Sports
Hawks continue push for guaranteed playoff spot vs. Nets
Mar 10, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker (7) shoots against the Dallas Mavericks in the fourth quarter at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images A month ago, the Atlanta Hawks looked destined to make their fifth straight trip to the Eastern Conference play-in tournament. While the team remains in the ninth spot of the conference standings, a seven-game winning streak has Atlanta searching for a top-six finish.
Enjoying a stretch that will see them play 10 of 11 games at home, the surging Hawks host the lowly Brooklyn Nets on Thursday night. With a 124-112 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday, Atlanta has posted its longest winning streak since a seven-game stretch in January 2022.
The Hawks trail the fifth-seeded Toronto Raptors and the No. 6 Miami Heat by 2 1/2 games apiece.
A win on Thursday would tie the franchise’s best mark since winning 19 in a row in the 2014-15 campaign (the Hawks also won eight straight in March 2021). For first-time All-Star Jalen Johnson, who leads the club with 23.0 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 7.9 assists per game, the idea is not to put pressure on continuing the stretch but to just find ways to win each game.
“I think the biggest thing is just taking it one game at a time,” Johnson said. “We’re not focused on a win streak. That’s not our end goal. Our end goal is to make a playoff push and the best way to focus on that is just taking things a game at a time. … Obviously we’re going to have some closer and tougher games. The more we stay together through it, I think it’ll be good.”
Six of the Hawks’ seven consecutive wins have come by double digits. Behind Johnson, Nickeil Alexander-Walker is pouring in a career-high 20.0 points per game and CJ McCollum is averaging 18.3 points in 25 games since being acquired from the Washington Wizards in a package that sent away roster mainstay Trae Young.
Helping catapult the team into the postseason conversation has been a lack of injuries since the All-Star break. The lone player on the shelf is Jonathan Kuminga, who averaged 21.3 ppg in his first three games with the Hawks after being traded from Golden State. Kuminga has missed the last three outings with a left knee injury and is questionable for Thursday’s game.
Brooklyn, meanwhile, is making a push only towards the NBA Draft lottery. The Nets have dropped 11 of their last 13 games and are on pace for their worst winning percentage (.262) since finishing 20-62 in the 2016-17 season.
The tanking Nets trailed by as many as 43 points in their 138-100 home loss to the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday. With 17 games remaining, Brooklyn will use the final month as a test run for future plans. Head coach Jordi Fernandez had 12 players log double-digit minutes in the most recent lopsided defeat.
“Everybody played a good amount and that’s going to keep happening,” Fernandez said. “Because we have to make sure we know what we’ve got. All these guys that are here, we brought them for a reason. … These games are meaningful because you have to play to get better and compete.”
Veteran Michael Porter Jr. leads the Nets with 24.2 points per game followed by Noah Clowney’s 12.8 and Nic Claxton’s 12.1.
–Field Level Media
Sports
No. 19 North Carolina, Clemson battle again in ACC quarterfinals
Mar 3, 2026; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; Clemson Tigers guard Efrem Johnson (4) shoots against North Carolina Tar Heels center Henri Veesaar (13) during the first half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Kinser-Imagn Images No. 19-ranked North Carolina and Clemson just played an airtight game that went down to the wire last week in Chapel Hill, N.C.
The fourth-seeded Tar Heels (24-7) and fifth-seeded Tigers (23-9) won’t have to dig far to pull out that game film as they prepare for a rapid rematch Thursday night in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament quarterfinals in Charlotte.
North Carolina’s 67-63 win over Clemson on March 3 wound up as the tiebreaker that determined the fourth and final double-bye into the quarters, as both teams finished 12-6 in the league. Clemson had to play Wednesday night and outlasted No. 13 seed Wake Forest 71-62.
“It was a heck of a game the first time,” Clemson coach Brad Brownell said. “Give North Carolina credit: They found ways to make plays down the stretch, made some big threes against us. But it was a heck of a matchup. Our guys competed our tails off. They did, as well. It was a great college game. Hopefully, (Thursday) is the same.”
North Carolina lost superstar freshman Caleb Wilson for the season last week. Wilson, who hasn’t played since Feb. 10, broke his right thumb while dunking as he worked to recover from a fractured left hand.
That means Clemson is familiar with how the Tar Heels look without their best player — and knows what else their rivals can do.
Luka Bogavac had the best game of his first season of college basketball when he hit six 3-pointers and dropped 20 points on Clemson. He and veteran Seth Trimble (14.0 points per game) lead the backcourt, while 7-footer Henri Veesaar (16.3 ppg, 8.4 rpg) has 13 double-doubles and seven 20-point games.
North Carolina coach Hubert Davis hopes to guide his alma mater to more postseason success four years removed from the Final Four run on his first year on the job. He knows what he wants to see in tournament play.
“We want to live in the paint and live at the free-throw line. Those plays generate open threes,” Davis said after the regular season ended with a 76-61 loss to top-ranked Duke on Saturday. “The foundation of who we are hasn’t changed whether Caleb is in the lineup or not. That’s the way we play here at North Carolina, and we’ve got to dictate that next week in Charlotte.”
Clemson’s balanced attack against Wake Forest on Wednesday was a perfect illustration of the Tigers’ season-long identity. They don’t have anyone scoring more than RJ Godfrey’s average of 11.7 points per game, but eight active players entered the week averaging at least 5.7.
Brownell utilized a “hockey sub” during Wednesday’s game — making five subs at a time to keep players fresh. Godfrey tallied 11 against Wake, Chase Thompson scored nine points, and four other players reached eight apiece. The Tigers’ bench racked up 34 points and is top-30 nationally at 30.0 bench points per game.
“Personally, it’s just how can I affect the game, winning plays, use my IQ to my advantage,” said Thompson, a freshman forward. “It brings five fresh guys going against guys that have been in the game four or five minutes. That’s an advantage, as well.”
Brownell said Carter Welling, the Tigers’ second-leading scorer at 10.2 ppg, was being evaluated after suffering an unspecified injury in the first half.
“I find it unlikely that he would play (Thursday),” Brownell said.
Clemson allows opponents to shoot a mere 32.3% from 3-point range, but in its four-game losing streak from Feb. 11-21, opponents hit double-digit 3-pointers in every game at a combined 42.7% clip. Bogavac (51 made 3-pointers) and Derek Dixon (43) are the Tar Heels’ top perimeter threats.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Mark DeRosa Needs To Take More Accountability for Team USA
Mar 18, 2023; Miami, Florida, USA; USA manager Mark DeRosa (4) returns to the dugout after a pitching change during the fifth inning against Venezuela at LoanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images Team USA was dealt a massive upset loss to Italy in the World Baseball Classic, falling 8-6. The US battled back, with Gunner Henderson and Aaron Judge having at-bats in the bottom of the 9th to tie the game, but ultimately fell short in what will be one of the greatest upsets in WBC history.
The US was -1100 entering the matchup, and it seemed like a night to give a few guys some rest. Well, that would have been the case if Team USA hadn’t needed a win to move on to the quarterfinals. Manager Mark DeRosa completely mismanaged the team, benching multiple key starters to get Paul Goldschmidt and Ernie Clement some ABs.
Somehow, nobody had told DeRosa that the US could be eliminated with a loss, and now they have to wait for the results of Mexico and Italy to learn their fates. Mistakes happen; at this level, they shouldn’t, but they do. However, the biggest issue in this entire debacle is that DeRosa was never looking to take any accountability for this disaster.
DeRosa was on MLB Network’s ‘Hot Stove’ the morning before the Italy matchup, and he openly said he was resting guys because they had their ticket punched to the quarterfinals. That mistake alone should get you fired, but he didn’t say that by accident; he had no idea that they could be eliminated with a loss!
DeRosa had Clayton Kershaw warming up in the 8th inning, then mysteriously sat him back down to get Mason Miller into the game for the top of the 9th. Somebody must’ve told him that this game was still a must-win, and he wasn’t going to waste some innings with a mostly retired Kershaw.
In the post-game, he has to take way more accountability in that situation. He messed up; he didn’t just bungle his words. DeRosa needed to step on the stand after that game and, honestly, say he didn’t know the rules of the pool calculations, and that mistake was on him.
I’m not sure how anyone can take DeRosa seriously at this point. Anytime he’s criticizing a managerial decision on MLB TV, you’ll only be thinking about how he made one of the dumbest managerial moves you’ve ever seen in the sport. Also, if he was ever thinking of actually managing an MLB team, you can kiss that goodbye.
Honestly, it’s somewhat insane that the US Baseball Federation hasn’t fired him yet. This still shouldn’t all be on DeRosa. Even if you were playing with your C team, you shouldn’t be having any issues getting past Italy. Well, when you look at Italy’s roster, it’s essentially the USA’s C team, since it’s full of guys who aren’t even dual citizens.
Well, it’s a waiting game now to see if Team USA advances. If Italy wins, Team USA advances, or if Mexico wins and scores five or more runs, the Americans also still advance. No matter what happens, I don’t think we will be seeing DeRosa in the dugouts past this WBC.
Sports
Darryn Peterson, Kansas gear up for sizzling TCU in Big 12 tourney
Kansas Jayhawks guard Darryn Peterson (22) shoots the ball against Kansas State Wildcats guard David Castillo (10) during the Sunflower Showdown game in Lawrence, Kansas, on Saturday, March 7, 2026. No. 14 Kansas is rested and ready to use this week’s Big 12 tournament as a tune-up of sorts for the NCAA Tournament.
That won’t be easy when the third-seeded Jayhawks face perhaps the hottest team in the conference, No. 6 seed TCU, in the nightcap of the Big 12 quarterfinals on Thursday in Kansas City, Mo.
Kansas (22-9) ended the regular season with a 104-85 win over rival Kansas State on Saturday to snap a two-game losing streak. Still, the Jayhawks lost four of their final seven games after going over a month between losses with eight straight wins from Jan. 13 to Feb. 9.
TCU (22-10) won its sixth straight game — tied with top-seeded Arizona for the longest active Big 12 streak — in its tournament opener Wednesday with a 95-88 victory over Oklahoma State.
Both teams will be in the NCAA Tournament regardless of how this rematch plays out. However, Kansas is projected much higher (4 seed in ESPN’s latest update) than TCU (projected 9 seed) despite similar records.
The Jayhawks have high-level wins, including against then-No. 1 Arizona, then-No. 2 Iowa State and No. 5 Houston.
They’re also getting their most consistent availability of the season from star freshman guard Darryn Peterson.
Peterson, who averages a team-high 19.9 points per game, missed 11 regular-season games with a host of issues, including quad, hamstring and ankle injuries. He was spotted checking himself out of games and drew outside questions about if he was looking ahead to the NBA as a projected top-three pick in this year’s draft.
But he’s turned a corner health-wise, playing in each of Kansas’ final seven regular-season games. And he closed out with one of his best games, hitting 10 of 15 shots for 27 points — his most since Jan. 6 — in the Kansas State win.
“I’m feeling good,” Peterson said. “It’s perfect timing, if you ask me, going into the Big 12 tournament and NCAA. I’m feeling probably the best I’ve felt all year.”
“That’s the best he’s moved all year long, without a question,” Kansas coach Bill Self added.
The Horned Frogs, who were firmly on the bubble before ending the regular season with five straight wins, had to work for their win over Oklahoma State. They trailed by 10 with 13:48 left and by five with 6:32 left before ending the game on a 22-10 run.
A career-high 26 points from leading scorer David Punch (14.0 ppg) anchored TCU’s comeback bid. Punch made 9 of 14 shots, and was supplemented by Xavier Edmonds’ sixth double-double in the last eight games with 14 points and 11 rebounds.
The Horned Frogs, who rank 12th in the Big 12 in shooting percentage, shot 50.7% in the win. It’s just the third time they’ve made at least half their field-goal attempts against a conference opponent and the first time since Jan. 24 vs. Baylor.
TCU and Kansas met in early January in the second conference game for each team. The Jayhawks prevailed 104-100 in overtime over the visiting Horned Frogs behind a career-high 32 points from Peterson.
“We played hard, but we’re a lot better team than we were then,” TCU coach Jamie Dixon said of the prior matchup. “I think that was a good — I wouldn’t say a good experience but a learning experience.”
–Field Level Media
Stay prepared for anything with the Growatt Helios power station — now $400 off at Amazon
No. 19 North Carolina, Clemson battle again in ACC quarterfinals
