Sports
Alabama moves on without Charles Bediako, faces rival Ole Miss
Alabama head coach Nate Oats reacts during the first half of an NCAA Mens basketball game at Steven C. O’Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Sunday, February 1, 2026. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun] Two very motivated teams will take the floor on Wednesday when Alabama travels to Oxford, Miss. to take on Ole Miss in a Southeastern Conference match-up.
For the Crimson Tide (16-7, 6-4 SEC) and coach Nate Oaks, it’s about moving forward with the roster they started the season with and not the one that included big man Charles Bediako, who was shelved by Tuscaloosa Circuit Court Judge Daniel Pruet on Monday.
Pruet denied Bediako’s motion for a preliminary injunction to allow the former G League player to continue his season at Alabama. Bediako, who averaged 10.0 points and 4.6 rebounds per game in five outings with the Tide, was playing via a restraining order issued by judge James H. Roberts, after the NCAA denied his request to return to college basketball.
“Super disappointed,” Oats said on his Monday night radio show. He referenced many former professionals being eligible to play at the college level.
“I thought it was kind of a no-brainer with the NCAA. Then I didn’t think it would be that big of an issue.”
Bediako originally played two seasons at Alabama before declaring for the 2023 NBA Draft. He didn’t withdraw from the draft — a move that typically means a player has forfeited his remaining college eligibility — and went undrafted.
But the cupboard is hardly bare for the Tide, which have won five of seven. On Saturday, Alabama rallied to defeat Auburn, 96-92, led by Labaron Philon Jr.’s 25-point effort.
Philon averages 21.5 points per game to lead the SEC and rank 10th nationally entering play on Tuesday. He has hit 21 of his last 48 3-point attempts (43.8%).
“For our whole team, we’ve got to turn our focus back to the guys who are going to be on the floor,” Oats said. “We’ve got some very capable players (who) won some big games before Charles got here.”
For the Rebels (11-12, 3-7), the season has been a major letdown after a run to the Sweet 16 last year. They have dropped five straight, their longest losing streak since the 2022-23 season. But coach Chris Beard is confident the team turned a corner in their 79-68 loss at Texas on Saturday.
The Rebels rallied from an 18-point first half deficit to take a 68-65 lead with 3:35 remaining, but Texas finished the game on a 14-0 run.
Eduardo Klafke scored a career-high 16 points, his second consecutive game in double figures.
“We fought like we never fought before,” Klafke said. “We’re just trying to win this for Coach, but unfortunately, we ran out of time.”
Beard noted that the Rebels had just completed a weather-related four-game SEC road swing.
“We’re looking forward to getting back to the best college town in the country, Oxford, Miss.,” said Beard. “We’ve got a lot of basketball left. We’ve got some home games coming up and I still believe in this team, period.”
Ole Miss stunned then-No. 4 Alabama, 74-64, in Tuscaloosa last season, snapping a seven-game slide to the Tide. Malik Dia scored 23 points and added 19 rebounds for the Rebels.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Serena Williams, 44, eligible to play pro tennis events Feb. 22
Tennis legend Serena Williams, seen here waving to the crowd after losing the final match of her career to Ajla Tomljanovic 2022 U.S. Open tennis, has suffered two pulmonary embolisms — the first in 2011 and the second in 2017 after the birth of her first child. She was able to return to competition both times but has also said that she needs to be vigilant for the rest of her life when it comes to early detection of blood clots. Whether or not tennis great Serena Williams is considering a comeback, the 23-time Grand Slam champion is now eligible to return as soon as Feb. 22.
The International Tennis Integrity Agency included Williams, 44, on the updated list of reinstated players on Tuesday. That was the last step in a process that began at least as far back as Oct. 6 when her name appeared in the International Registered Testing Pool, a requirement for a return to competition.
Being in the pool and available for random, out-of-competition drug testing for at least six months is a requirement for players who want to return to tennis. Players in the pool are required to inform testers of their location for one hour each day.
“Omg yall I’m NOT coming back. This wildfire is crazy,” Williams posted on social media in December in response to a report of a possible comeback.
As recently as last month, Williams was noncommittal either way.
“I’m just having fun and enjoying my life right now,” she said on the “Today” show in January. “I’m just going to see what happens.”
Williams last played on the WTA Tour at the U.S. Open in 2022. In August of that year, she announced in a Vogue magazine article that she was “evolving away” from tennis.
“I have never liked the word retirement,” she wrote. “It doesn’t feel like a modern word to me. I’ve been thinking of this as a transition, but I want to be sensitive about how I use that word, which means something very specific and important to a community of people. Maybe the best word to describe what I’m up to is evolution.”
If Williams does return, she could seek to enter the ATX Open in Austin, Texas, a WTA 250 tournament from Feb. 23 to March 1. Williams’ older sister, Venus, is still active on tour and received a wild-card entry for both singles and doubles. She had not announced a doubles partner.
Ranked No. 1 for 319 weeks, Serena Williams won 73 singles titles on the WTA Tour and earned nearly $95 million in prize money. She won Wimbledon and the Australian Open seven times each, the U.S. Open six times and the French Open three times.
Williams, who also won 14 major doubles titles with Venus, is the only player to accomplish a career Golden Slam (all four majors) in both singles and doubles.
Williams and her husband, Alexis Ohanian, are raising two daughters.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Bennett Stirtz, Iowa target seventh straight win at Maryland
Iowa guard Bennett Stirtz (14) drives toward the basket against Northwestern guard Jayden Reid (4) and Northwestern forward Nick Martinelli (2) Feb. 8, 2026 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa. It’s not easy to find a signature win on Iowa’s resume. The Hawkeyes have yet to beat a ranked team in four tries.
But by virtue of being nearly flawless against the rest of its competition, Iowa (18-5, 8-4 Big Ten) has risen to No. 20 in the NET Rankings and, barring a late-season collapse, is on its way to gaining a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
The Hawkeyes face another unranked foe Wednesday in College Park, Md., when they put their six-game winning streak on the line against Maryland (9-14, 2-10).
Both teams are coming off wins Sunday in which they got clutch performances from their top threats.
In Maryland’s 67-62 victory at Minnesota, guard David Coit went on a personal 7-0 run in the final 26 seconds and finished with 29 points.
In Iowa’s 76-70 win over visiting Northwestern, guard Bennett Stirtz scored a career-high 36 points to rescue the Hawkeyes from an otherwise lethargic performance.
“We were kind of in a little lull, a little asleep,” Stirtz said. “And I knew that I needed to get going late in the first half.”
Iowa coach Ben McCollum said that it’s the Hawkeyes’ collective effort that allows Stirtz to thrive individually.
“The thing with really good players that people don’t realize is the players around him have to allow him to be great,” McCollum said. “A lot of teams have great players … but their teammates want some more shine out of it, so they won’t allow that player to be great.”
Maryland knows all about Stirtz. He scored 25 points on 10-of-17 shooting when the Hawkeyes rolled to an 83-64 victory on Dec. 6 in Iowa City.
Unlike Stirtz, Coit has been wildly inconsistent this season, often finding himself in the doghouse of first-year coach Buzz Williams.
Despite scoring binges of 43 and 41 points in wins over Penn State and Mount St. Mary’s, Coit has come off the bench in 10 of Maryland’s 23 games, including the win Sunday.
It was a much-need victory as the Terrapins had lost their previous four games by an average margin of 28 points.
“I thought the fight, the togetherness was as good as it’s been in a long, long time,” Williams said.
–Field Level Media
Sports
NFL draft order finalized after Seahawks' Super Bowl victory
Feb 6, 2026; San Francisco, CA, USA; The 2026 NFL Draft logo at the Super Bowl LX Experience at the Moscone Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images The order for the 2026 NFL Draft has been finalized, two days after the Seattle Seahawks won Super Bowl LX.
The Seahawks will pick 32nd and last in the first round of the draft due to their solid 29-13 victory over the New England Patriots in last Sunday’s big game.
New England has the No. 31 draft selection.
The first 18 selections were locked in prior to the postseason. The Las Vegas Raiders own the first pick and might have their eyes on Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Fernando Mendoza of Indiana.
The New York Jets, Arizona Cardinals, Tennessee Titans and New York Giants round out the top five.
The Kansas City Chiefs struggled with a 6-11 record but gain a draft pick (No. 9) earlier than usual.
Among playoff teams, the AFC runner-up Denver Broncos have the 30th pick. Denver lost to the Patriots. The Los Angeles Rams, who lost to Seattle in the NFC title game, are No. 29.
DRAFT ORDER
1. Las Vegas Raiders: 3-14 (.538 strength of schedule)
2. New York Jets: 3-14 (.552)
3. Arizona Cardinals: 3-14 (.571)
4. Tennessee Titans: 3-14 (.574)
5. New York Giants: 4-13 (.524)
6. Cleveland Browns: 5-12 (.486)
7. Washington Commanders: 5-12 (.507)
8. New Orleans Saints: 6-11 (.495)
9. Kansas City Chiefs: 6-11 (.514)
10. Cincinnati Bengals: 6-11 (.521)
11. Miami Dolphins: 7-10 (.488)
12. Dallas Cowboys: 7-9-1 (.438)
13. Los Angeles Rams, via Atlanta Falcons: 8-9 (.495)
14. Baltimore Ravens: 8-9 (.507)
15. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 8-9 (.529)
16. New York Jets, via Indianapolis Colts: 8-9 (.540)
17. Detroit Lions: 9-8 (.490)
18. Minnesota Vikings: 9-8 (.514)
19. Carolina Panthers: 8-9 (.522)
20. Dallas Cowboys, via Green Bay Packers: 9-7-1 (.483)
21. Pittsburgh Steelers: 10-7 (.503)
22. Los Angeles Chargers: 11-6 (.458)
23. Philadelphia Eagles: 11-6 (.476)
24. Cleveland Browns, via Jacksonville Jaguars: 13-4 (.478)
25. Chicago Bears: 11-6 (.458)
26. Buffalo Bills: 12-5 (.471)
27. San Francisco 49ers: 12-5 (.498)
28. Houston Texans: 12-5 (.522)
29. Los Angeles Rams: 12-5 (.526)
30. Denver Broncos: 14-3 (.422)
31. New England Patriots: 14-3 (.391)
32. Seattle Seahawks: 14-3 (.498)
–Field Level Media
Serena Williams, 44, eligible to play pro tennis events Feb. 22
Bennett Stirtz, Iowa target seventh straight win at Maryland
