade: A
Post-game bonus: Led the team in points.

Gary Payton II

17 minutes, 4 points, 3 rebounds, 1 block, 1 turnover, 1 foul, 2-for-6 shooting, 0-for-1 threes, 33.3% TS, -32

Payton’s minutes weren’t as bad as his plus/minus would suggest, but they weren’t particularly good, either. He’s been doing some good things on offense lately, but not so much in this game, and his defense wasn’t very impactful.

Grade: C–
Post-game bonus: Worst plus/minus on the team.

Will Richard

13 minutes, 0 points, 2 assists, 3 steals, 2 fouls, 0-for-1 shooting, 0-for-1 threes, 0.0% TS, -5

Something I’ve been wondering lately: if the Warriors season fully falls apart post-Butler, and they completely turn their attention to the 2026-27 season, will Richard get a bigger role? It might be worth playing him 30 minutes a night and seeing what happens.

Anyway, his offense has really disappeared since his hot rookie start, but his defense was utterly blissful in this game. He was so active, and seemed to deflect everything. That will get you minutes on a Steve Kerr team.

Grade: B+

De’Anthony Melton

24 minutes, 22 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 9-for-15 shooting, 1-for-4 threes, 3-for-6 free throws, 62.4% TS, +22

I know Kerr loves having Melton lead the second unit, but I think it’s time to start him, assuming he’s enough recovered from his ACL injury that he can play 30 minutes a night (which, admittedly, may not be the case). Kerr can still stagger Melton and Curry’s minutes enough so that one is always on the court, but you might as well start with your best players. And this game was yet another data point supporting the increasingly obvious: with Butler out, Melton is the team’s second-best player.

Grade: A+
Post-game bonus: Best plus/minus on the team.

Al Horford

26 minutes, 3 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 2 turnovers, 3 fouls, 1-for-4 shooting, 1-for-3 threes, 37.5% TS, +2

If the Warriors could just build the entire team out of Curry, Melton, and Horford, they’d be in pretty darn good shape. Those guys are good. Everyone else? TBD.

Grade: A-
Post-game bonus: Led the team in rebounds.

Jonathan Kuminga

9 minutes, 10 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists, 2 steals, 1 foul, 3-for-3 shooting, 4-for-4 free throws, 105.0% TS, +18

Kuminga’s game was a mixed bag. He entered in the first quarter and immediately set to work, quickly recording two dynamic and-ones that were a strong reminder as to how gifted he is offensively. He gave great effort on the glass and played tremendous defense. The Warriors were so much better when he was on the court.

And then he got hurt in the second quarter, appeared to injure his ankle, and was ruled out for the rest of the game with knee soreness. He’s scheduled for an MRI, and we all nervously await the results.

Grade: A+/fingers crossed

Buddy Hield

15 minutes, 6 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 block, 1 foul, 2-for-7 shooting, 1-for-5 threes, 1-for-1 free throws, 40.3% TS, -2

Hield is the definition of hot-and-cold. He couldn’t miss on Tuesday. He couldn’t make on Thursday. So it goes.

Grade: C

Quinten Post

6 minutes, 2 points, 1 foul, 1-for-3 shooting, 0-for-2 threes, 33.3% TS, -4

Post was not only removed from the starting lineup for this game, but nearly removed from the rotation entirely. He’s been struggling lately, and this game was no exception.

Grade: C-

Thursday’s DNP-CDs: Trayce Jackson-Davis, Pat Spencer

Thursday’s inactives: Jimmy Butler III, LJ Cryer, Seth Curry, Malevy Leons

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On Steve Kerr giving the ‘thumbs up’ to Jonathan Kuminga’s rotation spot

The relationship may be “fractured beyond repair,” but the professionalism has clearly been maintained.

At the 3:48 mark of the first quarter of the Golden State Warriors’ game against the Dallas Mavericks, the Amazon Prime broadcast cut toward Steve Kerr calling a play for Jonathan Kuminga, called “Thumb up.” Simply put, the play is a high pick-and-roll for the ball handler, with the name Kerr calls out playing the role of the screener. In this instance, Kerr calling out “Thumb up JK” means that he wants Kuminga to set the screen for Brandin Podziemski, with everyone else spreading the floor to create as much room as possible for the two-man action.

The lack of weak-side help in the form of “tagging” is apparent, with Will Richard making himself a threat to catch a potential kick-out. Kuminga gets all the way to the rim after Podziemski dishes him the pocket pass, and is fouled in the process of making the layup.

While Kuminga played nine minutes and 28 seconds on the floor due to suffering what was deemed as a left ankle sprain and left knee soreness, the limited minutes he played turned out to be highly impactful. The Warriors outscored the Mavericks by a total of 18 points, with an offensive rating of 130.4 and a defensive rating of 54.5 that combined for a net rating figure of plus-75.9.

With Butler out of the rotation for obvious reasons, Kerr inserted Kuminga into the role that Butler played: that of an advantage creator in isolation and pick-and-roll whose ability to pick at mismatches allowed the Warriors to create efficient offense off of a defense being placed on a blender due to the initial advantage.

Kuminga may very well never replicate the kind of consistent all-around play that Butler was able to provide for the Warriors. But left with no choice in terms of which secondary scorer and advantage creator to pair with Steph Curry, Kerr deemed it necessary to reintroduce the embattled Kuminga into the rotation. Not only has Kuminga played two consecutive games of positive hoops — he has somewhat increased his value to the team, and by extension, his value to potential suitors who may be looking for a player profile that Kuminga fits.

That was probably the driving reason behind Kuminga being sidelined after tweaking his ankle and knee, an effort to maintain his health and fitness to prevent the sudden drop in value that a more serious injury would’ve brought. Kuminga reportedly receiving an MRI could be cause for concern, but in all likelihood it may be a precaution to rule out a more serious injury. But all indications have pointed toward Kuminga’s injury not being especially debilitating.

However, while Kuminga may continue this stretch of inspired play, it remains paramount that the Warriors move his contract, if only to resolve a situation that has outlived its welcome. Kuminga and the Warriors aren’t a fit long-term — that much is clear. For all parties to move on, the separation must be finalized.

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Panthers outlast Jets 2-1 in shootout for 4th win in 6 games

WINNIPEG, Manitoba (AP) — Anton Lundell and Sam Reinhart beat Connor Hellebuyck in a shootout to help give the Florida Panthers a 2-1 victory over the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday night.

Winnipeg shooters Kyle Connor and Mark Scheifele came up empty against Daniil Tarasov in the tiebreaker.

Sam Bennett scored in regulation, and Tarasov stopped 17 shots for two-time defending champion Florida. Matthew Tkachuk had an assist for his first point of the season in his second game back from adductor muscle surgery.

The Panthers are 4-2-0 in their last six to improve to 26-20-3.

Cole Perfetti scored for Winnipeg, and Hellebuyck stopped 19 shots. The Jets are 5-1-2 in their last eight to get to 20-23-7.

Bennett scored his 18th of the season with a one-timer with 1:11 left in the second. Perfetti tied it at 5:24 of the third.

Up next

Panthers: At Minnesota on Saturday night.

Jets: Host Detroit on Saturday night.

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

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American-born players help Mexico break winless streak with 1-0 victory over Panama

PANAMA CITY, Panama (AP) — American-born players Richy Ledezma and Brian Gutiérrez made their debuts and helped the Mexican national team break a six-match winless streak with a 1-0 win over Panama in a warmup match Thursday for this year's World Cup.

Defender Richard Peralta scored an own goal in the 92nd minute to give Mexico its first win since last July, when it beat the United States in the Gold Cup final.

Ledezma, who was born in Phoenix to Mexican parents, made the one-time switch with FIFA after playing official matches with the United States. He started the match and played all 90 minutes.

Gutierrez, who was born in Berwyn, Illinois, did not have to apply for a country switch because he only played friendlies for the U.S. against Venezuela and Costa Rica in January 2025.

“Those were good minutes, I’m taking it one step at a time and now I’ll continue to grow,” Gutierrez said.

Gutierrez, who also was a starter and left the match in the 57th minute, was also on the CONCACAF Nations League roster last March but never got into a game.

Obed Vargas, who was born in Anchorage, Alaska, also was a starter for Mexico.

“Those three guys that were born in the United States and decided to play for Mexico, and for that reason alone they deserve my respect,” said Mexico’s coach Javier Aguirre. “The three started off well, they’re kids with a future, I’m happy.”

Vargas, a midfielder, earned his first cap with the Mexico senior team in October 2024 with a substitute appearance against the United States in a 2-0 victory.

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

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Stamkos breaks late tie with 3rd goal of game, Predators rally to beat Senators 5-3

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Steven Stamkos broke a tie with 2:13 left with his third goal of the game and the Nashville Predators overcame a three-goal deficit to beat the Ottawa Senators 5-3 on Thursday night.

After Stamkos tied it at 3 with 9:53 left with his second power-play goal of the game, Ryan O’Reilly beat the Senators to the puck behind the goal line and popped it out front to Stamkos, who batted it out of the air past goalie James Reimer.

O’Reilly set up the tying goal, too, firing a cross-crease feed to Stamkos with the man advantage. Nashville got the power play when Tim Stutzle cross-checked Stamkos.

Predators captain Roman Josi, playing his 1,000th NHL game, also assisted on the tying goal. The defenseman is the 84th player in NHL history to play his first 1,000 regular-season games with one franchise.

Stamkos had his second hat trick of the season and 16th overall to push his season goals total to 24. Jonathan Marchessault also scored, and Cole Smith had an empty-netter. Juuse Saros made 23 saves to help Nashville end a three-game losing streak.

Stephen Halliday scored his first NHL goal, and Ridly Greig and Dylan Cozens added goals for Ottawa. Reimer, making his third straight start after signing with the Senators on Jan. 12, stopped 21 shots.

Ottawa closed a three-game trip. It had earned points in five straight games.

Halliday opened the scoring at 6:03 of the first period, knocking in a rebound. With David Perron out after surgery to repair a sports hernia, Halliday was recalled from Belleville of the AHL in the morning. He scored in his 19th NHL game, all this season.

Up next

Senators: Host Carolina on Saturday night to open a four-game homestand.

Predators: Host Utah on Saturday.

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

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Player Grades: Recapping the Mavericks’ 123-115 win over the Golden State Warriors

Stephen Curry got whatever he wanted at American Airlines Center on Thursday, but the Dallas Mavericks (19-26) pulled ahead late in a back-and-forth game to beat the Golden State Warriors (25-21), 123-115. Curry nailed eight 3-pointers and led all scorers with 38 points in the loss, but Cormac Karl “Max” Christie and Naji Marshall keyed a late 24-5 run that proved too much for the Warriors overcome.

Marshall led the Mavs with 30 points on an insane 10-of-12 shooting night to go along with nine assists in the win, while Christie and rookie sensation Cooper Flagg added 21 apiece in a well-rounded and highly satisfying Dallas win. The Mavs overcame 22 turnovers by shooting 51% from the field on their way to the win, which is the team’s sixth in its last nine.

Cooper Flagg: B+

21 PTS / 11 REB / 1 AST / 1 STL / 30 MIN

Flagg was the only defender back early in the first quarter and snuffed out Draymond Green’s transition try before taking the ensuing outlet pass coast-to-coast for the game’s first score and a three-point play opportunity. Two possessions later, he pulled up from near the foul line for a jumper that put the Mavericks up 6-0. Flagg missed his first three tries from 3-point range, though.

Flagg’s turnover on the first possession of the second quarter was the Mavericks’ eighth of the game and led directly to an easy transition dunk from Quinten Post to give the Warriors a 29-24 lead. Two minutes later, Green drew a charge against Flagg on Flagg’s drive through traffic, but Flagg followed Thompson’s missed 3-pointer the next time down for a highlight put-back jam to give the Mavericks a 31-29 lead with 9:20 left before the half. Less than a minute later, Flagg followed Max Christie’s miss in transition with another putback bucket as part of a 12-4 Mavs’ run to open the second. Flagg scored the bucket that gave the Mavs back the lead late in the second as part of another quick 12-0 Dallas run. He scored 11 points and pulled down 9 boards in the first half, as the Mavericks took a 55-50 lead into the break.

After a quiet third quarter, Flagg knocked down his first 3-pointer of the game early in the fourth to bring the Mavs to within 92-89. He made a hard drive to the cup a minute later to keep Dallas connected, down 96-91, then got fouled while rising up for a monster slam the next time down. He turned the ball over four times and went just 4-of-7 from the free-throw line in the win.

Max Christie: A

21 PTS / 4 REB / 2 AST / 1 STL / 36 MIN

Christie lost Steph Curry in the screen game along the perimeter on two of Curry’s three makes from 3-point range in the first quarter. After Curry’s third, Christie cashed in his first 3-pointer on the other end to give the Mavs a 14-9 lead midway through the first. He hit another late in the second from the right corner to pull the Mavs to within 45-44. His third of the first half came with under a minute to play in the second, from the same spot, and extended the Dallas lead to 51-45.

Christie’s fourth 3-ball of the game was another big one with 5:42 left in the third. He rose up from the right wing on a find from P.J. Washington for the score that put the Mavericks up 70-69. He knifed through the lane for his first two-point score of the game less than a minute later to extend that lead to 72-69.

Christie scored his 15th and 16th points of the game on the Mavericks’ second possession of the fourth quarter, a touch bucket inside that pulled the Mavs to within 89-86. He stepped on the sideline while pump-faking a shot in the corner for Dallas’ 18th turnover of the ballgame with 10 minutes left to play. His fifth 3-ball of the contest came as part of a key 10-0 spurt from the Mavs and tied the game, 96-96, with 8:26 left in the game.

Caleb Martin: D+

0 PTS / 2 REB / 1 AST / 2 BLK / 20 MIN

Martin threw away a terrible pass in transition late in the first quarter, then was called for a hook and an offensive foul on the Mavs’ next possession with 3:45 left in the opener. The Warriors took their first lead of the game on the other end as a result, on Jonathan Kuminga’s first two buckets in the Warriors’ last 16 games. Martin got his transition dunk attempt blocked by Buddy Hield with two minutes left in the first to continue his rough start.

Martin started the third quarter, but Mavs head coach Jason Kidd kept him on a much shorter leash in favor of Brandon Williams, who played a brilliant first half against the Warriors.

Naji Marshall: A+

30 PTS / 7 REB / 9 AST / 34 MIN

Marshall was called for a technical foul midway through the second quarter after DeAnthony Melton scored in transition, then lost the ball on the Mavs’ next possession for Dallas’ 11th turnover of the game. He was late getting out to defend Moses Moody along the perimeter on the next Warriors’ possession and gave up a 3-pointer that put Golden State in front, 43-39 with less than five minutes to play before halftime. The lane opened up for Marshall on a drive in secondary transition less than a minute later, and his score brought Dallas to within 45-41.

Marshall picked up his 15th and 16th points of the game on a little flip inside midway through the third to bring Dallas to within 69-67. He hit his first 3-pointer of the game with 2:45 left in the third from the right corner to put the Mavericks ahead 82-77. He scored back-to-back buckets inside as part of a late 12-0 run that extended the Mavs’ lead late to 113-101.

Dwight Powell: A+

10 PTS / 12 REB / 1 AST / 27 MIN

Powell grabbed eight rebounds in the first half (three on the offensive glass) on his way to 12 in the loss. His try-hard modus is as laudable in his 12th season as it was when he got here. Powell slipped past Green, who lost sight of Powell with the ball in his hands, with 7:20 left in the third quarter for his second bucket of the game to keep the Mavs within four after Golden State scored the first eight points of the second half.

Powell’s 3-point play in transition from Marshall with 5:54 remaining put the Mavs up 109-101 and was a huge moment in the back-and-forth affair. It also gave him a double-double on the night. Powell absolutely outworked Green on both ends of the floor as Green fouled out of the game with 3:50 left to play.

Klay Thompson: C-

6 PTS / 6 REB / 0 AST / 1 STL / 23 MIN

Thompson was quiet in the first quarter, bricking his first 3-point attempt from the top of the key nine minutes into the game, before getting his pocket picked the next time down. He turned it over again with a minute left in the first on a play that led to a bucket from Brandon Podziemski on the other end as Golden State took a 27-24 lead at the end of one.

Thompson cashed in his first two 3-point attempts of the second quarter to key the Mavericks’ 12-4 run to start the frame. He went quiet in the third quarter, though, as Golden State pulled back in front late in the frame.

Ryan Nembhard: C+

5 PTS / 2 REB / 3 AST / 1 STL / 12 MIN

Nembhard was used sparingly, shooting just 1-of-4 from the field in the first half. He turned the ball over on a surprise attack trap to start the fourth, the Mavs’ 17th giveaway of the game. Nembhard canned a step-back 3-pointer near the top of the key with 7:45 left to play to swing Dallas back in front, 99-96.

Moussa Cisse: C

1 PTS / 1 REB / 1 STL / 6 MIN

Cisse saw most of his action in the first half and was a non-factor for the most part against the Warriors, as Powell stole the show.

Brandon Williams: A

19 PTS / 5 REB / 4 AST / 27 MIN

Williams was a blur driving through the lane off the bench against Golden State in the first half. He scored 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting and was decisive on his drives, darting to the hoop past whatever defender was in front of him. His driving bucket split two defenders as the last few seconds of the first half ticked down, and his leaner in the lane gave Dallas its 55-50 lead at the interval.

Williams got to the free-throw line on yet another drive with 4:47 left in the third and the game tied at 72-72 but made just 1-of-2 at the stripe. He came into Thursday having scored 15 or more points in seven of his last 10 games. Williams used a clever little crossover dribble to get to the line again the next time down and cashed in both this time to put the Mavs ahead 75-72. He finished off a lob from Marshall with 3:45 left in the third on a high-flying bucket, before stepping back for a perimeter jumper to put Dallas up 79-72. He was late to get to Melton on a corner 3-pointer that tied the pulled the Warriors back in front, 85-82, with 1:44 left in the third and forced a timeout from Mavericks’ head coach Jason Kidd.

P.J. Washington: B-

10 PTS / 6 REB / 3 AST / 2 STL / 3 BLK / 22 MIN

Washington came in off the bench in the first quarter and got his first bucket on a tough offensive rebound in the lane with 3:30 left in the opener. He hit his only 3-point attempt of the first half, but didn’t have an outsized impact on the proceedings other than that. Washington’s steal as the only man back led to the Max Christie 3-pointer that pulled the Mavs back in front, 70-69, with 5:42 left in the third quarter. His well-defended dunk attempt that somehow fell after teetering on the rim for a second or two brought the Mavs to within 85-84 with just over a minute left in the third. He was tenacious on the defensive end, contributing five stocks in the win.

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Sixers Bell Ringer: Sixers ground the Rockets in sensational overtime win

2025-26 Sixers Bell Ringer standings:

Tyrese Maxey – 18
VJ Edgecombe – 6
Paul George – 5
Joel Embiid – 4
Andre Drummond – 2
Dominick Barlow – 1
Adem Bona – 1
Justin Edwards – 1
Quentin Grimes – 1
Jared McCain – 1
Kelly Oubre Jr. – 1
Trendon Watford – 1
15th roster spot – 1

The Sixers have been inconsistent, at best, in their play lately, but on Thursday night, they put together one of their better performances of the season against a strong Houston Rockets opponent. A game that was back and forth the entire way, with neither team ever leading by double digits, came down to the final play in regulation. Tyrese Maxey’s layup attempt should have been called a goaltend for the game-winning points, but was not reviewable. However, the Sixers didn’t let that bad no-call deter them, staying focused to pull out the 128-122 victory in overtime. We have some excellent options for Bell Ringer tonight so let’s get to it.

Joel Embiid: 32 points, 15 rebounds, 10 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 5 turnovers

For whatever reason, Joel Embiid had some extra pep in his step tonight. Maybe it was just going up against a good opponent, or facing Team USA teammate Kevin Durant, or possibly because it was the two-year anniversary of his 70-point game. His staring down Alperen Sengun after a dunk said it all. Whatever the reason, it all ended up with Joel’s first triple-double of the season. Offensively, Embiid attacked mismatches in the post time and again, but also did a nice job reading when help was coming and finding open teammates underneath and around the arc. It was a perfect mix of raw strength and some finesse, as we saw with his gorgeous spin move around Clint Capela. Defensively, it was as spry as we’ve probably seen Joel on the season, going hard after defensive rebounds and coming down with them in contested situations. Physically, he wound up playing a season-high 46 minutes and looked no worse for wear towards the end of it.

Kelly Oubre Jr.: 26 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block, 1 turnover

Moving back into the starting lineup in place of Dominick Barlow with the other usual four starters all available, Kelly Oubre made Nick Nurse look very wise indeed. Oubre continued his hot shooting from recent games, going a highly efficient 10-of-14 from the field, including 4-of-5 from three. He operated effectively as a spot-up shooter, but also as a driver and lurking along the baseline for a couple of timely buckets. Kelly was arguably even better on the defensive end. Although his raw stats don’t show it, with just one block (an outstanding swat of a Tari Eason corner three attempt), Kelly was everywhere defensively. He disrupted and made life difficult for a slew of Rockets; his harassment played a big part in Kevin Durant having eight turnovers on the night. It was maybe the best two-way performance we’ve seen from Oubre in his time as a Sixer.

Tyrese Maxey: 36 points, 2 rebounds, 10 assists, 3 steals, 3 turnovers

Maxey’s recent cold shooting spell continued, going just 2-of-10 from beyond the arc. However, he didn’t let that stop him from helping the team in the other areas of the game. Defensively, it was Tyrese’s fourth straight game with at least three steals, as he has learned to pick his spots (and opponent’s pockets) extremely well to jumpstart transition opportunities. Then, in his 43 minutes of action, he kept attacking, and his speed wore down the increasingly tired legs of the Rockets’ defenders. Maxey was Mr. Clutch for the Sixers on the night. He scored 11 points in the final four minutes of regulation to bring the Sixers back from down six points (and should have had another two points on what would have correctly been called the game-winner). He then dropped six points in the overtime period to carry Philadelphia across the finish line.

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Rockets road woes continue in a 128-122 loss to the 76ers in OT

The Rockets, the 76ers, and overtime. Three things that have been synonymous over the last couple of seasons. Unfortunately, the Rockets being on the road and losing has also become synonymous. Tonight, the Rockets got to experience all of the above. The Rockets got another brilliant performance from Kevin Durant who scored 36 points, 7 rebound and 3 assists on 13-of-21 shooting. The Rockets had five other players in double figures and shot the ball extremely well. If you didn’t watch the game,you may be wondering how the Rockets lost?

It starts with allowing the 76ers to shoot 55.1 percent from the field and score 66 points in the paint. The pick-and-roll with Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embid absolutely cooked the Rockets. Maxey score 36 points and dished out 10 assists in a game where he was getting to the middle of the defense and to the rim at will. Joel Embid scored one of the quietest 30+ point 15+ rebound triple-doubles I’ve seen in some time. Kelly Oubre Jr. also went unconscious offensively with 26 points on 10-of-14 from the field.

The game went back and forth throughout the game, each team taking a nine-point lead at one point, and each team going on a run to close the gap. Regardless of all the defensive lapses, miscues, and turnovers, the Rockets missed 12 free-throws in a game that they lost by sis points. The Rockets inability to focus at the line and make a free-throw is officially a concern. Other than Kevin Durant, no one has been good at the line. Those free-throws, if made, can make up for a lot of other things any given night, but for the Rockets it’s becoming a glaring weakness.

Bright spots in the game were the play of Tari Eason, who seemed to be getting back into regular form, and Reed Sheppard coming up big in the fourth quarter, not only offensively but on the defensive end with steals and deflections. The Rockets had 35 bench points, Tari Eason with 13 of those points and Reed Sheppard with 14 points. Clint Capela added some quality defensive minutes off the bench and Dorian Finney-Smith went 2-0f-4 from the three-point line.

Fourth quarter execution, or the lack thereof, was once again the story for the Rockets, who honestly lost the game in regulation, but a goaltending was not called when Kevin Durant blocked a Tyrese Maxey layup after it hot the backboard. The basketball gods would preserve justice as the Rockets were only able to score 7 points in the overtime period.

Th loss puts the Rockets record at 26-16 as we move just past the midway point of the season. That record is good enough for 4th in the Western Conference, but the Rockets are 5-5 in their last 10 and just 3-11 on the road since the beginning of December. That will need to improve quickly. Hopefully, as soon as tomorrow when the Rockets take on the 1st seeded Detroit Pistons in Detroit. Traveling after a deflating overtime loss will make things more difficult, but if you’re a veteran fan of Houston sports then you know that making things difficult rather than easy is what we do. Check in with TDS tomorrow for a preview of the game against the Pistons, Rockets discussion during the game, and a post-game recap.

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Blair scores 21 points; No. 13 Michigan State women hold off USC 74-68

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Kennedy Blair scored 21 points, and No. 13 Michigan State women held off Southern California's late surge for a 74-68 victory on Thursday night.

Michigan State opened the fourth quarter on a 13-5 run to stretch its lead to 66-54 with 5:15 remaining. Jazzy Davidson scored the last five points in a 10-0 run to help pull USC to 66-64 with 4:10 left before the Spartans sealed it from the free-throw line. Blair led the Spartans with eight points.

Blair shot 8 of 15 from the floor overall, made 5 of 6 free throws and had five steals. Grace VanSlooten scored 16 points, grabbed nine rebounds for Michigan State (18-2, 7-2 Big Ten), which rebounded from a 75-68 loss to then-No. 10 Iowa. Rashunda Jones scored 16 points and Ines Sotelo added 12 to go with seven rebounds for the Spartans.

Michigan State scored 25 points from 24 USC turnovers.

Kara Dunn scored 23 points and Jazzy Davidson added 21 to lead USC (11-8, 3-5). Kennedy Smith scored 15 points.

Up next

USC: At No. 7 Michigan on Sunday.

Michigan State: At Purdue on Thursday.

___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball

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Friday's Time Schedule

All Times EST

Friday, Jan. 23

NBA

Houston at Detroit, 7 p.m.

Boston at Brooklyn, 7:30 p.m.

Phoenix at Atlanta, 7:30 p.m.

Sacramento at Cleveland, 7:30 p.m.

Indiana at Oklahoma City, 8 p.m.

New Orleans at Memphis, 8 p.m.

Denver at Milwaukee, 9:30 p.m.

Toronto at Portland, 10 p.m.

NHL

Tampa Bay at Chicago, 7 p.m.

Vegas at Toronto, 7 p.m.

St. Louis at Dallas, 8 p.m.

Philadelphia at Colorado, 9 p.m.

Washington at Calgary, 9 p.m.

Anaheim at Seattle, 10 p.m.

N.Y. Rangers at San Jose, 10 p.m.

New Jersey at Vancouver, 10 p.m.

T25 MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL

No. 3 Michigan vs. Ohio St., 8 p.m.

No. 24 Saint Louis at St. Bonaventure, 5:30 p.m.

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Oliver Moore scores in shootout on 21st birthday, leads Blackhawks to 4-3 win over Hurricanes

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Oliver Moore scored in the shootout on his 21st birthday and Spencer Knight stopped five of six shots by Carolina to give the Chicago Blackhawks a 4-3 shootout win over the Hurricanes on Thursday night.

Connor Murphy, Ilya Mikheyev and Nick Lardis scored in regulation for the Blackhawks. Knight, who shut out Winnipeg on Monday night, made 28 saves in regulation and overtime for his second straight win.

Joel Nystrom, Jordan Staal and Jackson Blake scored for the Hurricanes, whose five-game home winning streak ended. Frederik Andersen stopped 18 shots and four more in the shootout.

The win capped an eventful night for Moore, who celebrated a milestone birthday. He was on the wrong side of a fight with Alexander Nikishin in the second period and then nearly won the game in overtime but was robbed by Andersen.

Chicago led 1-0, 2-1 and 3-2, but couldn’t put the Hurricanes away in regulation. Carolina has yet to lose in regulation with top defenseman Jaccob Slavin in the lineup (8-0-3).

Murphy and Blake traded goals 82 seconds apart near in the back half of the third period to send it to overtime.

Andersen came up with a pair saves — on Moore and Frank Nazar — in the third period to keep the game tied at 2 . He made two bigger saves — on Wyatt Kaiser and Moore — in overtime.

The Hurricanes tied it at 2 on Staal’s first goal since Dec. 19 at 9:16 of the second. Chicago had taken a 2-1 advantage after Lardis’ goal at 4:35 in the second.

Mikheyev swatted in his own rebound at 11:12 in the first to give the Blackhawks a 1-0 lead. It was Mikheyev’s first short-handed goal of the season.

Nystrom tied it with his first NHL goal at 12:50 in the first. The rookie defenseman has nine points in 36 games.

Up next

Blackhawks: Host Tampa Bay on Friday night.

Hurricanes: Travel to Ottawa on Saturday night.

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

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Sovereignty wins Horse of the Year at Eclipse Awards, Bill Mott named top trainer

PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Sovereignty won Horse of the Year at the Eclipse Awards on Thursday night, as well as 3-year-old male honors, and Bill Mott, who guided the colt to victories in the Kentucky Derby and Belmont, was named trainer of the year.

Sovereignty skipped the Preakness and won the Belmont during Triple Crown season. He was forced to miss the Breeders’ Cup Classic because of a fever.

The 55th annual ceremony at the Breakers Hotel in Palm Beach also crowned Ted Noffey as 2-year-old male horse, capping a season in which he went 4-for-4, including a win in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile.

The colt trainer by Todd Pletcher is the early favorite for the Kentucky Derby in May.

Ted Noffey won his career debut at Saratoga in August. He followed up with an 8 1/2-length victory in the Hopeful Stakes at the upstate New York track. Then came a 2 3/4-length win in the Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland. He closed 2025 with a one-length win in the BC Juvenile at Del Mar.

In other categories, Flavien Prat won jockey of the year and Pietro Moran was named apprentice jockey. Godolphin LLC, the racing and breeding operation of Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum, won as owner. Godolphin was named breeder of the year.

Other male winners were Japan-bred Forever Young as older dirt male; Book'em Danno as male sprinter; and Britain-bred Notable Speech as male turf horse.

Among female horses, Super Corredora won as 2-year-old filly; Nitrogen was chosen 3-year-old filly; Thorpedo Anna was named older dirt female; Shisospicy won female sprinter; and She Feels Pretty won female turf horse honors.

Cool Jet took steeplechase horse honors.

Named for the 18th-century horse and sire Eclipse, the awards are voted on by members of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, Daily Racing Form and National Turf Writers and Broadcasters.

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AP horse racing: https://apnews.com/hub/horse-racing