Sports
Northwestern-Washington tale of teams walking down similar paths
Jan 29, 2026; Evanston, Illinois, USA; Northwestern Wildcats forward Nick Martinelli (2) high fives fans after scoring against the Penn State Nittany Lions during the second half at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images The men’s basketball seasons for Washington and Northwestern have been nearly mirror images of each other.
Right down to the color purple on their uniforms.
Both the Huskies (11-10, 3-7 Big Ten) and Wildcats (10-11, 2-8) have endured multiple narrow losses heading into their Saturday matchup at Evanston, Ill.
But they did diverge Thursday night.
While Washington was taking a 75-66 loss at No. 9 Illinois, Northwestern was putting a 94-73 beatdown on visiting Penn State.
“That was a huge win for us, coming off the West Coast trip where we played pretty well last week,” Wildcats coach Chris Collins said. “I knew both teams were going to be hungry. I just kept telling my team that whatever team was going to start getting a few stops was going to win.”
Nick Martinelli, who leads the nation with an average of 24 points per game, matched his career high with 34 on 13-of-19 shooting from the field. Tre Singleton added 17 points and a career-best 18 rebounds, and Angelo Ciaravino scored a career-high 20 off the bench.
The Wildcats have won two of their past three games after getting their first conference victory last week 74-68 at Southern California.
“Regardless of wins, losses, I’ve just felt better about the way we’ve approached ourselves heading into these games,” Collins said.
The Huskies snapped a three-game skid with a 72-57 victory against rival Oregon on Sunday, but they couldn’t keep up with the Fighting Illini despite Hannes Steinbach’s 15 points and 12 rebounds. The freshman forward leads the Big Ten with 13 double-doubles this season.
“Northwestern is playing great basketball,” Huskies coach Danny Sprinkle said. “I know they beat Penn State (Thursday), they had a big road win at USC the other night, they played UCLA tough. They are getting better and better, just like we are.
“Sometimes, the results … their record doesn’t show how good of a team they are. They are very disciplined. They are great offensively, and they make it grimy defensively. We’re going to continue to get better and learn from some of the mistakes we made (at Illinois).”
–Field Level Media
Sports
ATP roundup: Ben Shelton shows love of clay, wins BMW title
Ben Shelton connects with the ball during his second-round match at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif., Friday, March 6, 2026. Ben Shelton rolled to his second title of the year, winning the BMW Open with a 6-2, 7-5 victory over Italy’s Flavio Cobolli at Munich, Germany.
Shelton won 85% of his first-serve points on the clay surface and saved all six break points he faced to win his fifth career title and first since Dallas earlier this year. Shelton showed his form early when he broke Cobolli’s serve twice in the first three games of the match.
With the second set tied 5-5, Shelton broke Cobolli again and won on serve on his first match point. Shelton became the first American man since 2009 to win three ATP 500 titles.
“I have big ambitions for the clay courts,” Shelton said in his post-match interview. “It is a surface I want to get better on each year. It is slowly becoming one of my favorite surfaces to play on.”
Barcelona Open
Arthur Fils of France held off a late charge from Russia’s Andrey Rublev to record a 6-2, 7-6 (2) victory in the final of the tournament.
Fils won his first title since returning in February after missing eight months because of a back injury.
Fils was well on his way to victory after cruising in the first set and leading 5-2 in the second before Rublev dug in his heels. Rublev broke Fils’ serve to pull within 5-4 in the second set, then staved off one match point to make it 5-5.
Rublev broke serve again to lead 6-5 in the second set before Fils finally regained control and finished off the match in a tiebreak.
“The end of the second set was just about the mental (pressure),” Fils said. “The whole match was a bit tough because I was a bit tight. I played well for a set and a half, but when I had to close, I started to think a little. But I’m very happy with the way I played the tiebreak.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
WTA roundup: Elena Rybakina wins at Stuttgart for second time
Aug 31, 2025; Flushing, NY, USA; Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan in action against Marketa Vondrousova of Czech Republic in the fourth round of the women’s singles at the US Open at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike Frey-Imagn Images Second-seeded Elena Rybakina won 25 of her 32 first-serve points (78.1%) and needed just 78 minutes on Sunday to post a 7-5, 6-1 victory over Karolina Muchova to win the championship match of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Germany.
Rybakina, of Kazakhstan, had three aces while winning her 13th career title and second in Stuttgart. She also won the event in 2024. This victory marks the first time she has won multiple titles at a tournament.
The Czech Republic’s Muchova, the No. 7 seed, was much less efficient on her first serves, winning just 52.3% (23 of 44). She saved four of eight break points.
Muchova trailed 5-2 in the first set before winning three straight games to knot the match. But Rybakina won the final two games and then sailed through the second set to win her fifth clay court title.
Rouen Metropolitan Open
Top-seeded Marta Kostyuk hit 34 winners against 23 unforced errors while claiming a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Veronika Podrez in the first all-Ukrainian WTA final at Rouen, France.
Kostyuk converted 6 of 9 break points against the 19-year-old Podrez to win her second singles title. Podrez, a qualifier, was playing in her first final.
“This match today was not just a match,” Kostyuk said during the trophy presentation. “It was a historical moment for Ukrainian tennis. First time two Ukrainians playing in the final. I know how much work, sacrifice, tears and sweat goes into this sport and to be able to be on this stage. So I’m incredibly proud of Ukrainian tennis right now.”
Podrez had just one ace while committing seven double faults.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Former Georgia WR Zachariah Branch arrested
Georgia wide receiver Zachariah Branch (1) takes questions from the press during the Sugar Bowl and College Football Playoff quarterfinals Media Day at Sheraton New Orleans Hotel in New Orleans, La., on Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025. Players and coaches from Ole Miss and Georgia took questions from the press. Wide receiver Zachariah Branch, a Georgia standout who was expected to be selected in the NFL Draft later this week, was arrested early Sunday in Athens, Ga., according to Athens-Clarke County jail records.
Branch, 22, was charged with obstructing public sidewalks/streets and obstruction of a law enforcement officer, both misdemeanors. He was booked at 1:26 a.m. and released on bond at 3:44 a.m.
Widely projected as a Day 2 NFL draft pick, estimates show Branch going as high as the second round on Friday.
In his first season at Georgia, following a transfer from Southern California, Branch led the Bulldogs with 81 receptions for 811 yards and six touchdowns last season. Georgia went 12-2 and lost 39-34 to Ole Miss in the Sugar Bowl.
In three college seasons, the first two at USC, Branch had 159 receptions for 1,634 yards and nine touchdowns in 37 games.
–Field Level Media
ATP roundup: Ben Shelton shows love of clay, wins BMW title
Save on gas (and everything else) with a $15 BJ’s membership
