Luka Doncic made a fall-away jumper with 0.5 seconds remaining in overtime and the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Denver Nuggets 127-125 on Saturday night.
Austin Reaves forced overtime when he rebounded his intentionally missed free throw and made a floater with 1.9 seconds remaining in regulation.
Doncic created enough distance from Spencer Jones to make the 17-foot shot, finishing with 30 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds as he continued his spectacular play during Los Angeles’ five-game winning streak. Doncic then blocked Tim Hardaway Jr.’s desperation heave following a Denver timeout.
Reaves finished with 32 points, making the first free throw and then perfectly executing his missed second attempt off the front of the rim after the Nuggets fouled him to prevent a tying 3-point attempt leading 118-115 with 5.2 seconds left.
Nikola Jokic had 24 points, 16 rebounds and 14 assists for his 27th triple-double of the season. Aaron Gordon led the Nuggets with 27 points and Hardaway finished with 20.
Jamal Murray fouled out 31 seconds into overtime, finishing with five points, six rebounds and six assists on a miserable 1-for-14 night.
Houston, the Lakers, Denver and Minnesota all came into Saturday with 41 wins as they jockey to be as high as the third seed in the Western Conference. The Nuggets already held tiebreakers over the Rockets and Timberwolves by virtue of having won the season series against both teams, but the Lakers denied them a clean sweep in the crowded middle.
Deandre Ayton had four of his nine points in overtime and Marcus Smart hit a 3-pointer to put Los Angeles up with 30 seconds left, only for Jokic to score a driving layup up off the glass over Ayton to tie it with 15.1 to go.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Luka Doncic made a fall-away jumper with 0.5 seconds remaining in overtime and the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Denver Nuggets 127-125 on Saturday night.
Austin Reaves forced overtime when he rebounded his intentionally missed free throw and made a floater with 1.9 seconds remaining in regulation.
Doncic created enough distance from Spencer Jones to make the 17-foot shot, finishing with 30 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds as he continued his spectacular play during Los Angeles’ five-game winning streak. Doncic then blocked Tim Hardaway Jr.’s desperation heave following a Denver timeout.
Reaves finished with 32 points, making the first free throw and then perfectly executing his missed second attempt off the front of the rim after the Nuggets fouled him to prevent a tying 3-point attempt leading 118-115 with 5.2 seconds left.
Nikola Jokic had 24 points, 16 rebounds and 14 assists for his 27th triple-double of the season. Aaron Gordon led the Nuggets with 27 points and Hardaway finished with 20.
Jamal Murray fouled out 31 seconds into overtime, finishing with five points, six rebounds and six assists on a miserable 1-for-14 night.
76ERS 104, NETS 97
PHILADELHPIA (AP) — Quentin Grimes scored a season-high 28 points and Philadelphia held on for a victory over Brooklyn.
Grimes had eight rebounds for the short-handed 76ers, who were missing Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and Kelly Oubre Jr., among other players. Justin Edwards scored 19 points while adding three steals.
Danny Wolf had 15 points and 10 rebounds for the Nets, who lost their third straight game. Josh Minott added 14 points.
The 76ers entered halftime up 53-31. Adem Bona’s free throw with 3:02 left in the fourth quarter gave Philadelphia the lead for good at 88-87.
HAWKS 122, BUCKS 99
ATLANTA (AP) — CJ McCollum scored 30 points, Jalen Johnson had his 12th triple-double of the season and Atlanta beat Milwaukee Bucks for its ninth straight victory.
Johnson finished with 23 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds as Atlanta extended the longest current winning streak in the NBA. McCollum made seven 3-pointers and moved ahead of Paul Pierce into 16th place on the career list with 2,147.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker had 20 points for the Hawks, who led 60-52 after a first half with six lead changes and four ties. The Hawks then broke it open in the third quarter by outscoring Milwaukee 35-26, with McCollum scoring 11.
Ryan Rollins scored 22 points for the Bucks, who were without Giannis Antetokounmpo after he sprained his left ankle during Milwaukee’s 112-105 loss to Miami on Thursday. Kevin Porter Jr. added 18 points, seven rebounds and seven assists.
SPURS 115, HORNETS 102
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Victor Wembanyama had 32 points, 12 rebounds, eight assists and three blocks in his return from a one-game absence, leading San Antonio to a victory over Charlotte.
Miles Bridges had 22 points and Kon Knueppel added 20 for Charlotte, which had won two straight and eight of 10.
The Spurs have won 17 of 19 to tighten their grip on second in the Western Conference. San Antonio (49-18) is 7 1/2 games ahead of No. 3 Houston (41-25) and three games behind Oklahoma City (52-15) for first.
The Spurs closed their longest homestand 5-1, with their only loss coming as Wembanyama watched from the bench because of a sore right calf in a 136-131 loss to Denver on Thursday that snapped a five-game winning streak.
Wembanyama had an immediate impact with 18 points, eight rebounds, two blocks and two steals in the first half.
CELTICS 111, WIZARDS 100
BOSTON (AP) — Jayson Tatum had 20 points and 14 rebounds in a season-high 32 minutes, Neemias Queta had 24 points and 10 rebounds and Boston withstood a late charge to beat Washington for its 11th straight loss.
Tatum had his second double-double since making his season debut earlier this month. Jaylen Brown added 16 points to help the Celtics snap a two-game skid.
Boston’s lead grew to 30 points in the third quarter, but Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla kept Tatum on the court to allow him to reach a high for minutes in the four games he’s played in since his return from Achilles tendon surgery. He had been capped at 27 minutes in his previous three games.
Washington, which was coming off erasing a 17-point deficit to force overtime in a loss at Orlando on Thursday, chopped Boston’s lead to 12 in the fourth quarter. But the Celtics got a layup from Tatum and 3-pointer by Sam Hauser to help them close it out.
Tristan Vukcevic had 22 points to lead the Wizards.
MAGIC 121, HEAT 117
MIAMI (AP) — Paolo Banchero scored 27 points, Desmond Bane added 21 and Orlando beat Miami, becoming the second team in the last 30 years to beat the same opponent five times in one season.
Wendell Carter Jr. scored 15 for the Magic, who won their seventh straight and snapped Miami’s season-best, seven-game winning streak.
Orlando led by as many as 22, before Miami twice got within two in the final 18.5 seconds.
Orlando (38-28) moved a game clear of Miami (38-30) in the race for fifth in the Eastern Conference, plus is 10 games over .500 for the first time since the end of the 2023-24 season.
Jaime Jaquez Jr. scored 22, while Bam Adebayo and Norman Powell each had 20 for Miami, which hadn’t gone 0-5 against one team since doing so against New York — then coached by now-Heat President Pat Riley — in 1992-93.
The only other instance in the last three decades: New Orleans went 5-0 against Sacramento in 2023-24.
SANDY, Utah (AP) — Stijn Spierings scored a goal in his MLS debut to help Real Salt Lake beat Austin FC 2-1 on Saturday night.
Spierings, a 30-year-old former Netherlands youth international, ran onto a ball played ahead by Justen Glad and blasted a first-touch shot from well outside the area to give Real Salt Lake (3-1-0) its first lead of the game at 2-1 in the 88th minute.
Jon Bell scored for Austin (1-2-1) in the 18th minute.
Noel Caliskan played an entry pass from the left edge of the penalty box that was redirected into the net by Austin defender Oleksandr Svatok for an own goal that made it 1-1 in the 24th.
RSL had 59% possession and outshot Austin 24-10, 8-3 on target.
Diego Luna (knee) made his season debut for Real Salt Lake when he subbed on for 18-year-old Aiden Hezarkhani in the 71st minute.
Lakers guard Austin Reaves celebrates after a 127-125 overtime win against the Denver Nuggets on Saturday at Crypto.com Arena. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
The Lakers entered a critical six-game stretch Saturday that could very well determine their playoff position in the competitive Western Conference postseason race.
Behind the heroics of Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, the Lakers defeated Denver in a 127-125 overtime thriller at Crypto.com Arena that secured a playoff seeding tiebreaker over the Nuggets.
Doncic made an 18-foot jumper with less than a second left in overtime to secure the win. While he'll get a lot of the credit for the outcome, the play of Austin Reaves, Deande Ayton and Marcus Smart in overtime also played a critical role.
Ayton scored four of his nine points in the overtime and Smart drilled an important three-pointer late as the Lakers (42-25) won their fifth straight game and moved back into third place in the West with 15 games remaining.
It was dueling triple-doubles between two stars, with Doncic putting up 30 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds and Nikola Jokic finishing with 24 points, 16 rebounds and 14 assists.
Reaves, who finished with 32 points, seven rebounds, six assists, forced overtime when he intentionally missed a free throw, got the rebound and scored on a floater to tie the score 118-118 with 1.9 seconds remaining. He made his first free throw with 5.2 seconds remaining.
Lakers win a thriller, 127-125. Luka Doncic hits the game-winner to finish with 30 points, 13 assists, 11 rebounds. Austin Reaves 32 points, sevenr rebounds, six assists and the huge basket to force overtime. Marcus Smart 21 points, five made threes. Game of the Lakers season. pic.twitter.com/XKe6kV7KAn
In the overtime, Smart, who finished with 21 points, made a three-pointer off an assist from Doncic for a 125-123 lead, but Jokic responded by scoring over Ayton with 15.1 seconds left to tie the score.
With the Nuggets (41-27) on the verge of winning the season series, Doncic then scored with half a second left to give the Lakers their eighth win in nine games.
LeBron James finished with 17 points, six rebounds and five assists and Ayton grabbed nine rebounds in addition to his nine points.
LOS ANGELES, CA - MARCH 14: Luka Doncic #77 of the Los Angeles Lakers drives to the basket during the game against the Denver Nuggets on March 14, 2026 at Crypto.Com Arena in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The Lakers beat the Nuggets 127-125 in an overtime thriller. LA now owns the tiebreaker over Denver.
Clutch plays by LeBron and Reaves sent the game into OT. While both teams played the extra five minutes with tired legs, Deandre Ayton’s four points helped Los Angeles heavily in the period. Luka put the icing on the cake with a clutch game-winning fadeaway jumper.
The game began with Jamal Murray draining a 3-pointer, but soon after, the Lakers started heating up with Marcus Smart draining one himself. Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves converted on two triples each, leading to an early seven-point lead for LA.
Yet another triple for the Lakers, Luka's 2nd, forces Denver's first time out at the 8:01 mark, with LA up 15-8.
Dončić has been dialed in from distance out of the All-Star break, shooting 44.6% on considerably high volume (6.3 makes on 14.0 attempts).
Denver called a timeout, and out of the break, Nikola Jokić turned the ball over, leading to Reaves scoring in the paint on the other end.
Los Angeles lead started to fade as the Nuggets scored five in a row, but LA’s hot shooting continued as they went on an 8-0 run. Rui Hachimura had a nice start with four points off the bench.
Reaves and Luka combined for 20 of the 29 points the Lakers had on the board with 2:18 left in the quarter. Tim Hardaway Jr. drained a three and Smart responded with his second of the quarter.
At the end of the first, the purple and gold were up by eight.
A strong start for the Lakers produced a 34-26 lead after 12 minutes of action.
Luka went for 12 points, 5 assists and 5 boards, and Jokic 9 points, 4 boards and 2 assists.
Smart opened the second period with another 3-pointer for Los Angeles. LeBron James then exploded for five points, further expanding a big lead for LA. After a wide-open bank shot in the paint for Reaves, Denver called a timeout.
Out of the break, Bruce Brown scored on a layup.
The Lakers were shooting an impressive 47% from behind the arc and a total of 58% from the field. LeBron was up to seven points in the quarter. A quick 5-0 run from Denver made it a 14-point game with 4:53 left.
Luka turned the ball over leading to Christian Braun scoring on a dunk, pushing their run to seven in a row. Smart responded with a floater in the paint to stop the run. The Lakers then went on their own 7-0 run to keep a big lead.
At halftime, LA was up by 11.
The Lakers are leading the Nuggets 61-50 at the half. Luka Dončić leads all scorers with 16. Rui Hachimura is producing off the bench with six points and Marcus Smart has 11 points on 4-6 shooting.
The third period began just as the second did, with Smart draining a three for the Lakers. Aaron Gordon responded on the other end with a midrange jumper. Gordon scored again on a jumper, giving him an early four points in the quarter. After they had gotten the deficit down to 10, LA took charge and extended their lead to 14.
Deandre Ayton finally looked more engaged, scoring four points.
Hardaway Jr. was up to 12 points off the bench. Cam Johnson knocked down his fourth 3-pointer of the night. Denver cut the deficit to nine. The Nuggets were shooting 61% in the third, while Los Angeles was shooting 47%.
The Lakers suddenly found themselves up by just three, after six in a row from Jokić.
LA had their response with Reaves and Luka combining for four, but Denver countered with six more to make it a three-point game again. Los Angeles had 1:31 left to build more cushion on their small lead.
A surge of five points from Bruce Brown tied the game at the end of the third.
The Lakers, in control for much of the night, led by 11 with 4:16 to play in the 3rd Q, but were outscored 17-6 to go into the 4th tied at 87.
Hardaway Jr. put the Nuggets in the lead to start the final frame with a triple. Reaves responded with a runner down the paint. Hardaway Jr. scored again, pushing his total to 17 for the game. The Lakers went back up by two after scoring five in a row.
Both teams kept taking turns with tying and taking the lead.
Gordon, who also had 17, drained a 3-pointer to put the Nuggets back in the lead with 7:27 left in the game. Denver pushed their lead to eight, but Los Angeles cut it to four on the shoulders of Reaves and free throws from Jaxson Hayes.
Another three from Gordon pushed the lead back to seven with 3:28 left. Hayes was sent to the line once more, converting on one of two free throws. Luka drained a much-needed 3-pointer to make it a three-point deficit.
Luka was then fouled from behind the arc, converting on all three free throws to tie it at the 1:57 mark. Gordon then knocked down another three to put the Nuggets up by three. Reaves scored on a layup to make it a one-point game with 1:11 left.
Smart then put his incredible defensive presence on full display, stealing the ball and going straight to the basket for the layup. The Lakers were now in the lead by one with 46 seconds left.
Hardaway Jr. then drained another 3-pointer, putting Denver up two. LA had the opportunity to score, but the Nuggets stole the ball, and Gordon was fouled, converting on one free throw only.
With 9.9 seconds left, Los Angeles would have a chance to either tie or put up a quick two to end up playing the foul game. Reaves was fouled and made both free throws.
Johnson was sent to the charity stripe and converted on both free throws with 6.4 left. Denver fouled Reaves, and he converted on one free throw and missed the second. He grabbed the rebound and swished a jumper, tying the game. The Nuggets had no time to score, so the game went into overtime. This is LA’s first overtime game of the year.
Behold the Austin Reaves bucket that put the Lakers in their first overtime game of the year. pic.twitter.com/0JyLFA0jTl
The overtime began with Jamal Murray, who had an atrocious game, fouling out. Ayton scored the first points for LA with a jumper. Braun was fouled and converted on both free throws for Denver’s first points of OT with 2:36 left. There were lots of tired legs running back and forth for each team.
Ayton then scored on a hook shot in the paint to put the Lakers back up by two with 57 seconds left. Gordon knocked down a triple to put Denver back up by one. Smart responded with a 3-pointer on the other end to put LA back in the lead by two with 30 seconds left.
Jokić tied the game with a layup with 15 seconds left in OT. Luka converted on a fadeaway jumper that gave the Lakers the win!
Key Player Stats
Luka finished with a triple-double of 30 points, 11 rebounds, and 13 assists. Reaves notched 32 points with seven rebounds and six assists. Lebron had 17 points with six rebounds, five assists and two steals.
Smart pitched in with 21 points, three rebounds, two assists and five steals. Hachimura scored six points off the bench. Ayton pitched in with nine points, nine rebounds and two assists.
The Lakers’ next matchup will be against the Houston Rockets on Monday at 6:30 PM PT.
CHICAGO (AP) — Tai Baribo scored on a penalty kick in the fifth of 18 minutes of second-half stoppage time to rally D.C. United to a 2-1 victory over Chicago on Saturday night after Hugo Cuypers drilled a late PK to give the Fire a brief lead.
Neither team scored until the 81st minute when Cuypers sent a PK into the net after a foul on DC United midfielder Jackson Hopkins.
The lead last three minutes until defender Matti Peltola sent shot from the middle of the box through traffic and into the net. It was his first career goal in his 61st appearance.
Baribo's PK winner came after a foul on Fire defender Johnny Dean. It was his third goal in his first four matches with the club after netting 25 goals in 55 appearances over three seasons with the Philadelphia Union.
Sean Johnson saved one shot for DC United (2-2-0) in his first season with the club. It was his 435th career start.
Chris Brady finished with one save for the Fire (1-2-1). He was coming off back-to-back clean sheets.
Baribo had a goal waived off in the 43rd minute after Hopkins was caught offside.
FRISCO, Texas (AP) — Petar Musa scored three goals — his second career hat trick and second multi-goal game this season — Saturday night for FC Dallas in a 3-3 tie with San Diego FC.
Musa capped the scoring in the fifth minute of stoppage time. Bernard Kamungo intercepted a pass near midfield, raced down the left side and then tapped a pass to Musa for a first-touch finish from the left corner of the 6-yard box.
Onni Valakari scored two goals — his first multi-goal game in MLS — and Marcus Ingvartsen also scored a goal for San Diego (3-0-1).
Dallas (1-1-2) had just 40% possession but outshot San Diego 13-5, 8-4 on target.
Musa, who had two goals in a season-opening win over Toronto, put away the rebound of his own shot in the 41st minute — the first goal conceded by San Diego this season — and converted from the spot in the 54th.
Valakari and Ingvartsen made penalty kicks in the 21st and 31st minutes, respectively, to give San Diego a 2-0 lead.
Valakari made it 3-1 in the 51st minute. Alex Mighten, at the left edge of the penalty box, played a low entry to Valakari for a first-touch finish from a few yards in front of the penalty spot. It was the 23-year-old Mighten's first career assists.
Michael Collodi had one save for Dallas.
Pablo Sisniega made his first start this season and finished with five saves for San Diego.
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (AP) — Jaden Harris and Amir Taylor combined to score 35 points and No. 6 seed Kennesaw State defeated No. 4 seed Louisiana Tech to win their first Conference USA championship and clinch a berth to the NCAA Tournament.
Harris posted 18 on 4 of 6 from behind the arc. Taylor had 17, going 9 for 11 from the free-throw line, while tallying six rebounds and two steals. RJ Johnson added 13 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals.
The Owls (21-13) led 35-32 at the half, and used a 10-2 run starting with 8:42 left in the game to build up an 11-point lead inside the final four minutes.
This is the Owls’ second 20-win season in school history, and their first title game in the second year in the conference. They were the third-lowest seed to win the Conference USA tournament. It's their second trip ever to the NCAA Tournament.
The Bulldogs (20-14) were led by Avery Thomas II's 10-point, 10-rebound performance. Scooter Williams Jr. had 10 points. Kaden Cooper had 10 rebounds. AJ Bates had eight assists.
The Bulldogs were done in by 7% shooting from behind the arc (2 for 28). They shot 31% from the field (22 for 72). They entered Saturday's contest with a 35-year NCAA Tournament drought.
HOUSTON (AP) — Mateusz Bogusz scored a short-handed goal in the 15th minute of second-half stoppage time and the Houston Dynamo rallied to beat the Portland Timbers 3-2 on Saturday night.
Houston (2-1-0) shook off a red card on Nicholas Markanich for his foul on Timbers goalkeeper James Pantemis in the fourth of 18 minutes of stoppage time. Jack McGlynn's second assist of the match set up the winner. It was the first goal for Bogusz in his first season with the Dynamo after scoring 18 times in two seasons with Los Angeles FC.
Portland (1-3-0) took a 1-0 lead into halftime when Gage Guerra scored his first career goal — unassisted in the fourth minute of stoppage time after Jonathan Bond got a hand on a penalty kick by Kristoffer Velde but couldn't corral it. Guerra sent the deflection off the inside of the right post and into the net.
Houston answered with the equalizer in the 62nd minute when Guilherme Santos used assists from Bogusz and McGlynn to score for the third time in his first three MLS matches. Bogusz's assist was his first with the Dynamo after notching seven in 60 appearances with LAFC. McGlynn has three assists this season. Half of his 22 career assists have come in 29 matches with Houston — all starts.
The Dynamo took a 2-1 lead in the 77th minute when Santos set up defender Felipe Andrade's first goal this season with his first assist. Andrade had four goals in 23 appearances with the Dynamo last season.
Velde scored his first career goal in his 12th appearance thanks to Finn Surman's first career assist to pull the Timbers even in the 80th minute. It was Surman's 36th appearance — all starts.
Bond saved six shots for the Dynamo.
Pantemis had three saves for the Timbers.
Up next
Houston: At FC Dallas on Saturday in first road match of season.
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Duncan McGuire and Martín Ojeda each scored a goal on Saturday, Javier Otero had four saves, and Orlando City beat CF Montreal 2-1 to snap a three-game losing streak in interim coach Mark Perelman's debut.
Orlando City (1-3-0) and long-time coach Oscar Pareja mutually parted ways Wednesday.
Ojeda put away a first-touch shot from just beyond the penalty spot to make it 2-1 in the 31st minute. Iván Angulo ran onto a through ball played ahead by Marco Pasalic and tapped a pass backward to Ojeda for the finish.
McGuire's first goal of the season opened the scoring in the 19th minute. Angulo's shot from the left side of the area bounced off the near post and McGuire tapped the rebound into a wide-open net from the edge of the 6-yard box.
Prince Owusu went up high for a header off a corner kick played by Wikelman Carmona for Montreal (1-3-0) in the 24th minute.
DALLAS (AP) — Defenseman Thomas Harley scored 2:05 into overtime to give the streaking Dallas Stars a 3-2 win over the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday night.
Wyatt Johnston had a goal and an assist, and Michael Bunting also scored for the Stars. Jake Oettinger stopped 22 of 24 shots. Harley scored his seventh OT goal in regular-season games.
The Stars are 14-0-1 in their last 15 games, matching the longest point streak in club history. Their 1998-99 Stanley Cup team had a streak of 12 wins and three ties.
Simon Edvinsson and Lucas Raymond scored for the Red Wings, who rallied from a 2-0 deficit in the third period but dropped their third straight (0-2-1). John Gibson made 21 saves.
Bunting’s goal, on a power play for a 2-0 lead in the second period, was his first since being acquired from Nashville on March 5.
Dallas has won four straight and owns the second-most points in the league, three behind Central-leading Colorado.
Oettinger is 11-0-1 in his last 12 games, his longest career point streak. His 28 wins rank third in the league.
The 15-game run ties for the second-longest point streak in the NHL this season with Tampa Bay, behind a 17-game effort by Colorado.
Johnston has career highs with 36 goals and 73 points. He has seven goals and 14 points in Dallas’ nine games following the Olympic break.
The Stars, with the best home power play in the league, have scored with the man advantage in 12 consecutive games.
The Red Wings played their fourth consecutive game without captain Dylan Larkin and second straight without fellow forward Andrew Copp, sidelined with leg injuries that will keep them out for weeks. To have enough skaters on Saturday, Detroit called up John Leonard from Grand Rapids of the AHL and activated David Perron off injured reserves.
Up next
Red Wings: Open a four-game homestand on Monday against Calgary.
Stars: Host Utah on Monday, completing a six-game homestand that is their longest of the season.
CLEVELAND (AP) — Reserve Shammah Scott scored 12 points and his 25-foot, 3-point basket with six seconds left helped Akron to a 79-76 win over Toledo in the Mid-American Conference title game on Saturday.
Austin Parks' desperation 3-point attempt for Toledo bounced off the back of the rim and fell to the floor as time expired.
Amani Lyles scored 15 points and grabbed 16 rebounds, Tavari Johnson scored 15 and Bowen Hardman 12 for Akron (29-5).
Leroy Blyden Jr. scored 21 points, Parks and reserve Kyle Vanderjagt scored 13 apiece and Sean Craig 10.
Toledo appeared poised to knock off the conference's second-best regular season team — after Miami, Ohio — by building a 42-30 halftime lead.
The Rockets built their lead on the strength of 53% (17 of 32) shooting including 53% (8 of 15) from 3-point range.
But Akron regrouped early in the second half and outscored Toledo 21-6 in a 7-minute span — which also included a 15-0 run — and turned a 48-36 deficit into a 57-54 lead with 10:17 remaining.
In earning the conference's automatic NCAA Tournament berth, the No. 2-seed Zips earned their third-straight tournament championship and fourth in its last five years.
It's the first time a MAC program has earned three-straight conference championships.
Toledo made its eighth MAC championship game with its lone win in 1980.
FAYATTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) — Tyrice Taylor and Rivaldo Marshall finished 1-2 in the 800 meters to help Arkansas run away with the men's team title, while Georgia freshman Adaejah Hodge won the 200 meters in a facility-record 22.22 seconds as the Bulldogs won the women's team crown Saturday at the NCAA Indoor Track Championships.
Arkansas clinched the men's team crown — it's first since 2013 — with two events (the 3,000 meters and 400-meter relay) remaining and finished with 73.5 points, 7.5 more than Oregon (40 points) — which also finished second on the women's side — and third-place Florida (26) combined.
Georgia, last year's women's runner-up, finished with 53 points to win its first indoor championship since 2018. The Ducks had 44 points and Illinois was third with 42 points. Georgia coach Caryl Smith Gilbert also led Bulldogs women to 2025 outdoor title.
Dejanea Oakley ran a personal-best 50.47 to win to 400 meters for the Bulldogs. Alabama's Samuel Ogazi ran a 44.57 — the fourth-fastest time in the world — to claim the men's title.
Taylor finished the 800 meters in 1:46.00, 0.12 seconds faster than Marshall. Clemson's Gladys Chepngetich ran a 2:00.01 to beat the Arkansas duo of Sanu Jallow-Lockhart (2:00.54) and Analisse Batista (personal-best 2:00.57).
Auburn’s Ja’Kobe Tharp defended his title in the 60-meter hurdles, finishing in 7.32 seconds to break Grant Holloway’s NCAA record of 7.35 set in 2019. Aaliyah McCormick of Oregon, who also won the 100-meter hurdles at the 2025 outdoor championships, ran a personal-best 7.86 to win the women's title.
BYU’s Jane Hedengren, who won the women’s 5,000 meters Friday, ran a meet-record 8:36.61 to win the 3000 meters. Colin Sahlman of Northern Arizona won a wild men's race in 7:41 after New Mexico's Habtom Samuel — who it appeared had edged Sahlman by 0.005 seconds — was disqualified for contact on the final curve. Oregon’s Simeon Birnbaum finished a fraction of a second behind Sahlman.
Tarik Robinson-O’Hagan of Mississippi became the fourth thrower in Division I history to win three consecutive indoor shot put titles with a throw of 65 feet, 9 inches. The senior joins Karl Salb (Kansas, 1969-71), Hans Hoglund (UTEP, 1973-75) and Ryan Whiting (Arizona State, 2008-10). Nebraska's Axelina Johansson broke the NCAA indoor shot put record and the Swedish national record with a throw of 64-8 1/2 to win on the women's side.
USC’s Garrett Kaalund ran a collegiate-record 19.95 to win the men’s 200 meters. Kaalund has two of the three fastest times in NCAA history.
Temitope Adeshina of Texas Tech won her second consecutive high jump title, clearing 6-feet, 5 1/2 inches to tie her own Nigerian record. Tito Alofe of Harvard won the men's high jump, clearing a personal-best 7-4 1/4.
Auburn’s Kanyinsola Ajayi won the men's 60 meters in 6.45 seconds, which tied the collegiate record he set at the SEC Championships at the end of February. Shenese Walker of Florida State ran a 7.08 to beat Hodge (7.15) for the women's crown.
Kansas State's Daniela Wamokpego claimed the triple-jump crown with a personal best of 45-4 3/4. Texas Tech's Jonathan Seremes — a Missouri transfer — won his second consecutive men's title with a personal best of 56-7.
BYU's Carter Cutting won the mile in 3:58.94 to secure his first national championship. Oregon's Wilma Nielsen timed her kick perfectly and finished in 4:40.06 to beat Rosemary Longisa of Washington State and North Carolina State's Sadie Engelhardt (4:40.21 each) for her second consecutive title.
MONTREAL (AP) — Macklin Celebrini had two goals and an assist to lead the San Jose Sharks to a 4-2 win over the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night.
Collin Graf had a goal and two assists and Mario Ferraro also scored for San Jose, which ended Montreal’s three-game winning streak. John Klingberg finished with two assists, and Alex Nedeljkovic stopped 25 shots.
Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki scored for Montreal, and Noah Dobson had two assists. Jakub Dobes made 17 saves.
The Canadiens held third place in the Atlantic Division, four points behind the division-leading Buffalo Sabres with two games in hand, heading into Saturday’s games.
The Sharks were one point shy of the Los Angeles Kings for the Western Conference’s second wild-card spot, with two fewer games played.
Caufield opened the scoring at 7:21 in the first period, beating Nedeljkovic with a wrist shot for his career-best 38th goal of the season.
Celebrini tied the game with his 34th at 13:12. Ferraro later floated a wrist shot from the point and fooled Dobes before Celebrini’s attempt deflected off Graf’s leg, giving San Jose a 3-1 lead at 16:20 in the second.
Suzuki beat Nedeljkovic on the glove side with 2:22 remaining in the second to cut the lead.
Celebrini sealed the win, scoring his second of the game into an empty net at 17:56 in the third.
San Jose rookie forward Igor Chernyshov left early in the first period after a scary fall. Chernyshov collided with Canadiens defenseman Mike Matheson in the neutral zone before losing his balance twice when he attempted to stand up. San Jose coach Ryan Warsofsky said Chernyshov was released from the hospital and will travel with the team to Ottawa.
The 33rd overall draft pick in 2024, Chernyshov was playing in his 16th NHL game and his first since being recalled from the San Jose Barracuda of the AHL. He has three goals and 11 points this season.
The Canadiens released a statement on social media, saying their thoughts were with Chernyshov.
There will be no Karl-Anthony Towns-Draymond Green rematch.
The Knicks, after their five-game road trip, host the Warriors at Madison Square Garden on Sunday night, the second of their two regular-season matchups this year.
Towns, after missing the win over the Pacers on Friday night with knee soreness, is not listed on the injury report, meaning he should be good to go.
Karl-Anthony Towns has his shot blocked by Draymond Green on Jan. 15, 2025 in San Francisco. Getty Images
But Green (lower back injury management) is out for the Warriors.
Green has long had it out for Towns in particular. After that January matchup, Green on his podcast made fun of Towns, including his voice.
And it wasn’t the first time. Green has on multiple occasions lashed out at Towns on his podcast and in the media.
Last year, Green accused Towns of skipping a game against the Warriors, claiming it was because Towns did not want to play against his longtime nemesis — and his former Timberwolves teammate — Jimmy Butler III.
