The Washington Wizards play the Sacramento Kings at 6:00 p.m. today at Capital One Arena. Watch the game on Monumental Sports Network.
Wizards vs Kings Discussion
Red Sox trade Jordan Hicks, prospect to White Sox for ex-Yankees farmhand Gage Ziehl
Boston’s return for slugger Rafael Devers keeps shrinking.
Right-handed flamethrower Jordan Hicks, whom the Red Sox acquired last season in the blockbuster trade involving Devers, is headed to the White Sox alongside fellow righty David Sandlin, ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported.
Former Yankees prospect Gage Ziehl, another righty who was traded to Chicago for Austin Slater at last year’s trade deadline, is headed to the Red Sox, per Chris Cotillo of MassLive.
Cotillo adds that Chicago will send Boston $8 million in each of the next two seasons to partially cover Hicks’ remaining $24 million salary.
The trade allows Boston to shed some salary after a bevy of offseason acquisitions, including signing star lefty Ranger Suarez and Willson Contreras, while the White Sox flex their newfound financial flexibility after trading centerfielder Luis Robert Jr. to the Mets.
Hicks, 29, emerged as a hard-throwing bullpen weapon after debuting with the Cardinals in 2018.
Routinely hitting triple digits on the radar gun, Hicks signed a four-year, $44 million deal with the Giants entering the 2024 season – shifting from the bullpen to the starting rotation.
He struggled to replicate his relief success, posting a 4.10 ERA over 29 appearances in 2024 before enduring a career-worst campaign last year.
In 13 games with San Francisco, he posted a 6.47 ERA before being shipped to Beantown in the shocking Devers swap that came after months of drama over his playing third base reached a boiling point.
The Red Sox also acquired left-hander Kyle Harrison, outfield/first base prospect James Tibbs and pitching prospect Jose Bello.
Boston shifted Hicks back to the bullpen in hopes of recapturing his previous success, but he managed an even worse 8.20 ERA in 21 outings.
In addition to Hicks, the Red Sox shipped out Sandlin, a 24-year-old hurler ranked by MLB.com as the eighth-best prospect in the organization.
Sandlin posted a 4.50 ERA between Double-A and Triple-A in Boston’s minor league system.
The Red Sox acquired Ziehl, 22, a former fourth-round pick of the Yankees in the 2024 MLB Draft.
He finished 2025 with the White Sox’s High-A affiliate Winston-Salem Dash, posting a 4.01 ERA in six starts after he was dealt for Slater, a veteran right-handed hitter whom the Yankees have considering re-signing this offseason.
Ziehl is ranked as the 14th best prospect in Chicago’s system.
Foord's extra-time goal gives Arsenal a 3-2 win over Corinthians in the first Women's Champions Cup
LONDON (AP) — Caitlin Foord scored on a breakaway in extra time and Arsenal won the inaugural Women's Champions Cup with a 3-2 victory over Brazil's Corinthians on Sunday.
Corinthians leveled the match at 2-2 in second-half stoppage time when Victoria converted a penalty in the pouring rain at Emirates Stadium.
Olivia Smith and Lotte Wubben-Moy scored in regulation for Arsenal, which earns $2.3 million for winning the intercontinental tournament. Corinthians takes home $1 million as the runner-up.
Arsenal, which qualified for the tournament as winners of the UEFA Champions League, earned a spot in the final with a 6-0 defeat of Morocco's ASFAR in Wednesday's semifinals.
Smith, who also scored in the semifinal, opened scoring in the 15th minute when Corinthians goalkeeper Leticia punched a shot from Stina Blackstenius into Smith's path.
Six minutes later, Corinthians evened the score with Gabriela Zanotti's goal that crossed the line before Arsenal goalkeeper Anneke Borbe could get to it. The 40-year-old Zanotti also scored in Corinthians' 1-0 semifinal victory over Gotham FC.
Lotte Wubben-Moy scored the go-ahead goal in the 58th with a header off a cross by Emily Fox as FIFA President Gianni Infantino looked on.
It appeared that Arsenal had the trophy in hand, but video review awarded a penalty to Corinthians after Katie McCabe's foul in the box in stoppage time, sending the vocal group of Corinthians fans at the match into a frenzy.
Foord put Arsenal back in front with the winning goal in the 104th minute. Arsenal's Borbe was involved in a collision in front of her goal in the waning moments of the match and had to be stretchered off with an injury.
Gotham won the third-place match 4-0 over ASFAR earlier in the day. Khyah Harper, who started after coming in as a substitute in the semifinal, opened scoring with a goal in the 27th minute.
Gotham doubled the lead with a goal from Savannah McCaskill and Jaedyn Shaw converted a penalty to make it 3-0 before halftime. Midge Purce added the final goal in the 48th.
Gotham qualified by winning the first CONCACAF Champions Cup with a 1-0 victory over Mexico’s Tigres last May. Corinthians won the CONMEBOL Copa Libertadores Femenina to earn a spot and ASFAR won the CAF Champions League.
Two continental champions were eliminated in earlier rounds: Auckland United from Oceania and Wuhan Chegu Jiangda representing Asia.
The six-team women’s Champions Cup was created as an intercontinental championship for women’s club teams. It builds on a growing number of regional club competitions, led by the success of the UEFA Women’s Champions League.
FIFA also is introducing a 16-team Women’s Club World Cup, which will launch in 2028 and be played every four years. The new Champions Cup will be held every year, except years when the Club World Cup takes place.
___
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
What we learned from the Spurs loss to the Hornets
There’s a moment in every parent’s life when, from a place of experience, you advise your child not to do something, and they proceed to disregard you.
It is, so far as I can tell, a universal experience, bypassing borders and languages, regions and classes, prejudices and ethnicities, and religions and political affiliations. In certain ways, youth is simply incorrigible.
And the thing is, most of the time, it’s not even outright defiance.
One of my most treasured photos of my daughter is on the lockscreen of my phone. She’s in the middle of scaling one of the low fences at the edge of a Hat Creek playground, and just to the right of her is a metal sign bearing the words: PLEASE DO NOT CLIMB ON THE FENCE.
She was two years old, unable to read the sign, and unable to see any danger in the empty parking lot beyond the fence. It’s not that the rules and danger didn’t exist; they simply were not apparent to her at the time.
She had no conception of how the parking lot would fill, or how cars might incautiously cruise through the empty lot on the way to another destination. Her perception of reality was not so much wrong as it was limited by her childish understanding of cause and effect, the exterior world, and the flow of time.
Empty parking lots stayed empty. The inattentive would surely be attentive to her. Fences were barriers to access rather than barriers of protection.
Though adults are frequently guilty of it, no one is more self-assured of their import to the world than a toddler who has spent their life at the center of adoration.
You can find another form of this self-assurance in that of a young team exceeding expectations and timelines, positioned to be darlings in the media narrative, already so in the eyes of their fans, and that can lead to a certain kind of complacency.
It’s a different sort of complacency from that of a perpetual lottery team (or the perpetually middling) in that it comes from a place of competency, of skill, of the sentiment that talent outweighs effort. Or, at the very least, that it allows for effort to wax and wane without consequence.
Ever since San Antonio’s repeated defeats of the Oklahoma City Thunder, we’ve seen that very specific brand of complacency creeping in, and it reared its head in the 1st half against the Hornets in the same way that it did a week ago against the Pelicans, and earlier in January against the depleted Grizzlies and banged-up Trailblazers.
For all the complaints about their third-quarter woes, the Spurs also allow the 4th most points scored in the NBA in the 1st quarter, and the 8th most in the 2nd quarter. They limp out of January with an 8-7 record and the 19th-ranked offense for the month.
They’re not taking the opposition seriously unless the opposition sits high in the standings.
And to their credit, they’ve performed well against those teams, knowing that there’s no margin for error against the likes of the Knicks, and the Lakers, and the Celtics, and the Timberwolves.
There have been some seriously impressive wins during this stretch. Maybe too impressive for a group of youngsters who believe all too strongly that they can simply flip the switch against lesser opponents — who see no real danger until it’s almost already too late (and often is).
The thing is, though, they’re not toddlers anymore. They’re more like teenagers who can feel the edge of adulthood on the horizon and have convinced themselves that they’re ready for all of the adult decisions and the inherent challenges of independence.
And there’s a kind of beauty in that. The Spurs have beaten teams better than them because they don’t know what they don’t know. They’ve walked out wild and fearless into the world of contention, and they haven’t been really and truly crushed yet.
Cormac McCarthy once wrote that it was good that God kept the truths of life from the young as they were starting out, or else they’d have no heart to start at all.
I’m beginning to suspect that it’s going to take their first real jaunt into the postseason for these young Spurs to grasp the reality of what it takes to win — the vigilance required of champions. The focus. The wariness. The paranoia. The notion of no nights off.
For now, we’re just going to have to endure the incredible highs and lows of youth. The stumbling that often feels momentous. The lessons that somehow fail to translate to everything else and somehow fail to stick.
The Spurs can read the signs now. They remain skeptical of the empty parking lot.
I’m not sure that Mitch Johnson will be able to knock that out of them. I’m not sure Pop would have been able to either.
I’m sure he had to endure nights where even the great Tim Duncan miscalculated against the opposition. I’m sure it happened more than we care to remember, lost in the irrepressible mythos of Duncan’s focus and reliability.
It’s something these Spurs are going to have to figure out on their own. It’s probably going to take more than a few hard lessons and unexpected losses. As a fan, I have faith that they’re going to get there. It’s the same kind of hope you hold as a parent. There’s really no other choice.
In the meantime, however, I wouldn’t let these youngsters borrow your car.
Buy them a clunker. They’re not done crashing yet.
Takeaways
- Though Harrison Barnes continues to slowly climb his way out of one of the worst three-point slumps I can recall since the days of Danny ‘Icy Hot’ Green, Mitch Johnson made the decision to move him to the bench squad and give Julian Champagnie the starting role. Though Champagnie has been getting time in the starting unit this season, this marks the first time that’s happened with both Barnes and Vassell healthy, and it’s a much-deserved sign of the progress that Champagnie has made over the years. Specifically, he’s been red hot over the last 10 games, averaging a career-high 13 points per game, while leading the team in Effective Field Goal Percentage, True Shooting Percentage, and Player Impact Estimate in that span to boot. Barnes responded by going 3-5 from three, and without ego, and if that keeps up, I’d wager the change will be permanent outside of specific match-ups and/or trade scenarios.
- I’m not sure how to say this, but Wemby’s defense has been pretty subpar over the last 10 games, and his defensive rating ranks 8th on the team over that stretch for players getting non-garbage-time minutes (all hail defensive rating leader Jordan McLaughlin!). Consequently, the Spurs have ranked 12th in defensive rating during that span, which is a real problem when you’re also 19th in offensive rating for the month. The Spurs are going to have to improve defensively or offensively if they want to hold onto a top 4 spot in the West. I’d prefer that it to be both, but like John Lennon, I’m a dreamer who writes cloying (and somewhat contradictory) lyrics. ♫ Imagine there’s no flopping. It’s easy if you try…♫
- Look, I love Stephon Castle. He’s got grit. He’s got desire. He’s got that ineffable thing that never lets him quit. Watching him defensively punk the Houston Rockets in the 4th quarter this week, I felt closer to him than some of my own family members. But until he finds his shot consistently and is able to slide over to shooting guard, we’re just not going to see the best of De’Aaron Fox and San Antonio’s offense. While Fox is a better shooter, it’s clear that he is most comfortable (and useful) with the ball in his hands to create the driving threat that gives him space for his jumper. Fox has yet to match the stretch he had when Castle (and Wemby) were out, and the offense really needs that version of him back. Unfortunately, Castle is 9th in True Shooting on the team over the last 10 games (and 13th for the season), so that dream may have to wait another year.
- Also, this is a super fun little stat, but you’ll never guess who’s been leading the Spurs in defensive rating over the last 10 games. If you guessed Luke Kornet, you were close, but it’s actually rookie Dylan Harper! And while a lot of his defense is coming against opposing team’s benches, it’s yet another feather in the cap of what’s sure to be the scary other half of San Antonio’s lottery guard tandem. In the words of Timbuk 3, the future’s so bright, I gotta wear shades.
Playing You Out – The Theme Song of the Evening:
In Time by Robbie Robb
No. 8 Iowa State trounces Kansas State 95-61 behind Joshua Jefferson's 19 points
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — Joshua Jefferson scored 19 points to lead five players in double figures as No. 8 Iowa beat Kansas State 95-61 on Sunday.
The Cyclones (20-2, 7-2 Big 12 Conference) got 18 points from Milan Momcilovic, 16 from Tamin Lipsey, 13 from Killyan Toure and 11 from Nate Heise en route to their fourth consecutive win.
They handed the Wildcats (10-12, 1-8 Big 12) their worst loss under coach Jerome Tang, who was hired ahead of the 2023 season.
Iowa State used two big runs in the first half to build a 29-point lead at the break. The second was a suffocating 25-4 run that covered nearly five minutes.
The Cyclones held the Wildcats to a season-low 21 points in the first half. The Wildcats shot just 31% from the field and matched their largest halftime deficit of the season. It swelled to 39 points in the second half.
P.J. Haggerty led Kansas State with 23 points and nine rebounds. Since transferring from Memphis, Haggerty has scored in double digits in all 22 of Kansas State’s games this season.
David Castillo added 11 points, including a 4-of-10 performance beyond the arc, for the Wildcats.
Up nextKansas State: Visits TCU on Saturday.
Iowa State: Hosts Baylor on Saturday.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball
Snudda Collins scores 28 and No. 21 Texas Tech women edge No. 12 TCU 62-60
LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — Snudda Collins scored 28 points off the bench, including the go-ahead 3-pointer in the final minute, and No. 21 Texas Tech knocked off No. 12 TCU 62-60 on Sunday.
Collins matched her career high by scoring 28 points for the second time in three games. Her 3-pointer with 32 seconds remaining gave the Lady Raiders a 58-55 lead and she made one of two free throws for a four-point lead with four seconds left. The free throw proved important when Olivia Miles nailed a 3 to get TCU within a point with less than two seconds remaining. Collins again made one of two from the line for the final margin.
Miles and Marta Suarez scored 15 points each and Donovyn Hunter, whose 3-pointer had tied it at 55 in the final minute, added 11 points for TCU (20-3, 8-2). Suarez had 12 rebounds.
The Horned Frogs had the opportunity to take sole possession of first place after Baylor lost to West Virginia but Baylor and TCU remain tied. Texas Tech (21-3, 8-3) and West Virginia are tied for third place.
Reserve Sidney Love scored 10 points for Texas Tech. The starters scored only 22 points.
Texas Tech led only briefly a few times in the first three quarters and TCU led 40-36 heading to the fourth. Collins scored 15 points in the fourth, and it was her three-point play that gave the Lady Raiders a 54-52 lead at the three-minute mark.
A three-point play by Clara Silva gave TCU an 11-5 lead midway through the first quarter but the Horned Frogs managed only 13 points the remainder of the half, Still, TCU led 24-22 at halftime.
Up nextTCU: Houston visits on Wednesday.
Texas Tech: at Houston on Saturday. ___
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.
Sebastian Rancik, Isaiah Johnson help Colorado beat TCU 87-61 to end 6-game losing streak
BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — Sebastian Rancik had 17 points, Isaiah Johnson scored 16 and Colorado cruised to an 87-61 victory over TCU on Sunday, snapping a six-game losing streak.
Rancik came off the bench to sink 6 of 8 shots — 3 of 4 from 3-point range — for the Buffaloes (13-9, 3-6 Big 12 Conference). He added six rebounds and three assists. Johnson made 5 of 11 shots with three 3-pointers, adding five assists.
Reserve Bangot Dak scored 14 on 7-for-8 shooting for Colorado. Josiah Sanders totaled 12 points and six assists, while Barrington Hargress scored 10.
Xavier Edmonds had 13 points and 12 rebounds to pace the Horned Frogs (13-9, 3-6). All four of his double-doubles this season have come in the past four games.
Colorado made 8 of its first 11 shots and got baskets from seven different players in the first eight minutes but managed only a 20-17 lead because TCU came out shooting at a 50% clip — 6 for 12.
Colorado had the lead over the final 12:15 of the half but didn't push its advantage past two possessions until Sanders' three-point play made it 30-21 with 4:27 remaining. Sanders and Rancik both had eight points by halftime as the Buffaloes extended their lead to 38-25. TCU got no closer than 10 after the break.
Colorado made 35 of 63 shots (56%) to TCU's 33% effort (21 for 63). The Buffs hit 48% from beyond the arc — 11 for 23. The Frogs made 5 of 23 from distance (21.7%).
Colorado finished with 24 assists. TCU had eight assists and made only 15 of 51 shots in the final 32 minutes.
Up nextColorado: At Baylor on Wednesday.
TCU: Hosts Kansas State on Saturday.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college basketba spurtll: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball
Utah Jazz vs Toronto Raptors: Preview, start time, injury report, channel
The Utah Jazz will take on the Toronto Raptors to kick off a five-game road trip. Utah is 1-9 in their last ten and on a fast track to the top of the lottery standings.
Toronto is going in the other direction. They’re 29-21 for the season and are sitting at 4th in the Eastern Conference standings. They’re only two games back of both the New York Knicks and the Boston Celtics with the Eastern Conference up for grabs. It’ll be interesting to see what Toronto does this trade deadline to see if they make a move to improve their chances in the playoffs. Utah, on the other hand, is very likely to move off of multiple veterans to give more time to their young players and find a way to get the best possible spot come lottery night. Utah is already sitting at 6th in the lottery standings, and there’s no reason to believe they can’t get to where they were last season, at the very top.
Injury Report
The Utah Jazz released their updated injury report, and it looks like the turned ankle that Keyonte George suffered at the end of their game against the Nets is keeping him out.
How to watch
Who: Utah Jazz vs Toronto Raptors
When: 2/1/2026 – 4:00 PM MT
Where: Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, ON
Channel: KJZZ, Jazz+, Sportsnet
Spurs' return home delayed by snow, mechanical issues, forcing NBA to change start time vs. Magic
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — The long, strange trip the San Antonio Spurs faced to get home from the East Coast led to another time change for their game Sunday against the Orlando Magic.
The Spurs will now host the Magic at 8 p.m. CST, five hours after the original tipoff.
The NBA on Saturday changed the start time from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. because of a bomb cyclone in Charlotte that grounded flights. The Spurs were scheduled to leave Charlotte following their 111-106 loss to the Hornets but had to stay overnight because of the storm that dropped nearly a foot of snow in and around North Carolina’s largest city.
The Spurs left Charlotte at 9:20 a.m. Sunday, but the flight was diverted to Atlanta because of what a team official said was a minor mechanical issue. The flight landed at 11:01 a.m. in Atlanta, where the Spurs remained for more than two hours before switching planes for their flight home. They arrived in San Antonio at 3:25 p.m.
Victor Wembanyama (left calf soreness) and (Stephon Castle (left adductor tightness) were both questionable for the game.
The Magic have been in San Antonio since Saturday morning.
San Antonio (32-16) entered the day sitting in third place in the Western Conference behind Oklahoma City (38-11) and Denver (33-16).
___
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba
Kierra Wheeler's double-double helps No. 22 West Virginia women upend No. 14 Baylor 70-60
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — Kierra Wheeler had 18 points and 15 rebounds, Jordan Harrison also scored 18 points, and No. 22 West Virginia defeated No. 14 Baylor 70-60 on Sunday.
The loss potentially knocked Baylor (19-4, 8-2 Big 12) out of first place in the Big 12 but the Lady Bears got good news later in the day when No. 21 Texas Tech defeated No. 12 TCU 62-60. Baylor and TCU remain tied for first place.
West Virginia extended a six-point halftime lead to 14 points late in the third quarter when Sydney Shaw hit a 3-pointer for a 47-33 lead. The Mountaineers allowed only three field goals in the third, one of them a buzzer-beating layup by Darianna Littlepage-Buggs that made it 47-37 heading to the fourth quarter.
A jumper by Wheeler had the Mountaineers up 53-39 with 7 1/2 minutes remaining, but Littlepage-Buggs drained a 3-pointer and a series of free throws by Taliah Scott and Bella Fontleroy had the Lady Bears within 53-48 a couple of minutes later.
Near the four-minute mark, Shaw nailed her second 3 of the quarter, Gia Cooke followed with a layup a minute later and West Virginia was up 60-49. The Mountaineers led by at least 10 points the rest of the game.
At one point late in the fourth quarter Baylor was 1-for-11 shooting but 9 for 11 at the free-throw line.
For the game, Baylor shot 30% from the field but made 27 of 32 free throws. Both Scott and Fontleroy made 9 of 10 free throws.
Cooke scored 14 points and Shaw added 10 for West Virginia (18-5, 8-3 Big 12).
Scott scored 18, Fontleroy 14 and Littlepage-Buggs 12 for Baylor.
Fifteen of West Virginia’s first 23 points followed Baylor turnovers.
Up nextBaylor: at Cincinnati on Wednesday
West Virginia: at Colorado on Wednesday
___
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.
'G League dropout!' Florida basketball fans chant at Charles Bediako
Editor's note: This story has been updated to include postgame comments from Alabama coach Nate Oats.
Last month, Charles Bediako returned to Alabama basketball after spending most of the previous three seasons in the G League, a move that has become one of the most contentious and hotly debated subjects in the sport over the past two weeks.
In his first road game since rejoining the No. 23 Crimson Tide, the opposing fans offered constant reminders about his unusual situation.
During Alabama's 100-77 loss on Sunday, Feb. 1 at No. 21 Florida, Bediako was showered for much of the afternoon with chants of "G League Dropout" from the crowd at the O'Connell Center in Gainesville, Florida.
The 7-foot center turned in his worst performance since returning to Alabama, where he previously played from 2021-23 before embarking on a professional career. After scoring 27 points in his first two games with the Crimson Tide, Bediako was held to six points against the Gators, though he also had a season-high seven rebounds and four blocks. He fouled out with 2:10 remaining and his team trailing by 20. As he walked to the bench, he was once against serenaded with the chant.
The “G-League dropout” chants have yet to stop. #Gatorspic.twitter.com/ZPefujHrOJ
— Andrew Abadie (@AndrewAbadie) February 1, 2026
Bediako declared for the NBA draft after the 2022-23 season and, after going undrafted, played 82 games in the G League across three seasons, most recently with the Motor City Cruise.
After playing for the Cruise as recently as Jan. 17, Bediako was granted a temporary restraining order against the NCAA by a Tuscaloosa County (Alabama) Circuit Court judge on Jan. 21, allowing him to suit up for the Crimson Tide the past three games.
His preliminary injunction hearing has been rescheduled for Feb. 6 and will be with a new judge after James Roberts Jr., who granted him the restraining order, has recused himself from the case after a motion from the NCAA. Roberts is an active "circle" donor to Crimson Tide Foundation, meaning he gives anywhere between $100,000 to $249,999 to the university.
Among those who had taken aim at Bediako's return to college basketball was Florida head coach Todd Golden.
“They were able to finagle the situation where they got a judge in Alabama that is actually a donor at Alabama to write a temporary restraining order to allow this guy to play games at Alabama. I think there’s a lot of people that aren’t necessarily happy about it and don’t necessarily agree with it,” Golden said on the local 'Gator Talk.' “But with all this intervention from judges, there’s only so much the league can do, there’s only so much other member schools in the league can do. We just need some people to stand up and start taking a stand.”
The 23-point loss Sunday was Alabama's most lopsided of the season. After an 11-3 start, the Crimson Tide are 3-4 in their past seven games.
Speaking to reporters after the game, Alabama coach Nate Oats seemed unfazed at the chants the Crimson Tide faced in an SEC road game:
Here is what Alabama HC Nate Oates said when asked about Charles Bianko’s reception to the O’Dome. #Gatorspic.twitter.com/Ncsywtbw7W
— Andrew Abadie (@AndrewAbadie) February 1, 2026
Bediako and Alabama return to action on Feb. 4 with a game against Texas A&M. It's the last game on the Crimson Tide's schedule before Bediako's hearing.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Florida vs Alabama: Fans chant 'G League dropout' to Charles Bediako
A favorable February for the Suns awaits after January momentum
With 11 wins in the month of January, posting an 11-5 record (their most wins in a month thus far this season, one better than 10-win November), the Phoenix Suns go into February tied for the most wins to start 2026. In January, the team had three different three-game win streaks and dropped just five games out of the 16 they played. Phoenix is firmly in the mix for a top-six seed, switching positions in the standings with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Los Angeles at varying times over the last month.
Here’s a look at the team’s schedule for the next month:
Staying Home Before the Break
- Sunday, February 1st vs Los Angeles Clippers
- Tuesday, February 3rd @ Portland Trailblazers (On NBC/Peacock)
- Thursday, February 5th vs Golden State Warriors (On Amazon Prime)
- Saturday, February 7th vs Philadelphia 76ers
- Tuesday, February 10th vs Dallas Mavericks
- Wednesday, February 11th vs Oklahoma City Thunder
After finishing January with four straight games at home, the Suns will play five of their six games before the All-Star Break at home, with the only game on the road being against their Western Conference foe in Portland.
All six of the teams that the Suns will play, the Suns have already beaten, and the Warriors are the only one that the team did not beat in the most recent matchup. Due to a torn ACL and a 25-game suspension, the Warriors will not face Jimmy Butler and Paul George in their outings against Golden State and Philadelphia, respectively, and Anthony Davis and Jalen Williams’ statuses are in peril when they face Phoenix. The last time the Suns played the Thunder, Devin Booker had a game-winner in legendary fashion.
With the NBA Trade Deadline on the 5th, the Suns roster and their opponents’ squads could look differently than they are now for these matchups.
Staying at Home
- Thursday, February 19th @ San Antonio Spurs
- Saturday, February 21st vs Orlando Magic (NBA TV)
- Sunday, February 22nd vs Portland Trailblazers
- Tuesday, February 24th vs Boston Celtics
- Thursday, February 26th vs Los Angeles Lakers
Phoenix will continue its month of staying mostly at home after the All-Star break, and they’ll get their first looks at the Celtics and the Magic this year. Boston has been one of the biggest surprises this season, hovering in the second and third spots in the East despite Jayson Tatum sidelined, while Orlando has been one of the league’s biggest disappointments as Paolo Banchero is having a down year and Franz Wagner has dealt with injuries.
With how close the Lakers and Suns are in the standings, their matchup on the 24th could prove to be a big one; don’t be surprised if this one is flexed into a national broadcast. It’ll be the fourth matchup out of five this year for the two teams and the last in Phoenix. They’re playing five times this season after both lost in the first knockout round of the NBA Cup. The Suns are winning the season series 2-1. Could it be LeBron James’s last time playing in Phoenix?
82% of the Suns’ games this month are in at home, the highest percentage out of any month of the season. The team has a light traveling month with the All-Star break sandwiched in the middle of it, before they go on another six-game road trip in March.
Pistons vs. Nets Discussion: Game Time, TV, Odds, and More
The Detroit Pistons will not get an up-close and personal look at Brooklyn Nets sharpshooter Michael Porter Jr. as the two teams square off today at Little Caesars Arena. Brooklyn’s Porter, who is the best 3-point shooter on the trade block this season, is missing his second consecutive game for personal reasons.
Detroit isn’t expected to make a big move before this week’s NBA Trade Deadline, but there are reports that it is at least exploring the potential of acquiring the extremely available Porter. The wing is exactly the kind of player the Pistons need — a big wing who can shoot at value and can perform in the playoffs. The cost to obtain him, however, doesn’t seem to be the kind Detroit is looking to swing. Still, the team needs to do something.
As far as the actual game tonight, it feels like it will come down to 3-point shooting and how seriously Detroit takes the 13-34 Nets. Brooklyn’s most famous shooter is Porter, but don’t dismiss rookie Ego Demin, who can get raging hot from 3. Denim hoists more than six attempts per game and converts at 40%. If there is one truism for the Pistons this year, it is that an 18-point lead can turn into a two-possession game very quickly because of how few threes Detroit makes and how much they own the paint, which motivates opponents to bomb it away from deep.
If the Pistons lock in, don’t get cute, and don’t leave Brooklyn’s shooters, they should win this game handily. If they don’t take it seriously, they could easily lose.
Game Vitals
When: 6 p.m. ET
Where: Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, Michigan
Watch: Fan Duel Sports Network Detroit
Odds: Pistons -13
Projected Lineups
Detroit Pistons (35-12)
Cade Cunningham, Duncan Robinson, Ausar Thompson, Tobias Harris, Jalen Duren
Brooklyn Nets (13-34)
Egor Demin, Nolan Traore, Terance Mann, Danny Wolf, Nic Claxton
Yankees Social Media Spotlight: Honoring the Captain
It’s Sunday, and you know what that means — it’s time for our weekly social media roundup! While the Big Apple will thankfully not be hit with a Sunday snowstorm for the third consecutive week, Boreas (the Greek northern wind, for the non-Classicists among you) has continued to hound the Northeast, with single-digit temperatures rampaging throughout the land. And yet, even as we bundled up in three layers of coats and hats to survive the cold, the first signs of spring came on the horizon. How so, you may ask, on this first day of February? Well, let’s find out!
Celebrating America’s MVP
Last Saturday, the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA) hosted their annual awards ceremony, where Yankees captain Aaron Judge received his third career American League MVP Award. Former teammate Anthony Rizzo introduced him, while Suzyn Waldman and Dave Sims were in attendance.
But the AL MVP was not the only honor for the Captain this week, as MLB The Show announced that Judge will be this year’s cover athlete. Since No. 99 was the cover athlete back in 2018, this marks his second time on the cover — only the second player ever to receive the distinction, and first since Joe Mauer in the early 2010s.
Congrats, Carlos and Ashley
Judge was not the only Yankee to be honored at Saturday’s event. Carlos Rodón and his wife Ashley received the Joan Payson & Shannon Forde Community Service Award, honoring them for the work they do with the Rodon Foundation helping couples dealing with fertility issues.
Belli’s Back
This past week, the Yankees officially announced that they had re-signed Cody Bellinger. Once that occurred, the social media team showed what they have almost certainly been cooking up all winter to celebrate. In particular, the videos posted stress the fact that Bellinger grew up at the old Stadium, as his father, Clay, played for the Yankees in the late ‘90s — but you probably knew that already, didn’t you?
New Computers in the Bronx
Yankee second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. and his foundation helped put together a state-of-the-art computer lab for students at CS55 in the Bronx.
Congrats to the Wells family
Yankees catcher Austin Wells and his partner welcomed a new member of their family this week: Lucy Marie Wells. Congratulations!
Happy Retirement, D-Rob
Former Yankee reliever and 2009 World Series champion David Robertson officially hung up his cleats this week, announcing his retirement on Instagram.
Farewell, Lasagna
Earlier this month, Jonathan Loáisiga signed a minor league deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks, bringing his tenure with the Yankees to a close. The dynamic-but-injury-riddled reliever spent ten seasons with the Yankees organization after being signed as a minor league free agent in 2016, including eight years on the Yankees pitching staff (originally as a starter, and then as a reliever). We wish him the best as he looks to get his career back on track after dealing with extensive injuries in 2024 and 2025.
Snow Day
Yea, there was a lot of snow last week. You know, just in case you needed a reminder that it’s merely very cold, not very cold and in need of shoveling.
CC Sabathia was also on social media complaining, but as the comments’ section on his post points out, his complaints ring hollow: he has spent a lot of time golfing in Florida and traveling to warm weather areas this winter.
Moving Day
What is the first sign of the new season? Why, it’s moving day, of course! And guess what — that was this past Friday! The Yankees’ facilities and equipment teams loaded up the trucks, with one destination in mind: Tampa, Florida.
Flyers Send Goaltender Down To AHL
The Philadelphia Flyers have announced that they have assigned goaltender Aleksei Kolosov to their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
Kolosov was called up to the Flyers' roster on Saturday ahead of their matchup against the Los Angeles Kings. This was after Flyers goaltender Samuel Ersson left the Flyers' Jan. 29 contest against the Boston Bruins early due to a lower-body injury. Yet, with this latest roster move, Kolosov is now heading right back to Lehigh Valley.
Kolosov has appeared in 21 games so far this season with the Phantoms, where he has recorded a 9-10-1 record, a .908 save percentage, and a 2.52 goals-against average. This is after he had a 5-6-1 record, an .884 save percentage, and a 3.11 goals-against average in 12 games this past season with Lehigh Valley.
At the NHL level with the Flyers this season, Kolosov has a 0-2-0 record, an .830 save percentage, and a 4.00 goals-against average in four games. In 17 games this past season with the Flyers, the 24-year-old goaltender posted a 5-9-1 record and an .867 save percentage.