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Shane van Gisbergen charges to victory in NASCAR O'Reilly Series race at COTA

NASCAR OReilly Auto Parts: Focused Health 250Feb 28, 2026; Austin, Texas, USA; O’Reilly NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series driver Shane Van Gisbergen (9) with the trophy after winning the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Focused Health 250 at Circuit of the Americas. Mandatory Credit: Michael C. Johnson-Imagn Images

AUSTIN, Texas — With a bold, brilliant move moments after the final restart of Saturday’s Focused Health 250 at Circuit of the Americas, Shane van Gisbergen once again exhibited his road course supremacy.

Taking the inside line into Turn 1 after the restart with five laps left, van Gisbergen made a four-wide pass for the lead from the sixth position and pulled away to win the fifth NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts race of his career, this time by 0.780 seconds over runner-up Austin Hill.

In a rough-and-tumble event with more than its share of contact, van Gisbergen led five times for 31 laps, including the last five after the decisive move, as then-leader and Stage 2 winner Sam Mayer ran wide in the first corner, clearing the inside lane for the winning pass.

“I was a bit unsure there, starting sixth on the outside,” van Gisbergen said. “I kind of got to the inside, which was good, and nosed in on the 41 (Mayer), and he reacted. When he reacted, I thought no way he’s stopping that, and he kind of pushed everyone wide, which was awesome, and it worked out for us.”

The win was SVG’s first at COTA in his second O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race at the track. He is winless in two NASCAR Cup Series starts at the Texas road course.

“I’ve always been fast here but never managed to win,” van Gisbergen said. “So I’m pretty stoked to finally get it done–pretty flawless day.”

Van Gisbergen’s victory was the 10th straight on road courses for JR Motorsports and the 106th for the organization overall.

Austin Hill’s runner-up finish was his third in five starts at the 2.4-mile track.

“I made a lot of mistakes out there today, but that’s going to happen on these road courses,” said Hill, the series points leader through three races. “Stage 2, I was struggling a little bit, just trying to figure out what I needed to be better.”

In a race billed as a matchup between van Gisbergen and pole winner Connor Zilisch, Sammy Smith finished third, followed by Jesse Love and Corey Day, as Zilisch suffered a litany of issues that dropped him to 21st at the end.

After Zilisch led 12 laps during the first stage, the left-rear brake rotor on his No. 1 Chevrolet sheared, and the 19-year-old prodigy quickly dropped through the field. After stopping for repairs to the rear brakes, Zilisch started the final stage in 29th but just as rapidly worked his way forward.

With fewer than three laps left, he had just cleared Day’s No. 17 Chevrolet for fourth, when contact from Day’s car sent Zilisch spinning and damaged his Camaro.

Seventeen-year-old Brent Crews finished sixth in his series debut after taking the lead on the Stage 2 restart. Crews is the first driver under 18 to lead laps in the series since Casey Atwood accomplished the feat in 1998.

William Sawalich, Justin Allgaier, Ross Chastain and Brennan Poole completed the top 10.

NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Race — Focused Health 250

Circuit of The Americas

Austin, Texas

Saturday, February 28, 2026

1. (2) Shane van Gisbergen(i), Chevrolet, 65.

2. (3) Austin Hill, Chevrolet, 65.

3. (10) Sammy Smith, Chevrolet, 65.

4. (11) Jesse Love, Chevrolet, 65.

5. (12) Corey Day, Chevrolet, 65.

6. (7) Brent Crews, Toyota, 65.

7. (15) William Sawalich, Toyota, 65.

8. (5) Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet, 65.

9. (21) Ross Chastain(i), Chevrolet, 65.

10. (26) Brennan Poole, Chevrolet, 65.

11. (9) Sheldon Creed, Chevrolet, 65.

12. (14) Taylor Gray, Toyota, 65.

13. (28) Alex Labbe, Chevrolet, 65.

14. (8) Sam Mayer, Chevrolet, 65.

15. (4) Brandon Jones, Toyota, 65.

16. (18) Ryan Sieg, Chevrolet, 65.

17. (24) Blaine Perkins, Chevrolet, 65.

18. (34) Jeb Burton, Chevrolet, 65.

19. (6) Carson Kvapil, Chevrolet, 65.

20. (32) Patrick Staropoli, Chevrolet, 65.

21. (1) Connor Zilisch(i), Chevrolet, 65.

22. (31) Lavar Scott #, Chevrolet, 65.

23. (16) Anthony Alfredo, Chevrolet, 65.

24. (35) Kyle Sieg, Chevrolet, 65.

25. (20) Nick Sanchez, Ford, 65.

26. (27) Dean Thompson, Toyota, 65.

27. (17) Preston Pardus, Chevrolet, 65.

28. (36) J.J. Yeley, Chevrolet, 65.

29. (23) Harrison Burton, Toyota, 65.

30. (29) Parker Retzlaff, Chevrolet, 65.

31. (19) Rajah Caruth, Chevrolet, 65.

32. (30) Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, 65.

33. (13) Austin Green, Chevrolet, 65.

34. (33) Ryan Ellis, Chevrolet, 64.

35. (22) Sage Karam, Toyota, Suspension, 53.

36. (25) Josh Bilicki, Chevrolet, Suspension, 35.

37. (37) Baltazar Leguizamon, Chevrolet, Accident, 33.

38. (38) Austin J Hill, Chevrolet, Suspension, 7.

Average Speed of Race Winner: 70.411 mph.

Time of Race: 2 Hrs, 12 Mins, 56 Secs. Margin of Victory: .780 Seconds.

Caution Flags: 4 for 12 laps.

Lead Changes: 16 among 8 drivers.

Lap Leaders: S. Gisbergen(i) 1-5;C. Zilisch(i) 6-17;A. Hill 18-21;S. Mayer 22;S. Gisbergen(i) 23;C. Zilisch(i) 24;B. Crews 25-28;S. Gisbergen(i) 29-35;S. Mayer 36;C. Kvapil 37-38;S. Mayer 39-44;S. Gisbergen(i) 45-57;B. Crews 58;N. Sanchez 59;J. Allgaier 60;S. Gisbergen(i) 61-65.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): Shane Van Gisbergen(i) 5 times for 31 laps; Connor Zilisch(i) 2 times for 13 laps; Sam Mayer 3 times for 8 laps; Brent Crews 2 times for 5 laps; Austin Hill 1 time for 4 laps; Carson Kvapil 1 time for 2 laps; Justin Allgaier 1 time for 1 lap; Nick Sanchez 1 time for 1 lap.

Stage #1 Top Ten: 21,41,7,20,2,91,17,87,88,9

Stage #2 Top Ten: 41,7,91,2,9,21,8,20,32,39

–By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service. Special to Field Level Media.

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Cincinnati cruises past Oklahoma State with 3-point barrage

Syndication: The EnquirerCincinnati Bearcats forward Baba Miller (18) makes a basket from the two point line in the first half of a NCAA men’s basketball game between the Cincinnati Bearcats and Oklahoma State Cowboys, Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026, at Fifth Third Arena in Cincinnati.

Day Day Thomas heated up from long range, draining seven 3-pointers en route to a 26-point performance, Moustapha Thiam added 24 points and grabbed 15 rebounds and host Cincinnati rolled to a 91-68 home victory over Oklahoma State on Saturday afternoon.

The Bearcats (16-13, 8-8 Big 12), which entered No. 54 in the NET rankings, have won five of their last six. Jizzle James and Baba Miller each finished with 11 points for Cincinnati.

Oklahoma State (17-12, 5-11), playing its first game since losing big man Parsa Fallah to a torn ACL, was overwhelmed throughout. Vyctorius Miller led the team with 15 points, while Jaylen Curry and Kanye Clary both added 11 points. The Cowboys have lost six of their last seven games.

The Bearcats seized control early, going on an 11-2 run highlighted by 3-pointers from Thomas and Thiam to lead 12-4 less than four minutes into the game.

Those early minutes foreshadowed the rest of the game.

Cincinnati dominated from the start, leading 51-33 at halftime. The Bearcats shot 53.1% from the floor, made seven three-pointers and won the rebounding battle 20-15 in the first half. They finished with a two-handed dunk by Thiam. Miller was credited with an assist on the play as he found Thiam open underneath.

In the second half, the Bearcats pulled away. They went on an 11-2 run, capped by a 3-pointer from Thomas to lead 65-37 with just under 15 minutes remaining. Cincinnati continued to extend the lead, reaching as many as 32 points, with an 81-49 advantage after another 3 from Thomas at the 8:22 mark.

Cincinnati finished with 14 made 3s, dished out 24 assists, and had a 24-7 edge in second-chance points. The Bearcats also led for 39:24 of the 40 minutes and improved to 14-3 at home.

Both teams return to action on Tuesday. Cincinnati hosts No. 19 BYU, while Oklahoma State travels to UCF.

–Field Level Media

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Bobby Durkin has career night as Minnesota tops UCLA

NCAA Basketball: Minnesota at MichiganFeb 24, 2026; Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers forward Bobby Durkin (3) dribbles against Michigan Wolverines guard Elliot Cadeau (3) in the second half at Crisler Center. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

Bobby Durkin scored a season-high 23 points with seven made 3-pointers and Langston Reynolds added 21 points with six assists as Minnesota claimed another victim at home with a 78-73 victory over UCLA at Minneapolis.

Cade Tyson also scored 21 points for the Golden Gophers (14-15, 7-11 Big Ten), who shot 62.3% from the floor and 52.2% from 3-point range. Durkin, who reached 1,000 points for his college career in the first half, went 7 of 11 from long range.

Minnesota improved to 12-4 at home this season with victories in its own building over a trio of ranked teams in Indiana, Iowa and Michigan State.

Tyler Bilodeau scored 32 points with eight rebounds and Eric Dailey Jr. added 18 points for the Bruins (19-10, 11-7), who failed to build off huge victories over No. 10 Illinois and rival Southern California over the past week.

Skyy Clark scored 17 points, while Donovan Dent had 15 assists but just three points, as UCLA now prepares for a key home game upcoming against No. 12 Nebraska.

With the game tied 61-61 with 7:59 remaining, Cade scored four points in a 6-0 run for Minnesota to give the Gophers a 67-61 lead with 6:15 left. The Bruins got within 76-73 on a three-point play from Bilodeau with 1:50 remaining.

The Bruins then missed four consecutive 3-pointers over the final 1:08, including two by Bilodeau, as the Gophers held on for the victory.

In a first half of swings, Minnesota led by as many as nine points early before UCLA went on a 17-3 run to lead by as many as seven points before taking a 41-40 lead into the break. Bilodeau had 16 points in the first half, while Dent had nine assists for UCLA.

Durkin scored 15 points in the first half for Minnesota and reached 1,000 points on one of his five 3-pointers before halftime. UCLA’s Clark reached 1,000 career points on a basket in the second half.

–Field Level Media

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On his bobblehead day, Nick Martinelli lifts Northwestern over Oregon

NCAA Basketball: Oregon at NorthwesternFeb 28, 2026; Evanston, Illinois, USA; Northwestern Wildcats guard Angelo Ciaravino (44) blocks the shot of Oregon Ducks forward Kwame Evans Jr. (10) during the first half at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images

Nick Martinelli produced the game-winning runner with one second remaining as part of his game-high 22 points to lift Northwestern to a 63-62 Big Ten win over Oregon on Saturday afternoon in Evanston, Ill.

On a day Northwestern handed out bobbleheads bearing his likeness, Martinelli added 11 rebounds, a career-high seven assists and career-high-tying three steals to lead the Wildcats (13-16, 5-13) to their third win in a row. Jayden Reid added 11 points.

Nate Bittle paced Oregon (11-18, 4-14) with 19 points and nine rebounds. Kwame Evans Jr. piled up 15 points and 15 rebounds while Takai Simpkins posted 11 points.

The Ducks led 36-29 at halftime and by 12 two minutes into the second half before Northwestern scored 17 of the ensuing 19 points to leap to a 48-45 lead with 12 minutes left.

Over the final seven minutes, the teams swapped the lead six times in their battle to move into 14th place in the Big Ten.

Oregon regained the front on a 3-point play by Bittle at the 4:37 mark, but the Wildcats tied it at 59 on Martinelli’s second-chance layup with 4:10 to play.

After empty possessions by both teams, Northwestern went up on Jayden Reid’s turnaround jumper with 2:24 remaining. The Ducks regained the lead when Wei Lin hit a 3-pointer with 50 seconds to play.

Martinelli missed a go-ahead jumper with 18 seconds left, but Northwestern’s Tre Singleton grabbed the rebound and the Wildcats called a timeout to set up a play. Martinelli got hemmed in 12 feet from the hoop, but he spun free for a left-handed runner that hung on the back of the rim for a few beats before falling through.

Oregon launched a 40-footer at the buzzer that did not fall.

Neither team could create separation early on. Northwestern built a 24-18 advantage on two Martinelli free throws with 8:04 to play until halftime, but the Ducks owned the rest of the half. They used a 10-2 run, capped by Bittle’s 3-point play, to take a 28-26 edge.

Bittle’s 12 points led all scorers before halftime while Martinelli paced the Wildcats with eight.

–Field Level Media

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