Sports
Joel Embiid dominates with 40-point effort to push Sixers past Pelicans
Jan 31, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson (1) controls the ball against Philadelphia 76ers forward Jabari Walker (33) during the first quarter at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images Joel Embiid had 40 points and 11 rebounds and the host Philadelphia 76ers held off the New Orleans Pelicans 124-114 on Saturday night.
Kelly Oubre Jr. added 19 points and 10 rebounds, while Tyrese Maxey scored 18. VJ Edgecombe had 15 points, and Jared McCain added 12 for the Sixers.
Saddiq Bey scored 34 points, Trey Murphy III had 19, Jeremiah Fears scored 12, Zion Williamson had 11 and Jose Alvarado recorded 10 for the Pelicans.
Philadelphia led by 14 points early in the third quarter before Bey scored seven straight New Orleans points and Murphy added a 3-pointer to trim the lead to 80-74. The Pelicans got within six points twice more, the second time being 87-81 at the end of the period.
Alvarado made a 3-pointer to start the fourth-quarter scoring, and Williamson added four points to pull the Pelicans within 90-88. Embiid made a 3-pointer, but New Orleans got within two points on two more occasions.
Consecutive baskets by Embiid and Edgecombe gave Philadelphia a 102-96 lead. Alvarado’s 3-pointer and Bey’s field goal completed an 11-2 run that gave New Orleans a 107-104 lead.
The score was tied twice more before Embiid made a jumper, Dominick Barlow dunked and Embiid made a free throw to spur a 16-6 run that put the Sixers in charge.
Murphy missed all seven of his 3-point attempts in a win against Memphis on Friday, but he made his first attempt to give New Orleans the biggest lead of the first quarter, 14-8. After that, the score was tied three times and the lead changed hands six times, the last coming when Micah Peavy’s 3-pointer gave the Pelicans a 33-31 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Trendon Watford scored five points, Embiid had four and Philadelphia began the second quarter with a 14-5 spurt that produced a 45-38 lead. The Sixers later pushed the lead to nine on a 3-pointer by McCain.
Embiid’s six points and Oubre’s field goal extended the lead to 15 before Murphy’s dunk left the Sixers with a 67-54 halftime lead.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Arizona F Koa Peat nursing lower leg injury
Arizona Wildcats forward Koa Peat (10) looks for a pass against Kansas Jayhawks during the game inside Allen Fieldhouse on Feb. 9, 2026. Freshman forward Koa Peat sat out the second half of top-ranked Arizona’s 78-75 loss to No. 16 Texas Tech with a lower-body injury on Saturday in Tucson, Ariz.
“We’re gonna figure it out. It’s a lower leg deal,” Wildcats head coach Tommy Lloyd said of Peat’s injury. “I know (trainer Justin Kokoskie) and the doctors are on it and I’m sure they’ll do some testing and we’ll figure out where it’s at. But I don’t have anything other than that.”
Peat, who is a projected first-round NBA draft pick, finished with two points and a rebound in 11 minutes of action on Saturday.
He is averaging 13.8 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.6 assists in 25 games for Arizona (23-2, 10-2 Big 12), which has lost two in a row following a 23-game winning streak to start the season.
The Wildcats return to action on Wednesday against BYU (19-6, 7-5).
–Field Level Media
Sports
Twisted Minds show grit in winning OWCS Pre-Season Bootcamp
A custom gaming keyboard backlit with red LED lights waits for tactile input before Manual took on Boone County in a Rocket League match, which was streamed on YouTube on Thursday, March 5, 2020. Twisted Minds overcame a two-map deficit in the semifinals before coasting to a 4-1 victory over Crazy Raccoon in the grand final of the Overwatch Champions Series Pre-Season Bootcamp on Sunday in Seoul.
Twisted Minds found themselves on the brink of elimination to Team Liquid in the semifinals after dropping a 2-1 setback on Lijiang Tower and 134.14m-85.66m decision on Esperanca. Twisted Minds, however, reversed course by posting a 3-0 win on Eichenwalde, a 3-1 victory on Havana and a 139.62m-45.31m triumph on Colosseo.
Twisted Minds had a much easier time of it versus Crazy Raccoon. They bolted out to a fast start, courtesy of a 2-1 win on Busan, 3-2 victory on Blizzard World and 139.62m-39.81m triumph on Colosseo. Crazy Raccoon briefly halted the momentum with a 2-1 win on Shambali Monastery, however Twisted Minds ended the match with a 138.31m-52.44m victory on Esperanca.
OWCS PRE-SEASON BOOTCAMP CHAMPIONS ????
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— Twisted Minds ?? (@TwisMinds) February 15, 2026
Crazy Raccoon advanced to the grand final with a 3-2 triumph over Team Falcons. Crazy Raccoon won the first two maps and Team Falcons countered with two victories of their own before the latter rebounded with a 2-0 victory on Lijiang Tower.
Twelve teams took part in the $25,000 event that kicked off the 2026 Overwatch Champions Series. Teams from North America, the EMEA region, China, Japan and elsewhere in Asia were invited.
The single-elimination bracket saw teams seeded by regional and 2025 World Finals performance. Sunday’s grand final was a first-to-four-wins competition.
Overwatch Champions Series 2026 Pre-Season Bootcamp prize pool
1. $15,000 — Twisted Minds
2. $5,000 — Crazy Raccoon
3-4. $2,500 — Team Falcons, Team Liquid
5-8. No money — Team Peps, Weibo Gaming, T1, Virtus.pro
9-12. No money — Disguised, VARREL, Dallas Fuel, All Gamers
–Field Level Media
Sports
Leylah Fernandez comes from set down to win in Dubai
Jan 20, 2026; Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; Leylah Fernandez of Canada in action against Janice Tjen of Indonesia in the first round of the women’s singles at the Australian Open at ANZ Arena in Melbourne Park. Mandatory Credit: Mike Frey-Imagn Images Leylah Fernandez of Canada rallied to upset No. 13 Liudmila Samsonova 5-7, 7-5, 6-3 in the opening round of the Dubai Duty Free Championship in the United Arab Emirates on Sunday.
With her loss in the two-hour, 52-minute match, Samsonova dropped to 0-5 in three-set matches in 2026.
Samsonova and Fernandez played a tough first set, punctuated by 11 deuce points spread over three games. It wasn’t until the 11th game of the set, with Fernandez serving at 5-5, that Samsonova was able to forge ahead with a break to take the lead, then serve for the win.
The second set was nearly a carbon copy with another late break. Samsonova was serving down 6-5 to stay in the set, but Fernandez broke serve to take the set.
In the third, Samsonova fell behind by two break points at 5-0 before Fernandez forged ahead for the win in the WTA 1000 event.
The only other seeded player in action Sunday was Czech Linda Noskova, a 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 winner over Ann Li. Noskova withstood 13 aces from the American, also helped by winning points on 73% of her first serves.
Surviving another three-set match was Magda Linette of Poland, a 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 winner over Lulu Su of New Zealand.
With the top two women’s players in the world, Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus and Iga Swiatek of Poland, pulling out of the Dubai tournament, Elena Rybakina of Ukraine is the top seed. She had a bye to the second round, and she will meet Kimberly Birrell of Australia, who topped Tatjana Maria of Germany. 6-4, 3-6, 7-5.
Also advancing to the second round were Janice Tjen of Indonesia, American Peyton Stearns, Elise Mertens of Belgium, Czech Barbora Krejcikova, Ella Seidel of Germany and Russia’s Diana Shnaider.
A trio of Americans — No. 2 seed Amanda Anisimova, No. 3 Coco Gauff and No. 4 Jessica Pegula — all have a first-round bye and will make their tournament debuts in the second round on either Monday or Tuesday.
–Field Level Media
Arizona F Koa Peat nursing lower leg injury
Twisted Minds show grit in winning OWCS Pre-Season Bootcamp
