Category: Basketball

It’d be nice to simulate to the end of the Brooklyn Nets’ season by adding 20 losses to their ledger and populating social media with a few Nolan Traore highlight reels here and there. Alas, they do have to play the games, and on Saturday evening, the Nets faced the East’s #1 seed — the Detroit Pistons — on the road.

However, much like Brooklyn’s narrow loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers last week, this one seemed like a trap game for their opponent. Maybe “trap” is the wrong word considering the Pistons were missing Cade Cunningham and Ausar Thompson to injury, but throw in the weird 6:00 p.m. tip-off time and their most recent, hard-fought loss to the San Antonio Spurs, and it felt like the Nets could make it sweaty.

The first few minutes were promising. Michael Porter Jr. — chased through screens not by Thompson but by Duncan Robinson — got free for a couple early threes, and Jordi Fernández even threw out a funky double-big lineup to reward the faithful Brooklyn viewers that tuned in.

Then the Pistons went on an 18-4 run, taking a 16-point lead into the half as old friend Caris LeVert helped destroy a turnover-prone reserve unit…

YEA RONALD 💪 pic.twitter.com/YGaHZHeBi2

— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) March 7, 2026

Another Nets loss, huh? Not even the were providing enjoyment, with Egor Dëmin sitting to manage his plantar fascia injury again, while Traore (15 minutes) and Ben Saraf (four minutes) combined for five turnovers and two total points. Danny Wolf was better, finishing with a tidy eight points and four assists, but the team was down 23 points soon after the third quarter started. Autopilot, right?

And then it all changed. Jordi Fernández rode the veterans to a wild, wild comeback, ending a ten-game losing streak. Foolish or not, nobody can accuse this team of tanking, not on Saturday night in Detroit.

Michael Porter Jr. never really caught fire, but shot 10-of-25 to end up with 30/13/1 , leading all scorers. Likewise, Noah Clowney shot just 1-of-5 from deep, but frequented the free-throw line en route to 16 points. Terance Mann brought the ball up the floor for much of the second half and stabilized the group, while Ziaire Williams continued to play some of the best ball of his career…

From the YES broadcast: pic.twitter.com/tMeBzFShFv

— Lucas Kaplan (@LucasKaplan_) March 8, 2026

“I was just flowing, just taking what the defense gives me, not forcing anything,” said Williams. “My mama, she from D-town, so shoutout to the fam in the arena watching. I had a little extra spirit with me today.”

Williams scored 23 points, making five threes and eight free-throws, but it didn’t stop there. Day’Ron Sharpe, who fought Jalen Duren tooth and nail in the paint, closed over Nic Claxton. Fernández even went offense/defense down the stretch, showing some faith in Danny Wolf to get buckets.

The Pistons, yukking it up in the first half as Kevin Huerter shot heat-checks and Daniss Jenkins took everybody off the dribble, looked mortified in the second half, running into a brick wall without Cunningham. They shot a grotesque 9-of-27 from TWO after halftime, with the Nets racking up five blocks in that span.

“I think we found energy at the right time,” said Fernández. “I think defensively, when you look at 43 points allowed in one half, you give yourself a chance to win.”

Well, that’s the truth. Here’s Ziaire Williams’ take: “We just never gave up. Shoutout Day’Ron, big minutes down the stretch. It was a team win, just glad we got it done.”

Detroit’s 23-point lead approached single-digits, but a quick run at the start of the fourth quarter pushed it back to 17. It wasn’t safe. Ziaire Williams hit two huge threes, Detroit couldn’t stop fouling, and it set up a stupid, wacky ending that both teams, quite frankly, deserved to lose. (Maybe more the team that blew the big lead…)

Don't even know what I watched at the end of this Nets-Pistons game. Couldn't tell you.

Here's how Brooklyn came back from 23 down: pic.twitter.com/wpaBCosWM6

— Lucas Kaplan (@LucasKaplan_) March 8, 2026

I still can’t make sense of it. My best guess is that Noah Clowney got out over his skis trying to put the game away with a dunk instead of catching the ball, which set up another Nets blunder on the ensuing defensive possession: Up two points, they lost track of…Duncan Robinson. Who missed. Brooklyn’s fourth-quarter execution was splendid, but uh, that real late-game execution? It might need some work heading into next season.

Duren, however, missed the fadeaway jumper over Sharpe to seal what I would otherwise consider a devastating outcome for both sides if I hadn’t seen the emotion on Brooklyn’s sideline…

5TH BIGGEST COMEBACK IN FRANCHISE HISTORY! pic.twitter.com/o2aUMLSmGW

— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) March 8, 2026

Will this be 2026’s version of the Nic Claxton game-winner in Philadelphia? I don’t know about all that. Jordi Fernández may have gone balls to the wall to snag the fifth-largest comeback in franchise history, but the team is still just 16-47 after this foxtrot of a win, good for the third-worst record in the league.

“The last time we was here, they broke a franchise-record for their largest record win ever … it’s all about how you respond,” said Day’Ron Sharpe.

Well…if the Nets are gonna win…it might as well be like this. I’m still sweating.

Final Score: Brooklyn Nets 107, Detroit Pistons 105

Milestone Watch

More milestones — especially team-focused ones — than we’ve had in a minute!

• Porter Jr. had 27+ points and 13+ rebounds for the second consecutive game. It’s the first time in his career he’s put up such numbers in back-to-back games.
• Saturday night also marked MPJ’s 11th 20-point double-double of the season, the most he’s ever recorded in one season.
• This is the first time in Ziaire Williams’ career he has scored 15+ points in three consecutive games. His 23 points is the second-most he’s scored this season, and five made 3-pointers is tied for the third-highest total of his career.
• Brooklyn defeated the East’s #1 seed on Saturday, the first time they’ve done so since a 12/23/22 win over the Milwaukee Bucks.
• As mentioned, that 23-point comeback ties the fifth-largest comeback win in franchise history. How many do you remember?

Where does this one rank Nets fans on your list of greatest comebacks?

Via @YESNetworkpic.twitter.com/XcjT8z9F2I

— Nets Insider (@notoriousbknets) March 8, 2026

Next Up

The Nets return home for a back-to-back, starting with the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday night. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.

• Boxscore: Brooklyn Nets 107, Detroit Pistons 105 – NBA
• Game Highlights: Brooklyn Nets 107, Detroit Pistons 105 (Video) – NBA
• Ziaire Williams Highlights (Video) – YES Network
• Jordi Fernandez PostGame Interview (Video) – YES Network
• Day’Ron Sharpe PostGame Interview (Video) – YES Network
• Nets end 10-game losing streak by rallying from down 23 points to stun Pistons 107-105 – Dave Hogg – AP
• Nets snap 10-game skid with stunning comeback win over shorthanded Pistons – Brian Lewis – New York Post
• Nets storm back from 23 down, stun East-leading Pistons to snap 10-game skid ($) – C.J. Holmes – New York Daily News
• Nets push Drake Powell out of his comfort zone with G League stint ($) – C.J. Holmes – New York Daily News
• Nets end 10-game losing streak with 107-105 comeback win at Pistons – Sharif Phillips-Keaton – USA TODAY

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Trevor Zegras scored the only goal of the shootout to help the Philadelphia Flyers defeat the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-3 on Saturday night.

Owen Tippett, Alex Bump and Denver Barkey scored for the Flyers, and Dan Vladar stopped 20 shots.

Tommy Novak, Rickard Rakell and Erik Karlsson scored for the Penguins, and Stuart Skinner stopped 12 shots a day after Pittsburgh’s Evgeni Malkin was suspended for five games. The Penguins were also without captain Sidney Crosby, who is out for a minimum of four weeks because of a lower-body injury.

Tippett scored his 20th goal of the season less than a minute after Novak opened the scoring for the Penguins. It marked Tippett's fourth consecutive season with at least 20 goals.

Bump scored in his NHL debut to tie the game at 2. With his family in the stands, he scored short side after a no-look pass from Nikita Grebenkin just over a minute after Rackell put the Penguins ahead 2-1 early in the second period.

Karlsson scored a minute later, and Barkley scored midway through the second to even the score at 3.

Vladar got called for interference 2:51 into overtime, and the Flyers killed off the late penalty.

Up next

Flyers: Host the New York Rangers on Monday.

Penguins: Host Boston on Sunday.

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

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

ATLANTA (AP) — Jalen Johnson had 35 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists and Nickeil Alexander-Walker added 24 points as the Atlanta Hawks beat the Philadelphia 76ers 126-116 on Saturday night for their season-best sixth straight victory.

Atlanta, which had two five-game runs during the season, has won seven of its last eight games and moved two games over .500 at 33-31.

CJ McCollum scored 13 of his 17 points in the first half and added seven assists, Dyson Daniels finished with 15 points and nine rebounds, and Onyeka Okongwu had 10 points as the Hawks overcame a seven-point halftime deficit.

Tyrese Maxey led the 76ers with 31 points before injuring his right hand in a collision with teammate Adem Bona with 16 seconds remaining in the game. Philadelphia coach Nick Nurse had no update on the extent of Maxey's injury after the game and said the All-Star guard would have X-rays on his hand.

Quentin Grimes scored 26 points, Kelly Oubre Jr. added 24 and Trendon Watford 10 as Philly had its four-game winning streak halted. Jabari Walker, who was coming off consecutive 20-point games for the first time in his four-year NBA career, finished with nine points.

The Sixers were missing VJ Edgecombe (lumbar contusion), Joel Embiid (right oblique strain), Johni Broome (right knee surgery recovery) and Paul George (league suspension).

Jonathan Kuminga (left knee inflammation) was sidelined for the Hawks.

Up next

76ers: At the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday.

Hawks: Host the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday.

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

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Tage Thompson and Jason Zucker scored less than two minutes apart in the second period and the Buffalo Sabres held on to win their sixth game in a row, 3-2 over the Nashville Predators on Saturday.

Josh Doan scored 16 seconds into the third period for a 3-1 lead and Alex Lyon made 23 saves for Buffalo, which played the first of a five-game homestand and has now earned a point in 13 of its last 15 games.

Thompson extended his point streak to a career-best 10 games (six goals, five assists) with his goal with 7:21 to play in the second period. Zucker made it 2-1 with 5:43 to play in the period.

Zachary L’Heureux scored his first goal of the season to give the Predators a 1-0 lead at 1:17 of the second period and Matthew Wood added a power-play goal with less than four minutes to play to pull Nashville within 3-2. Juuse Saros made 21 saves.

With an assist on L’Heureux's goal, Nashville’s Jonathan Marchessault now has 300 career NHL assists.

The Sabres are now 29-2-0 this season when they have the lead after two periods.

The Predators, coming off a 6-3 win over Boston, have now lost four of their last five games.

The game was Sam Carrick's first in a Buffalo uniform since he was acquired in a trade from the New York Rangers, and he played a critical role in the victory by winning two crucial faceoffs against Ryan O'Reilly in the final minutes.

Up next

Predators: Visit the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday night.

Sabres: Host the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sunday night.

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

Center Kristaps Porzingis is available to play tonight for the Golden State Warriors after missing time due to illness.

The Warriors traveled to Paycom Center to play the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday, March 7.

Porzingis has not played since the Warriors' 121-110 loss to the Boston Celtics on Feb. 19. He had 12 points in 17 minutes.

It's the only game he had played with the Warriors. The Atlanta Hawks traded him to the Golden State Warriors on Feb. 5. The Warriors sent Jonathan Kuminga and Buddy Hield to Atlanta in return.

Porzingis played his last game for the Hawks in a 117-110 victory against the New Orleans Pelicans on Jan. 7. He had 13 points, three rebounds and two assists in 22 minutes played.

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Warriors' Kristaps Porzingis returns after missing games with illness

WACO, Texas (AP) — Tounde Yessoufou scored 26 points, and Baylor coach Scott Drew collected his 500th career win with the Bears' 101-75 rout over Utah on Saturday in a Big 12 Conference regular-season finale.

Drew, in his 23rd season at the helm with the Bears, is one of 25 active Division-I coaches with at least 500 wins (500-285). Drew came to Baylor after a decade coaching at Valparaiso, the final year as head coach.

Yessoufou shot 10 of 16 from the field and Cameron Carr added 21 points on 9-of-13 shooting for Baylor (16-15, 6-12), which shot 61.5% (40 of 65) overall.

Reserves Michael Rataj chipped in with 14 points and Dan Skillings Jr. scored 10 for the Bears.

Don McHenry scored 20 points and Terrence Brown added 16 for Utah (10-21, 2-16), which has lost five straight. Keanu Dawes scored 14 points but grabbed just one rebound, a season low.

The Utes shot 60% (29 of 48) from the floor and hit 7 of 14 from long range, but committed 16 turnovers that led to 31 points for the Bears.

Baylor opened on a 21-9 run and led 53-33 at the break. Yessoufou scored 15 first-half points and Carr added 12 with a pair of 3-pointers.

Carr's 3 with 3:38 to play stretched the Bears' lead to 95-65.

Up next

The Big 12 Conference Tournament starts Tuesday in Kansas City, Missouri.

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

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Bruce Thornton scored 25 points and had seven assists, John Mobley Jr. and Amare Bynum each added 18 points, and Ohio State defeated Indiana 91-78 in a Big Ten regular-season finale on Saturday night.

The Buckeyes (20-11, 12-8) rode a strong shooting performance to the win, making 59% of their shots, 46% from deep, and 88% of their free-throw attempts. Thornton was 7-of-9 from the floor and 9-of-11 from the line. Bynum hauled in nine rebounds to lead all players, along with two steals and one block.

Ohio State shook off a slow start with runs of 6-0 and 8-0 in the first half, scoring 50 before halftime and taking a 17-point lead into the break.

Thornton entered the contest 12 points away from becoming the Buckeyes’ all-time leading scorer, and a 3-pointer with 44 seconds remaining in the first half put him into the Ohio State record book ahead of Dennis Hopson, who was on hand to present Thornton with the ball used to break the record.

Lamar Wilkerson led the Hoosiers (18-13, 9-11) with 18 points on 6-of-15 shooting. Tucker Devries added 17 points and five assists, and Sam Alexis, who hit all five of his shot attempts had 14 points.

Up next

Indiana is the No. 10 seed in the Big Ten Tournament and will play on Wednesday.

Ohio State has earned a double-bye in the Big Ten Tournament, and will be either the No. 7 or No. 8 seed. The Buckeyes will open play on Thursday.

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

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) — Cameron Corhen scored 21 points, and Nojus Indrusaitis scored the winning bucket with 4.3 seconds left in overtime to give Pittsburgh a 71-69 victory over Syracuse on Saturday in the regular-season finale for both teams.

With the win, Pitt (12-19, 5-13) clinched the final spot into the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament. Syracuse (15-16, 6-12) will enter the tournament on a five-game losing streak.

The game was scoreless for nearly 2 1/2 minutes in overtime before Pitt called a timeout with 10.2 seconds left. Indrusaitis then took the inbound pass and drove to the basket and scored when William Kyle III was called for goaltending.

Naithan George's 3-point heave from midcourt hit the back of the rim to end it.

Barry Dunning Jr. added 17 points and Indrusaitis finished with 16 for the Panthers.

George scored a season-high 26 points for Syracuse. Donnie Freeman added 18 points and Nate Kingz chipped in with 14.

Freeman made a pair of free throws with 1:08 left in regulation to knot it at 65-all. Damarco Minor's 3-point try for Pitt rimmed out with 14 seconds left, and Kingz missed a 3-point try at the buzzer to force overtime.

Up next

Pitt: The No. 15 seed Panthers play 10th-seeded Stanford on Tuesday to open the ACC Tournament in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Syracuse: The No. 14 seed Orange face 11th-seeded SMU on Tuesday in the conference tournament.

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

The Cleveland Cavaliers don’t have many marquee games left, but this is one of them. They take on the Boston Celtics for the third and final time this season. It’s also Cleveland’s last game against the current top four in the standings in either conference. This will be our final chance to see how the Cavs stack up against an elite opponent before the playoffs.

The Celtics have been elite all year, even though they’ve been without the services of Jayson Tatum for all but one game this season. Their style of play has carried over despite the roster turnover and who’s been out of the lineup. They’ve been one of the best teams in the league all season. Adding Tatum back to the mix makes them a very real threat to win the NBA Finals. We’ll get a look at the Tatum-led Celtics on Sunday.

Boston won the previous two games against the Cavs this season, but those came at the beginning of the season. Both teams have changed drastically in that time. We’ll see how the Cavs match up against one of the league’s best.

Who: Cleveland Cavaliers (39-24) vs. Boston Celtics (42-21)

Where: Rocket Arena – Cleveland, OH

When: Sun. March 8 at 1 PM

TV: ABC

Point spread: Cavs -1

Cavs injury report: Jarrett Allen – OUT (knee), Donovan Mitchell – PROBABLE (groin), Dean Wade – PROBABLE (ankle), Jaylon Tyson – QUESTIONABLE (neck), Tyrese Proctor – OUT (quad), Max Strus – OUT (foot), Riley Minix – OUT (G League), Olivier Sarr – OUT (G League)

Celtics injury report: Nikola Vucevic – OUT (finger), John Tonje – OUT (G League)

Cavs expectedstarting lineup: James Harden, Donovan Mitchell, Jaylon Tyson, Dean Wade, Evan Mobley

Celtics expected starting lineup: Derrick White, Jaylen Brown, Sam Hauser, Jayson Tatum, Neemias Queta

Previous matchup: The Cavs lost 117-115 to the Celtics on Nov. 30 after a questionabe decision on the final play of the game

Here’s a look at both teams’ impact stats via Cleaning the Glass.

	Offensive Rating	Defensive Rating	Net Rating
Cavs	118.1 (9th)	113.9 (11th)	+4.1 (8th)
Celtics	120.9 (2nd)	112.6 (6th)	+8.2 (2nd)

The Washington Wizards are on the road tomorrow night and will play the New Orleans Pelicans. Let’s get to it.

Game info

When: Sunday, Mar. 8 at 7 p.m. ET

Where: Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, LA

How to watch: Monumental Sports Network, League Pass

Injuries: For the Wizards, Kyshawn George (elbow), Tristan Vukcevic (thigh), Jamir Watkins (ankle), Anthony Davis (hand, groin), Cam Whitmore (shoulder), Alex Sarr (hamstring), and D’Angelo Russell (not with team) are out.

The Pelicans are good to go.

What to watch for

The Wizards are on the road to Anthony Davis’ first team tomorrow night. New Orleans lost to the Phoenix Suns on the road 118-116 in their last game. They will be favored to beat Washington, though they have a 20-45 record themselves. That said, Trae Young isn’t listed as out for tomorrow, so let’s keep our fingers crossed that he gets some games in to show what he can do.

In addition, I have to say that I’m impressed with Julian “Juju” Reese’s first three games in Washington. He is averaging 9.7 points and 10.7 rebounds per game in his first three games for the Wizards. Reese’s 18-point and 20-rebound game against the Utah Jazz last Thursday was also awesome to see.

Anyway, when teams head back home after long road trips (and the Pelicans just finished a six game trip, there’s a chance that they may be a bit too relaxed. So hopefully that gives Washington a win to ring in Daylight Savings Time.

For many franchises, a Saturday afternoon game with a packed house against an Eastern Conference Play-in team would be a recipe for the best game of the season. For the Minnesota Timberwolves, it’s a setup for disaster, as was the case for today’s game against the Orlando Magic.

Anthony Edwards started the game off scorching hot, scoring the first ten points of the game for the Timberwolves, totaling 17 for the first quarter. The buckets from Edwards came from all over the floor. He put in four free throws, a pair of midrange jumpers, and three 3-pointers.

ANT'S THIRD TRIPLE ALREADY

🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯 pic.twitter.com/U0TcLEhwbB

— Minnesota Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) March 7, 2026

The Wolves took as large as an eight-point lead in the second quarter before their offense completely fell silent. Through the final 7:30 of the first half, the Wolves shot 2-15 from the field and 0-9 from beyond the arc, including a nearly five-minute scoreless stretch in which the Magic went on a 16-0 run.

Despite Edwards’s hot shooting in the first quarter, he went scoreless in the second quarter, missing all three of his shot attempts as Minnesota trailed 60-50 heading into halftime. Edwards was asked after the game as to what went wrong in the second quarter, but didn’t have many answers.

“We were getting okay shots. I thought we rushed those a little bit,” Timberwolves Head Coach Chris Finch said of the offensive issues in the second quarter. “We were kind of wild in transition. We needed to calm down and convert a couple of those. And then we just kept looking for like home run plays and shortcuts and stuff like that.”

The opening of the second half wasn’t much friendlier for the Wolves, but this time it was their defense that was the problem. Minnesota allowed Orlando to make 9 of their first 13 shots coming out of halftime as the lead grew to as many as 20 points.

There was a flicker of hope late in the third quarter when the Wolves went on an 11-0 run to cut the deficit to nine points, but Minnesota’s offense fell back off the wagon, missing seven of their next eight shots. From there, the Magic built their lead back up to 20 points, and by the midway point of the fourth quarter, the game was out of reach.

The Timberwolves went on to lose by a final score of 119-92, their second-largest loss of the season. Jaden McDaniels and Donte DiVicenzo struggled the most in the game as they combined to go 0-15 from the floor. Add in Ayo Dosumnu’s 1-6 and Bones Hyland’s 3-10 shooting, the Wolves guards and wings not named Edwards combined to go 4-31 from the field.

Edwards finished with 34 points, but was the lone Wolf to score more than 14 points. The entire game, Minnesota struggled to score without their best player on the court as they lost the 12 non-garbage time minutes Ant was on the bench by 17 points.

The loss was reminiscent of two previous games for Minnesota, the 24-point loss to the Atlanta Hawks on New Year’s Eve and the 19-point drubbing at the hands of the Los Angeles Clippers right before the All-Star Break. The one thing all those games have in common is that they started at 3:00 PM ET or earlier.

“I hope not,” Julius Randle responded when asked if the early start time was an explanation for the team’s poor performance. “In the Playoffs, you can play at twelve or one O’clock so I hope that ain’t got nothing to do with it. If it does, we gotta figure it out fast.”

Edwards had a little bit of a different feeling about the early starts, “I think we got a trend of not being ready to play at two o’clock or on o’clock. I think we did good in Denver and then came out flat tonight.”

Finch was also asked about the poor performances in early start time games, and he immediately responded, “That’s a question for them.” He continued, “them. I mean, we prepare the same way as coaches. So we were good last week in Denver, so who knows? But yeah, we need to have more guys play well, and we gotta be ready to answer the bell no matter what, cuz we have a lot of different start times coming up.”

The one thing Finch is right about is that the Wolves have many different start times the rest of the season. They have multiple late-night games on their next road trip and two more early start times, one against the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder next Sunday, and another against the team with the best record in the Eastern Conference, the Detroit Pistons.

Today’s loss in and of itself can easily be forgotten. The Magic played well, especially Paolo Banchero and Desmond Bane, who combined for 55 points on 20-35 shooting, and the Wolves had won eight of their last nine games before the loss.

It is also a performance the Wolves will need to quickly forget as their margin of error in the Western Conference is thin. Letting this loss lead to two or three more will send them tumbling down the standings, while a one-off loss is manageable.

The Wolves’ best and worst quality is that they are a bit of a moody team. When vibes are good, they look unbeatable, and when things are going wrong, it feels like they’ll never win again. Whether or not today was a sign of things to come or just a somewhat bad game after a win streak will be something to watch for over the coming days.

Up Next

The Timberwolves head out on the road for a four-game West Coast road trip that begins Tuesday night against the Los Angeles Lakers. It’s another nationally televised game for the Wolves, as fans can watch the game on either NBC or Peacock. The game begins at 10:00 PM CT, testing the sleep patterns of those watching from Minnesota.

Highlights

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — Juke Harris tallied 31 points and grabbed 15 rebounds as Wake Forest came back from a double-digit deficit to defeat Cal 80-73 on Saturday to close out the Atlantic Coast Conference regular season.

Harris shot 10 of 22 from the field and made 9 of 13 free throws in the victory for the Demon Deacons (16-15, 7-11), and has scored in double figures in 30 straight games. Omaha Biliew and Mekhi Mason each chipped in with 10 points.

Wake Forest won the rebound battle, 45-29, and had 14 of its 23 buckets come with assists. They led for just 13:01.

The Deacs surrendered an 11-0 run in the first half that put Cal ahead 18-5, but chipped away to trail 37-29 heading into halftime.

Mason hit a 3-pointer that kicked off a 14-0 Wake Forest run midway through the second half that turned a one-point deficit into a 13-point advantage. Wake Forest's lead shrunk to as little as one down the stretch, but the Deacs held on to secure the win.

Dai Dai Ames poured in 31 for the Golden Bears (21-10, 9-9) on 9-of-18 shooting, and was 10 for 10 from the charity stripe. Justin Pippen added 17 points before fouling out late, and Lee Dort led Cal on the glass with seven rebounds.

Up next

Cal: No. 9 seed and first-round bye in the ACC Tournament, faces 8th-seeded Florida State in the second round on Wednesday.

Wake Forest: No. 12 seed in the ACC Tournament, plays 12th-seeded Virginia Tech in the first round on Tuesday.

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

While being the star of the Lakers can make you the face of the NBA, it also brings a lot of scrutiny.

Even before his time in Los Angeles, Luka Dončić was no stranger to being viewed under a microscope. But this season with the purple and gold has taken it to another level.

While Luka’s interactions with officials have been the main focus for seemingly every talking head associated with the NBA, his defense has been the secondary talking point.

In an era of social media, clips of Luka’s defense, or lack thereof in most cases, it’s pretty easily for a faux pas to spread like wildfire across Twitter, Instagram, Tik Tok or wherever else people are doom scrolling. And to be clear, Luka has not been good on that end of the floor more often than not to start the year.

However, he’s also taken steps forward defensively in recent games, ones his coaches have noticed. Social media, unsurprisingly, is still catching up on those narratives, though.

“I think he’s had really good stretches for games, sustainable stretches for games,” Lakers head coach JJ Redick said, “and then there’s seems to be a game every now and then where just the engagement and effort is not there. There’s times within a game that there’s maybe one or two possessions, but I would say across the board on our team, outside of maybe Marcus Smart, that the case for our guys on that end of the floor.

“We have the numbers. When he switches onto the ball, it’s the lowest of any of our perimeter guys in terms of points per possession. I think he’s done a good job. He’s shown that he can contain the basketball. He’s obviously one of the best wing defensive rebounders in the NBA. He’s able to generate steals and deflections. So, with some prodding, he’s taking charges as well. He’s doing a lot of good things defensively.”

Defense is always hard to quantify or measure. There are numbers that exist, as Redick mentioned, but they aren’t as easily accessible or as easily understood as simpler offensive stats. There is no points or rebounds or assists equivalent for defense.

Where defense is most noticeable is when it doesn’t happen. When Luka gets blown by or is caught ball-watching, it’s easy to see. But when he’s making the correct read in terms of help defense or is following the scouting report, it’s much harder to even know, let alone see.

All of that context is too much for those aforementioned talking heads to dive into, though. It’s easier to just repeatedly shout about Luka being a bad defender and not actually watch games. Nor do they care to properly contextualize how much he’s doing offensively to lift the Lakers as well. No, no. It’s easier to scream that Luka is complaining to the refs.

But let me step off my soapbox.

Luka is a special, special player. Everyone can see that. In an era where everything is scrutinized, his flaws get a disproportionate amount of focus relative to what he’s so great at.

And even then, those flaws, like his defense, are coming around in recent games. Not that the talking heads care to take notice.

You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.

BOSTON — Jayson Tatum is available to play in Sunday’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Celtics shared in Saturday’s injury report. Tatum made his return from a torn Achilles on Friday night after 298 days sidelined, and tallied 15 points, 12 rebounds, and 7 assists in 27 minutes.

And though he did not disclose whether he planned to participate in the team’s remaining games, the fact that he’s available not even 48 hours after making his debut is a welcome sign.

Jayson Tatum is AVAILABLE tomorrow vs the Cavs.

Nikola Vucevic is the only player in the injury report — he’s out with a right ring fracture he had a procedure for this morning.

— Noa Dalzell 🏀 (@NoaDalzell) March 7, 2026

But, though Tatum has made his much-anticipated return from the injury he suffered last May, the Celtics didn’t get to enjoy a clear injury report for very long. That’s because Nikola Vucevic fractured his right ring finger in the first quarter of Friday’s game and underwent surgery on Saturday morning.

The Celtics shared that the ORIF surgery was performed at New England Baptist Hospital by Dr. Herve Kimball, assisted by team physician Dr. Tony Schena. Vucevic will be reevaluated in 3 to 4 weeks, the team announced, meaning that he’ll miss the majority of the remaining 19 regular-season games.

Jordan Walsh, who missed Friday’s game with illness, is off the injury report and should be good to go.

The Cavaliers, on the other hand, have a lengthier injury report: Jarrett Allen is out with right knee tendonitis, while Max Strus remains out with a left foot fracture. Tyrese Proctor is out with a right quadricep strain, and Jayson Tyson is out with a neck strain. Dean Wade (right ankle sprain) and Donovan Mitchell (right groin sprain) are both probable.

How the Celtics and Cavaliers stack up

The Celtics have the second-best record in the Eastern Conference at 42-21, while the Cavaliers have the fourth-best record at 39-24. The Celtics have won 8 of their last 10 games, while the Cavs have won 7 of their past 10.

Both teams have top-five offenses; Boston is ranked 2nd with a 119.9 offensive rating, while Cleveland is ranked 5th with a 117.4 offensive rating. The Celtics have the 6th-best defense (111.7 defensive rating) and the Cavs have the 12th-best defense (113.1 defensive rating). The Cavs had a tough start to the season, but have trended upwards of late.

The Celtics are 2-0 against the Cavaliers so far this season. Jaylen Brown led the way with 30 points in a blowout win in October, while Payton Pritchard exploded for a season-high 42 points in a two-point win in November.

Sunday marks the two teams’ third and final regular-season match-up. Celtics-Cavaliers tips off at 1pm ET.

EVANSVILLE, Ind. (AP) — Mia Nicastro had 21 points and 10 rebounds, Mallory Shetley added 18 points and Western Illinois defeated Lindenwood 71-65 on Saturday to win the OVC Tournament championship.

The Leathernecks advance to the NCAA Tournament for the third time. Their prior appearances were in 1995 and 2017.

No 1 seed Western Illinois led 54-50 through three quarters. Lindenwood, the No. 2 seed which once trailed by 16 points, got a three-point play from Gracie Kelsey and later Aleshia Jones had a three-point play followed by a layup that got the Lions within 59-58 with 5 1/2 minutes remaining in the game.

Nicastro and Shetley then led Western Illinois down the stretch, scoring eight points and four points, respectively, as the Leathernecks closed out the championship. Lindenwood was held to one point over the final 5 1/2 minutes until Ellie Brueggemann hit two desperate 3-pointers in the final 25 seconds.

Brueggemann scored 21 points, Jones 18 and Kelsey 14 for Lindenwood (25-8).

Madison Davis and Allie Meadows each scored 10 points for Western Illinois (26-5).

Western Illinois, which never trailed, raced out to a 13-3 lead after five-plus minutes of play. The Leathernecks led 20-11 heading to the second quarter and 36-22 at halftime after shooting 63% in the first half.

The Lions, who defeated Western Illinois 50-49 in a regular-season finale to create a tie for the regular-season championship, battled back in the third quarter. Lindenwood outscored Western Illinois 28-18 without a scoring run of more than five consecutive points.

Lindenwood lost in the championship game for the second year in a row.

Up next

Postseason decisions await on Selection Sunday. ___

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