Sports
Nick Schmaltz's hat trick propels Mammoth past Canucks
Feb 2, 2026; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; The Utah Mammoth celebrate a goal by left wing Lawson Crouse (67) during the second period against the Vancouver Canucks at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images Nick Schmaltz scored three goals and added an assist as the Utah Mammoth skated to a 6-2 win over the Vancouver Canucks on Monday in Salt Lake City.
Schmaltz netted two goals in the first period and one in the third enroute for his third career hat trick and his sixth game with four-plus-points. His career high is a seven-point game against the Ottawa Senators on March 5, 2022.
Lawson Crouse had a goal and an assist, JJ Peterka and Mikhail Sergachev scored goals and John Marino notched three assists for the Mammoth, who have won seven of their past 10 games. Utah’s Clayton Keller added two assists while Karel Vejmelka made 21 saves.
Teddy Blueger and Liam Ohgren scored and Conor Garland chipped in two assists for the Canucks, who have lost seven straight on the road. Kevin Lankinen stopped 14 of 20 shots.
The Canucks, in a 2-13-3 rut, are last in the league with 42 points and still looking for their first road win of 2026.
Schmaltz opened the scoring with a give-and-go play in the first period. He got the Mammoth on the board at 3:34, dishing the puck over to Marino then taking a return pass through traffic and scoring his 20th of the season from a sharp angle.
Ohgren tied it 1-1 at 7:04 of the first. Garland carried the puck over the blue line and slipped a pass between two Utah defenders to a streaking Ohgren, who snapped a shot over Vejmelka’s glove hand.
Schmaltz scored his second goal just 33 seconds later to make it 2-1. He won a faceoff in the Vancouver zone back to Sean Durzi. Schmaltz then glided backwards into the slot, took a return feed and hammered home a one-timer.
Sergachev scored a power-play goal at 8:45 of the second to stake Utah to a 3-1 lead.
Crouse was credited with the Mammoth’s fourth goal at 12:16 of the second off a deflection. Peterka scored with four minutes left in the middle frame to make it 5-1, and the rout was on.
Blueger scored from the slot at 18:49 of the second to cut the Canucks’ deficit to three goals, but Schmaltz completed his hat trick by finishing off a 2-on-1 with Clayton Keller at 12:22 of the third.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Bucks build big lead, then hang on to top Pacers
Feb 6, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Bucks guard Ryan Rollins (13) passes the ball away from Indiana Pacers forward Aaron Nesmith (23) in the second quarter at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images Kevin Porter Jr. scored 23 points and dished eight assists to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to a 105-99 victory over the visiting Indiana Pacers on Friday night.
Milwaukee has won three games in a row for the first time all season. Ryan Rollins added 22 points while Bobby Portis scored 21 and Jericho Sims grabbed a career-high 15 rebounds.
Indiana fell for the third game in a row and fourth time in its last six games. Andrew Nembhard led the way with 22 with all but four coming in the fourth quarter. Pascal Siakam added 19.
Milwaukee got off to a slow start, turning it over five times in the first quarter and shooting just 9-of-22. Relief would come from beyond the arc.
Milwaukee shot 6-for-10 from deep in the second quarter alone and 50% from the floor in the first half. Those numbers helped them take a 54-47 lead into halftime.
The shooting momentum did not carry over into the second half for Milwaukee. AJ Green knocked down two 3-pointers to start the quarter and the team went 0-for-13 after. Despite that, the Bucks still outscored Indiana 29-18 in the frame and took a commanding 83-65 edge going into the fourth.
Things got interesting late in the fourth. As Milwaukee continued to struggle from the floor, Indiana rattled off a 15-0 run, capped by seven straight points from Nembhard.
Milwaukee went four and a half minutes without any points and Indiana got the deficit down to just 91-87 with four to play.
Despite Nembhard’s heroics, the Bucks bounced back for the victory, with Porter and Portis combining for 11 points in the final four minutes.
This was Milwaukee’s fourth consecutive regular-season victory over Indiana, including three this season. The Bucks had not won four in a row over their division rival since they won 10 in a row from 2020-23.
–Field Level Media
Sports
No. 22 St. John's knocks off No. 3 UConn for 9th straight win
Feb 6, 2026; New York, New York, USA; St. John’s Red Storm forward Zuby Ejiofor (24) looks to drive past UConn Huskies forward Tarris Reed Jr. (5) in the first half at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images Zuby Ejiofor totaled 21 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists as No. 22 St. John’s extended its winning streak to nine games in an 81-72 victory over No. 3 UConn in front of an electric sellout crowd at Madison Square Garden Friday night in New York.
The win marked St. John’s first victory over a top-3 team at MSG since defeating No. 3 Duke on Jan. 30, 2011, and it’s the first time St. John’s has won three consecutive games against UConn since the 1999-2000 season.
Ejiofor posted his fifth double-double and shot 6 of 10 from the field and often exploited his matchup with UConn’s Tarris Reed Jr, helping the Red Storm (17-5, 11-1 Big East) move within a half-game of the first-place Huskies (22-2, 12-1).
Tied at 45 in the second half, the senior center scored seven points in a 15-4 surge and staked the Red Storm to a 60-49 lead with 10:24 remaining.
After that point, St John’s fended off UConn’s comeback attempt that saw the Huskies cut the lead to 66-65 on a layup by Silas Demary Jr. with 4:46 left and 69-67 on a hoop by Alex Karaban with 3:39 left.
Following Karaban’s basket, Dylan Darling hit a 3 over Solo Ball and Ejiofor went around Reed for another hoop to put St. John’s up 74-67 with 2:27 left. The Red Storm finished off their third straight win over UConn by hitting five free throws in the final 57 seconds.
Dillon Mitchell added 15 as the Red Storm outscored the Huskies 42-33 in the final 20 minutes. Bryce Hopkins contributed 14 as the Red Storm shot 50% and gave coach Rick Pitino his 903rd career win to tie Roy Williams for third most all-time.
Demary led the Huskies with 18 points and Karaban added 17 as the duo combined to shoot 14-for-21 from the floor. Reed contributed 12 and Braylon Mullins chipped in 11 as the Huskies lost despite shooting 54.7% and saw their 18-game winning streak come to an end.
The Huskies held a 16-10 lead on a layup by Reed with 13:50 left in the first half before St. John’s scored nine straight for a 19-16 edge on a dunk by Oziyah Sellers a little over two minutes later. The Red Storm pushed their lead to 23-17 on two free throws by Ejiofor with 10:10 left and UConn answered back, taking a 26-25 lead on a Mullins’ 3 with 7:26 remaining.
After St. John’s took a pair of four-point leads, the Huskies forged a 39-39 deadlock by halftime on a drive by Demary with 15 seconds left.
–Field Level Media
Sports
New Orleans rallies to beat Minnesota, end skid
Feb 6, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; New Orleans Pelicans guard Saddiq Bey (41) dribbles the ball past Minnesota Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels (3) in the first half at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images Saddiq Bey scored 30 points and grabbed nine rebounds as the New Orleans Pelicans rallied for a 119-115 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday night in Minneapolis.
Zion Williamson added 29 points on 11-for-13 shooting for New Orleans, which snapped a three-game losing streak. Trey Murphy III added 26 points and made a half-dozen shots from beyond the arc.
Anthony Edwards scored 35 points on 11-for-22 shooting to lead Minnesota, which lost for only the second time in the last seven games. Julius Randle scored 24 points, Bones Hyland chipped in 20 off the bench, and Rudy Gobert registered a double-double with 12 points and 16 boards.
The Pelicans outscored the Timberwolves 30-21 in the fourth quarter, rallying four minutes into the period.
Randle made a jump shot to put Minnesota on top 102-96 with 7:32 remaining.
New Orleans responded with a decisive 11-0 run to grab a 107-102 lead with 4:13 to play. Bey — who shot 10-for-21 — hit a 3-pointer and a driving layup during the run, which also included a free throw, a layup and a 3-pointer by Bryce McGowens.
The Timberwolves regrouped to take a 115-114 lead after Hyland made a 3-pointer with 50.7 seconds to go.
Williamson made a driving layup moments later to put New Orleans on top 116-115, and the Pelicans led the rest of the way, hitting all three of their free throws in the final 35.5. seconds.
Minnesota led 70-56 at the half, thanks to a strong second quarter.
Minnesota went on a 9-0 run thanks to a 3-pointer by Edwards, a layup by Randle, a free throw by Edwards and a 3-pointer by Johnny Juzang, and they outscored the Pelicans 38-22 during the second quarter.
The Timberwolves welcomed new acquisitions Ayo Dosunmu and Julian Phillips on Friday but listed both players as inactive as they adapt to their new team. Minnesota acquired Dosunmu and Phillips from the Chicago Bulls on Thursday.
New Orleans played its first game since dealing Jose Alvarado to the New York Knicks on Thursday. The Pelicans acquired Dalen Terry but waived him before he ever suited up.
–Field Level Media
Bucks build big lead, then hang on to top Pacers
No. 22 St. John's knocks off No. 3 UConn for 9th straight win
