DETROIT (AP) — Cade Cunningham had 29 points and 11 assists and the Detroit Pistons routed the Sacramento Kings 139-116 on Sunday for their fifth victory in six games.
The Eastern Conference-leading Pistons rebounded from a home loss to Houston on Friday night to improve to 33-11. Tied at 35 after a quarter, Detroit broke it open in the second by outscoring the Kings 43-30.
Cunningham was 13 of 22 from the field, hitting 3 of 5 3-pointers. Pistons center Jalen Duren added 18 points on 7-of-8 shooting, and Tobias Harris had 16.
Malik Monk led Sacramento with 19 points, and DeMar DeRozan had 16. The Kings have lost five straight to drop to 12-35.
Domantas Sabonis played his fifth game for Sacramento after after missing two months because of a knee injury. He had 12 points on 6-of-7 shooting and eight assists and seven rebounds in 24:44.
DENVER (AP) — The heavy snow and swirling wind moved into the Mile High City for the second half of the AFC championship game Sunday as Denver played New England.
The snow gathered on the field and made the yard lines hard to see. Patriots kicker Andres Borregales sent his 46-yard field goal into the swirling wind wide right late in the third quarter. The Patriots held a 10-7 lead over the Broncos heading into the fourth quarter.
The day started out sunny and 26 degrees (minus-3 Celsius) with a wind chill of 17 (minus-8). A light snow began to fall just as halftime ended and steadily picked up. Players huddled by the heaters on the sideline.
Jarrett Stidham, filling in for an injured Bo Nix, and Drake Maye, an NFL MVP candidate, both struggled in the weather. Stidham threw a TD pass but also fumbled deep in Denver territory that set up New England's TD.
Maye was more effective with his feet than his arm. He had 64 yards and a TD heading into the final quarter.
Juventus beat Napoli to leave title challenge in tatters
Barcelona capitalised on two defensive mistakes by bottom-of-the-table Real Oviedo to seal a 3-0 victory at a rain-drenched Camp Nou, regaining top spot in La Liga. Goals from Dani Olmo, Raphinha and, acrobatically, Lamine Yamal powered the Catalan club to 52 points, one ahead of Real Madrid, while Atlético Madrid trail in third on 44.
Barça struggled to break the deadlock against a spirited Oviedo until they finally found the breakthrough in the 52nd minute, with Olmo striking home following a defensive lapse. Five minutes later, Oviedo’s struggles deepened, with the defender David Costas under-hitting a back-pass, which Raphinha intercepted before calmly chipping the onrushing AarónEscandell in Oviedo’s goal to double Barcelona’s lead. Lamine Yamal wrapped up Barça’s win by scoring in the 73rd minute with a brilliant acrobatic volley from an Olmo cross.
SEATTLE (AP) — Franck Kepnang and Hannes Steinbach had double-doubles and Washington led nearly wire-to-wire in a 72-57 victory over Oregon Sunday in the 318th meeting between the programs.
The Huskies' win snapped a four-game losing streak against their bitter rival. Washington leads 193-125 in the series that is the second-most played in Division I.
Kepnang had 10 points and 14 rebounds, Steinbach had 10 and 13. Quimari Peterson, Zoom Diallo and Jacob Ognacevic scored 12 points each.
Sean Stewart scored 15 points and Kwame Evans Jr. added 11 points for Oregon.
The Ducks made only one of their first 10 shots while the Huskies built a 14-2 lead in the first seven minutes. Twice Oregon got within seven points, the second time at 22-15 with about 5 1/2 minutes left. The Huskies then went on a 10-0 run in which Peterson scored five points and Washington finished the half with a 34-19 lead.
Oregon made only seven shots in the first 14 minutes of the second half but the Ducks' 13-of-15 shooting at the free-throw line kept the Huskies from extending their lead. Washington led 61-44 near the five-minute mark. A few minutes later, Kepnang threw down a dunk and Peterson nailed a 3-pointer for a 70-53 lead heading to the final two minutes.
Oregon (8-12, 1-8 Big Ten) made 20 of 23 free throws in the second half, 24 of 28 for the game.
Washington (11-9, 3-6) made 8 of 13 free throws and 10 of 21 3-pointers.
Up next
Oregon: The Ducks host UCLA on Wednesday.
Washington: The Huskies play Thursday at No. 11 Illinois.
We knew coming into the Philadelphia 76ers’ upcoming back-to-back that Joel Embiid would not be playing both games. We suspected the same for Paul George. The only question was whether they would sit out Monday or Tuesday, and we now know the answer, with the veteran stars announced as out for Monday in Charlotte.
The Sixers have an injury report for tomorrow’s game @ Charlotte:
Joel Embiid — left knee injury management — OUT
Paul George — left knee injury management — OUT
This is a front end of a back-to-back; Sixers host Milwaukee on Tuesday.
The decision makes sense from a couple perspectives. The Hornets game is on the road versus Tuesday against Milwaukee at home. Also, the game time for Monday was pushed up to 3:00pm due to the weather situation. I imagine with guys having a coordinated maintenance schedule for their past injuries, you would want to stick to a similar routine throughout the day as much as possible. Let both veterans have a normal day in their home city and arena before taking the court at a customary hour.
The Sixers will certainly miss both guys against the Hornets. After seemingly struggling some to ramp up his conditioning and regain a rhythm earlier in the season, Embiid is currently in the midst of his best stretch of the season, having scored at least 30 points in four straight appearances. He is coming off his first triple-double of the season against Houston, followed by a 38-point, 11-rebound, five-assist effort against the Knicks. Joel has appeared in 25 of the Sixers’ 44 games thus far, while Paul George has also taken the court 25 times.
Currently 24-20 and in sixth place in the Eastern Conference, the Sixers will look to defeat the 18-28 Hornets down two starters. We’ll find out how they fare tomorrow afternoon.
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Golden State Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga will be sidelined again with a bone bruise and a hyperextended left knee, the team announced on Sunday before playing at Minnesota.
The game against the Timberwolves was rescheduled from the day before following the fatal shooting in Minneapolis of 37-year-old Alex Pretti by federal immigration officers, to prioritize community safety.
The Warriors said a re-evaluation date on Kuminga’s condition would be determined “in the coming days.” The injury forced the disgruntled fifth-year player out of Golden State's most recent game on Thursday at Dallas. He had an MRI on Friday.
Kuminga had just returned to the rotation because of Jimmy Butler's season-ending knee injury. He had not played in a month, with the increasing chance he'll be traded before the deadline on Feb. 5.
Warriors star Stephen Curry, who was listed as questionable to play Sunday because of right knee soreness that developed Saturday, was cleared for action after going through pregame warmups. Al Horford (left toe injury management) and De’Anthony Melton (left knee injury management) were suited up on Sunday, with the plan to rest them both in the rematch at Minnesota on Monday night with the schedule change forcing them into back-to-back games.
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An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated Al Horford and De'Anthony Melton were not playing on Sunday. They will not play on Monday.
Per the Phoenix Suns’ communications department, Devin Booker will be re-evaluated in one week after suffering a right ankle sprain on Friday in Atlanta.
Devin Booker will be re-evaluated in one week after sustaining a right ankle sprain in Atlanta
That one-week re-evaluation doesn’t guarantee a return at that date, as you all know. But if he is cleared to begin ramping it up a week from now, that bodes well for an early February return with him missing 8 games or less in total, hopefully.
In related news, Booker has been spotted at Mullet Arena to watch his young teammates Khaman Maluach and Rasheer Fleming as they are on assignment.
Stephen PridGeon-Garner notes that he is in shoes, not a boot or crutches. A positive development that pairs nicely with the update we received in our inbox.
Guess who's also at Mullett Arena, watching the Valley Suns game right now… Devin Booker.
"But it's actually really good to see him in his shoes, & not a boot or anything. So I'm really optimistic about that one week re-evaluation." ~Jeff Ayers on the Valley Suns broadcast. https://t.co/7e2vjDCBQFpic.twitter.com/Dmki8s9RYk
The Suns begin a 5-game homestand tonight against Miami that will run through next Sunday. Nine of their next ten games will be played at home in Phoenix.
The most interesting moment of the Toronto Maple Leafs' 4-1 loss against the Colorado Avalanche didn't come on the ice.
During the third period of Sunday's game, TSN's broadcast panned up to the press box, where the Maple Leafs' scratches and injured players were sitting. Pictured were Philippe Myers, Calle Jarnkrok, Chris Tanev, Dakota Joshua, and William Nylander.
Just before the broadcast cut away from the players' box, Nylander spotted the camera and, with a smile, stuck up the middle finger.
Hours after the game concluded, Nylander issued an apology, via his Instagram.
“Only love for Leafs Nation. Sorry about my moment of frustration today,” he wrote on his Instagram story. “Didn’t mean to upset anyone. Looking forward to being back on the ice and not in the stands. Love Willy.”
The 29-year-old is currently dealing with a groin injury, which he re-aggravated in Toronto's 6-5 overtime loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Jan. 15. Nylander scored a goal and an assist in the game but only played 2:17.
He's missed the last five games due to the ailment.
Nylander originally picked up the groin injury against the Ottawa Senators on Dec. 27. It's unknown how the forward suffered the injury, which eventually forced him to miss six straight games before returning against the Vancouver Canucks on Jan. 10.
The forward skated on Saturday, the first time he's been on the ice since re-aggravating the injury against the Golden Knights. Nylander and Joshua skated for 20 minutes before leaving the ice.
"We'll see where he progresses, and how he felt," said head coach Craig Berube on Saturday. "Hopefully, he can keep getting on the ice here and be ready to go. I can't give you a timeline on [his return] yet."
Despite missing 11 games from Dec. 27 to now, Nylander still leads the Maple Leafs with 17 goals and 48 points in 37 games. John Tavares is second among Toronto players with 19 goals and 44 points in 52 games.
Toronto's loss to Colorado was its fourth straight home defeat. The Maple Leafs have picked up just one point during that stretch, in an overtime loss to the Detroit Red Wings on Wednesday.
The Maple Leafs currently sit five points away from the second wild-card spot, held by the Boston Bruins. Toronto plays the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday, and it's now arguably one of the biggest games of their season.
"We got to fix the execution part for me," said Berube after Sunday's loss to the Avalanche. "And then the battle level. When you get down in a game, we got to come together as a team and we got to fight through that, because it's going to happen. We all know that.
"But I think losing at home here, it's worn on our team a little bit. But that's pro sports and we got to all pull together here and get ready for Tuesday. We need a win."
OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Linus Ullmark was in uniform as the backup goalie for the Ottawa Senators’ game against the Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday.
Mads Sogaard will start in net for Ottawa.
Ullmark has not played since Dec. 27 after taking a personal leave of absence from the team. The 32-year-old netminder missed 14 games. He's 14-8-5 with a 2.95 goals-against average this season.
Stop me if you've heard this one before, but a former Philadelphia Flyers goalie is dominating for one of the NHL's hottest teams, and it may not be who you expect.
The Flyers were, at one point, one of those teams, though Dan Vladar has since gotten injured and slowed down overall.
They now find themselves five points back of the second wildcard spot and two points off third in the Metropolitan Division; either result would be satisfactory.
But, over the last few weeks, the once-lowly Buffalo Sabres exploded into third in the Atlantic Division from the bottom of the Eastern Conference, buoyed by a 10-game win streak that carried them into the New Year.
Leading the charge has been ex-Flyers goalie Alex Lyon, who signed with Buffalo this past offseason.
Lyon, 33, has racked up an impressive 12-6-3 record for the Sabres this season to the tune of a 2.70 GAA and .911 save percentage, complemented by two shutouts.
For the sake of comparison, Lyon won a career-high 21 games with Detroit in 2023-24 and now has a clear opportunity to set a new personal best, so long as he can fend off Sabres teammates Colten Ellis and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen for ice time.
Lyon shouldn't have too much of an issue doing that if he keeps up the way he's been playing, though.
Dating back to Dec. 9, the 6-foot-1 netminder has won nine straight appearances, and eight straight starts, including a 24-save effort in a 5-3 win against the Flyers on Dec. 18.
Lyon did do his old Flyers club a favor by posting a 26-save shutout of the New York Islanders on Saturday in just his second game of January, but, with how inconsistent Sam Ersson and Aleksei Kolosov have been behind Vladar, we can be sure the Flyers would just prefer to have Lyon on their roster helping them directly instead of indirectly.
Anyhow, the Sabres have quickly become the story of the NHL this season after transforming a dismal start into a chance to become a rousing success should they reach the postseason.
Lyon, even through injury and a three-goalie rotation, has been at the forefront of that transformation.
1. Did Chris Drury have to announce that he's looking to peddle Breadman Panarin? Absolutely not!
2. Hockey author and Seattle Kraken reporter Glenn Dreyfuss agrees that Drury is in error. "Exposing an asset you wish to trade goes against sports dealmaking," says Dreyfuss.
3. When The Maven asked Dreyfuss to amplify, he graciously added: "Never tell the world you want to make a trade; that diminishes the value of the player."
4. The fact that the Rangers had to reach out for goaltending help and haul in Spencer Martin, a KHL alumnus, tells you how bare the Blueshirts AHL cupboard is in Hartford.
5. Vic Morren, co-host with Neil Smith on the excellent podcast "NHL Wraparound," asks an interesting question about Alexis Lafrenière: "Do you see a buyout possibility here? This (Lafrenière) may be one of the most useless players in the NHL."
6. Hey, what if The Breadman decides he loves living in The Big Apple so much he wants to stay here in New York. "The Rangers got to get Panarin to change his mind," says Jess Rubenstein. "Right now he's not interested in waiving his no-movement clause."
7. Jess adds: "I'm guessing that Panarin is looking to extract either a new contract BEFORE any trade or to punish Drury for what he did to the core of the team."
8. You don't need analytics to figure these equations: With Sid Crosby, Geno Malkin and Kris Letang, Pitt coach Mike Sulllivan missed the playoffs for three straight years. With an aging Sid, Geno and Kris, and rookie coach Dan Muse – the Penguins are hell bent for a playoff berth.
9. I don't have to tell what a wonderful job Sully has done with The Beloved Blueshirts. The Pitt-Rangers comparison says it all!
10. Not that this falls into the "Surprise" category, but guess how The Athletic NHL staff graded the Rangers at the halfway mark of the season?
The Philadelphia 76ers game on Monday visiting the Charlotte Hornets will now tip off at 3 p.m. ET. The game was originally scheduled for 7 p.m.
The NBA announced the time change on social media on Sunday afternoon as a winter storm dropping snow and ice continues to work it’s way through the east coast.
SCHEDULE UPDATE FOR MONDAY, JAN. 26:
The Indiana Pacers at Atlanta Hawks game will now tip off at 1:30 p.m. ET due to inclement weather.
The Philadelphia 76ers at Charlotte Hornets game will now tip off at 3 p.m. ET due to inclement weather.
The Sixers aren’t the only one facing schedule changes in the wake of the storm. The Indiana Pacers visiting the Atlanta Hawks on Monday was also moved up to a 1:30 p.m. ET start. On Sunday, two NBA games were cancelled due to issues caused by the weather — the Denver Nuggets vs. the Memphis Grizzlies, and the Dallas Mavericks vs. Milwaukee Bucks. In the case of the Mavericks, the team was unable to fly to Milwaukee both Saturday night and Sunday morning.
There were similar concerns that the Sixers would have trouble getting from Philadelphia to Charlotte had they left later in the weekend. Nick Nurse said on Saturday that the team was planning to leave after the Sixers’ afternoon game hosting the New York Knicks. Typically, the team would stay in Philadelphia for a Sunday practice before leaving for a Monday away game.
A team official has confirmed to Liberty Ballers that the team has already arrived in Charlotte.
It’s another afternoon matinee of Sixers’ basketball! Philadelphia and Charlotte will tip off at 3 p.m. ET tomorrow.
Sunday's scheduled game between the visiting Mavericks and the Bucks has been postponed because Dallas was unable to fly out of the city to Milwaukee for the game, the league announced. There is no reschedule date set (though it is likely to be after the All-Star break, reports Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News). The league had hoped Dallas could fly out at some point today and play the game tomorrow, but the frigid temperatures prevented the plane from being de-iced, Townsend adds.
AUBURN, Ala. (AP) — Aaliyah Chavez scored 18 points and No. 16 Oklahoma avoided a big upset, defeating Auburn 72-65 on Sunday.
The Sooners, coming off a 94-82 overtime win over No. 2 South Carolina on Thursday, were locked in a battle with the unranked Tigers until finishing the game with a 13-6 run over the final minutes.
Auburn's A’riel Jackson scored seven points early in the fourth quarter and Harissoum Coulibaly's layup tied the score at 57-all with six minutes remaining. Another Coulibaly layup made it 59-59 with 4:50 remaining but the Tigers managed only six points the rest of the game.
Sahara Williams and Raegan Beers scored 13 points each for Oklahoma (16-4, 4-3 SEC) and Brooklyn Stewart added 12 off the bench.
Jackson scored 19 points off the bench, Mya Petticord and Ja’Mia Harris 12 each, and Coulibaly 10 for Auburn (13-8, 2-5).
Oklahoma scored the last seven points of the first quarter to take a 19-12 lead. Jackson scored the first five points of the second quarter to get the Tigers within two points. Later in the quarter, a 6-0 run gave the Tigers their first lead of the game, 27-25.
Consecutive 3-pointers by a Chavez got the Sooners going again and they went on to lead 35-30 at halftime.
Petticord scored Auburn's first eight points of the third quarter, but it wasn't enough to keep the Sooners from extending their lead to 47-38. The Sooners' lead was 51-41 with 4 1/2 minutes left in the quarter but Auburn closed to within 53-48 entering the fourth.
Up next
Oklahoma: The Sooners host Texas A&M on Thursday
Auburn: The Tigers host South Carolina on Thursday ___
With most of the American mid-atlantic and southern areas of the country under heavy weather advisories for snow, sleet, and ice storms, the NBA has made a change to the game tomorrow.
Per a release from the NBA:
Please be advised of the following updates to the 2025-26 NBA Schedule:
Monday, January 26, 2026
The Indiana at Atlanta game will change game time to 1:30 PM ET.
The game was originally scheduled for 7:30 PM EST, so with the six-hour bump, this last second change may make for tough arrangements for those who desired to attend.
This game can be seen on FanDuel Sports Network Southeast (FDSNSE), listened to on Sports Radio 92.9 the Game (WZGC-FM), or streamed on the following options:
