Sports
Magic set sights on another convincing win vs. Jazz
Feb 5, 2026; Orlando, Florida, USA; Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero (5) passes against Brooklyn Nets center Day’ron Sharpe (20) during the second half at Kia Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike Watters-Imagn Images The Orlando Magic took a step forward in their first of four consecutive home games against opponents with losing records.
After cruising to a wire-to-wire win Thursday, Orlando will look to author another dominating performance against a sub-.500 team Saturday when the struggling Utah Jazz pay a visit.
Desmond Bane scored 23 points, Paolo Banchero had 22 and Jalen Suggs recorded his first career triple-double in the Magic’s convincing 118-98 victory over the Brooklyn Nets. Suggs finished with 15 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists to go along with a career-high four blocks and three steals.
“To be honest, I don’t even get into individual accomplishments and stuff like that,” Suggs said, per the Orlando Sentinel.
Said Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley of Suggs: “He was great tonight. His energy, his poise, his focus on the defensive end … It was beautiful basketball.”
So beautiful, in fact, that Suggs played a significant role in Orlando amassing a comfortable 23-point lead in the third quarter. The team put it on cruise control from there and snapped its minor two-game losing streak.
“I thought they did a great job of starting the game off holding them to 19 points in the first quarter, knowing that we set the tone with our defense and that’s what these guys did,” Mosley said. “There was a seriousness to them, a level of focus knowing what we needed to do because we’ve been with this team before and we’ve had big leads and we’ve given them away.”
The Magic, who will also host the underachieving Milwaukee Bucks on both Monday and Wednesday, shot 53.7% from the floor and enjoyed a 64-40 edge in points in the paint.
Bane capped a 32-point performance by making a layup with 0.9 seconds remaining in overtime to lift Orlando to a 128-127 victory the last time the Magic played Utah on Dec. 20.
Banchero collected 23 points, nine rebounds and nine assists in that game, and Anthony Black added 20, six and five, respectively.
Keyonte George, who recorded 27 points in that game for the Jazz, sat out his third consecutive contest Thursday with a left ankle sprain. He’s listed as questionable for the Orlando game.
Utah also played without recent trade acquisition Jaren Jackson Jr., who has yet to arrive from the Memphis Grizzlies.
The end result for the undermanned Jazz was their 17th loss in 21 games, courtesy of a 121-119 decision to the Atlanta Hawks.
Isaiah Collier followed up his 17-point, career-best 22-assist performance in Tuesday’s 131-122 win over the Indiana Pacers with a career-high 25 points and 11 assists versus the Hawks. He logged 48 minutes in both games.
“I’ve talked a lot about him playing off two feet, I think it’s allowed his decision making to be a lot cleaner,” Will Hardy said of Collier, per the Salt Lake Tribune. “Getting all the way to the rim in the half court in the NBA is hard to do. His decision-making has really improved since he started playing off two feet in the paint more. I also think that his general understanding of our team, our offense, where his moments are to be aggressive has improved as well.”
Hardy said he’s hopeful Jackson and the other players acquired in the deal will make their team debuts in Saturday’s game.
–Field Level Media
Sports
No. 1 Arizona chases another program record against Oklahoma State
Jan 31, 2026; Tempe, Arizona, USA; Arizona Wildcats guard Brayden Burries (5) against the Arizona State Sun Devils at Desert Financial Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images Top-ranked Arizona will not have played in a week when the Wildcats host Oklahoma State on Saturday at Tucson, Ariz.
It will be the first game since the unbeaten Wildcats (22-0, 9-0 Big 12) achieved the best start in program history with an 87-74 win at Arizona State.
They will attempt to break the school record of 22 straight victories, achieved from 1914 to 1917.
“I’m looking forward to having a little break in our schedule, but I’m also cognizant that we got to keep getting better,” Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd said. “We got to make sure we stay sharp and have great rhythm.
“We got a tough couple games coming up. You got Oklahoma State coming, and then turn around and you got to play at Kansas (on Monday). Not easy.”
The Cowboys (16-6, 4-5) are coming off a 99-92 win over No. 16 BYU at Stillwater, Okla., behind a season-high 30 points from Anthony Roy.
The victory was the first of the season against a Quad-1 opponent for Oklahoma State, which some NCAA tournament prognosticators label as a team on the bubble.
Upsetting BYU prompted fans to storm the court.
“It was a heck of a night,” second-year coach Steve Lutz told reporters. “Obviously, we were able to get our first Quad-1 win against a team that I think can play for a national title. I’m proud of the guys. I think they did a fantastic job.
“They’ve done a much better job over the last couple weeks of being a good basketball team rather than a good group of individuals, and that’s paying dividends for us right now.”
After losing four of five games, including two defeats against Iowa State, Oklahoma State has won the last two games at Utah and against BYU.
Roy, a senior guard playing for his fourth program, leads the Cowboys with 18.2 points per game.
Formerly of San Francisco, New Mexico State and Green Bay, Roy is shooting 46.5% from the field and 44.8% from 3-point range.
Rebounding will be a concern for Oklahoma State, which has only one player averaging more than five per game — 6-foot-10 center Parsa Fallah (6.3).
Arizona deploys 6-8 power forward Tobe Awaka (9.8 rebounds a game), 7-2 post player Motiejus Krivas (8.3) and 6-8 forward Koa Peat (5.6).
The Wildcats are third nationally in rebounding margin at plus-13.1. Oklahoma State is No. 141 at plus-2.5.
Arizona counters Oklahoma State’s productive perimeter game that includes Roy and point guard Kanye Clary (5.0 assists and 2.1 turnovers a game) with Brayden Burries and Jaden Bradley.
Burries leads Arizona with 15.3 points per game. Bradley averages 4.5 assists to go with only 1.7 turnovers.
The Wildcats’ steady backcourt play is a significant reason Arizona has yet to lose.
“We value steadiness,” Lloyd said. “A lot of people talk about momentum, momentum, momentum. I understand what momentum is, but I think there’s way more value in being steady and consistent.
“From there, you’re going to get opportunities to create momentum. If you’re just worried about panic and having momentum, you really don’t have any substance to what you’re doing. We talk about just staying steady, steady, steady.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
No. 19 Saint Louis faces La Salle ready to absorb more blows
Feb 3, 2026; Davidson, North Carolina, USA; Saint Louis Billikens forward Ishan Sharma (9) handles the ball defended by Davidson Wildcats guard Parker Friedrichsen (5) during the second half at McKillop Court at John M. Belk Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images No. 19 Saint Louis will be in search of a bit more edge as it tries to continue its Atlantic 10 Conference dominance at home against La Salle on Saturday.
Saint Louis (22-1, 10-0 Atlantic 10) will face struggling La Salle (7-16, 3-7) after it dodged defeat at Davidson on Tuesday night. The Billikens rallied from 13 points down in the first half to earn a 91-82 victory.
“We’ve certainly taken punches, and we know we’re going to take more,” Billikens head coach Josh Schertz said. “You can’t have a glass jaw and be a championship team. You know you’re going to get stood up, you’re going to get knocked down, but you build the muscle of getting back up. We’re building a muscle of resilience.”
The Billikens enjoyed a NET ranking of 15 this week. While any regular-season loss may diminish that ranking and cost them a place in the Associated Press Top 25, their real chance at making the NCAA Tournament will likely come in the conference tournament.
The Atlantic 10 sent just one team to the NCAA Tournament in each of the past two seasons, although that doesn’t lessen the importance of the regular season.
Schertz runs a nine-player rotation with six averaging double-figure points. The Billikens have multiple long-range shooters, giving the team plenty of scoring threats while creating a defensive nightmare.
Ishan Sharma poured in 29 points in a 35-point victory at St. Bonaventure two weeks ago. Trey Green scored 23 in victories over George Washington and Dayton at home last week. It was Brady Dunlap’s turn at Davidson, where he scored 22.
“It’s incredible,” Schertz said. “They really pull for each other. They want to be great themselves, but they’re not so small that their success would take the shine away from the other one. That doesn’t threaten them.
“When Ish did what he did against Dayton (18 points) and Brady wasn’t great (no shot attempts), Brady was incredibly happy. He was frustrated in his own situation, but he was incredibly happy for Ish.”
La Salle has struggled with injuries this season as 11 players have combined to miss 98 games. Forwards Jerome Brewer Jr. and Josiah Harris did not play at Loyola on Tuesday during a 71-61 loss.
Stepping up in their absence, Explorers guard Jaden Johnson played 37 minutes against the Ramblers and produced season highs with 16 points and eight assists.
Brewer and Harris combined for 34 points when La Salle lost to Saint Louis 84-72 at home on Jan. 10. The Billikens shot 10-of-23 (43%) from 3-point range.
La Salle coach Darris Nichols was frustrated with his team’s 3-point defense during the Explorers’ subsequent 67-58 loss to Saint Joseph’s at home on Jan. 31.
“The whole game plan was not to let them get 3s off,” Norris said. “They got 32 off. They made 10-for-20 at halftime. We didn’t execute the game plan.”
The Explorers allowed Loyola to launch 30 shots from 3-point range Tuesday and 10 were successful.
Defending the perimeter will be vital against the Billikens, who are shooting 40.7% from beyond the arc. That ranked fourth in Division I through Thursday’s games.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Reports: Kliff Kingsbury to join Rams' coaching staff
Jan 4, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Washington Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury on the sidelines against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images The Los Angeles Rams are adding former Washington Commanders offensive coordinator and Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury to join coach Sean McVay’s staff next season, multiple outlets reported Friday. Kingsbury’s role is currently undetermined.
After Rams former offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur left to take the Cardinals head coaching gig, there was room on McVay’s staff. Kingsbury rejoins the NFC West after serving as a Washington assistant the last two seasons.
Kingsbury, 46, and the Commanders mutually agreed to part ways after the 2025 season.
Kingsbury had a 28-37-1 record as coach of the Cardinals from 2019-22 and lost the only playoff game he appeared in. He served as a senior offensive analyst at USC for one season in between his time in Arizona and Washington.
In 2024, Kingsbury helped lead the Commanders to the NFC Championship game with rookie QB Jayden Daniels. Washington ranked seventh in total offense, fifth in scoring offense and third in rushing offense. That took a dip this past season, finishing 22nd in both scoring and total offense.
The Rams will welcome the addition of another offensive guru to the staff that already features McVay and pass game coordinator Nate Scheelhaase, who received multiple offensive coordinator interviews this past cycle.
The Rams will go into next season with current NFL MVP Matthew Stafford at QB after he confirmed Thursday night while receiving his award that he would be back next season. They’ll also have the dynamic wide receiver duo of Puka Nacua and Davante Adams.
Kingsbury also went 35-40 in six seasons (2013-18) as coach of the Texas Tech. His rosters included star quarterback Patrick Mahomes from 2014-16.
–Field Level Media
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