Sports
Healthy Braylon Mullins, No. 3 UConn go for 18th straight in Xavier visit
Jan 31, 2026; Omaha, Nebraska, USA; Connecticut Huskies guard Braylon Mullins (24) shoots a three point shot against Creighton Bluejays forward Jasen Green (0) during the first half at CHI Health Center Omaha. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-Imagn Images Braylon Mullins didn’t look the worse for wear in his return from concussion protocol, scoring 16 points to pace No. 3 UConn to yet another victory.
Mullins will look to fuel the high-octane Huskies (21-1, 11-0 Big East) to their 18th straight victory on Tuesday night when they face Xavier (12-10, 4-7) in Hartford, Conn.
After sitting out UConn’s victory over Providence on Jan. 27, Mullins returned with a flourish in Saturday’s 85-58 romp over host Creighton. The freshman sank a 3-pointer on his first shot, made three more of his attempts from beyond the arc and finished with a team-high 16 points.
“Getting back into practice Friday felt good, felt 100%. Transitioned that into (Saturday),” Mullins said. “Thought I was going to be a little under the wind, trying to get my wind back, but no, we came to play.”
Alex Karaban and Silas Demary Jr. each collected 15 points and six rebounds for the Huskies, who shot 54.1% from the floor and held a decisive 37-24 advantage on the glass. UConn also made 16 of 31 attempts from beyond the arc (51.6%).
“We’ve been looking for a performance like this for a while here, where we were able to get some separation and play a full 40-minute game,” UConn head coach Dan Hurley said. “Thrilled to get out of here with how well we played.”
And with that, the bar has been raised.
“Now, to finally be able to do that is awesome,” Karaban said. “Now we know what the standard and expectation of our team is and now (we have) to do it consistently on a nightly basis. That’s what we’re going to aim for.”
The Huskies feature five players scoring in double figures, led by Solo Ball (14.6 points per game). Tarris Reed Jr. (14.1 ppg, 7.8 rebounds per game) and Karaban (13.5 ppg, 5.6 rpg) also provide a presence on the glass as well.
Mullins made five 3-pointers to highlight his 17-point performance in UConn’s 90-67 victory over host Xavier on New Year’s Eve. Karaban collected 19 points and seven rebounds while Ball added 17 points in that game for the Huskies.
That setback began a string of six losses in eight games for Xavier before it overcame an 18-point deficit in the second half to claim a 68-66 victory over visiting DePaul on Saturday.
Big East scoring leader Tre Carroll (18.3 points per game) poured in 21 points, and Filip Borovicanin sank a fadeaway jumper at the buzzer to cap a 16-point performance for the Musketeers.
“I don’t even know what to say, to be honest,” Borovicanin said. “I appreciate my guys for trusting me to take the shot at the end of the game.”
Xavier overcame being outscored 34-20 in points in the paint and being outrebounded 31-29. That said, head coach Richard Pitino wasn’t interested in making excuses for the win.
“It’s almost February. You have to win games like that in this league,” Pitino said. “There weren’t a lot of things going for us this afternoon. To be able to block all of that out and lock in was great.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Charlotte FC set team record for goals, blow out Red Bulls
Mar 21, 2026; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Red Bulls New York goalkeeper Ethan Horvath (34) reacts after being scored on by Charlotte FC during the first half at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Cory Knowlton-Imagn Images Kerwin Vargas and Pep Biel scored in the opening 10 minutes of the second half as Charlotte FC set a team record for goals and pulled away for a 6-1 rout of the visiting New York Red Bulls on Saturday night.
Biel made the pass that led to Idan Toklomati finishing off a header in the 14th minute and Charlotte (2-1-2, 8 points) survived New York attempting 10 shots and holding possession for a little over 60% for the first half.
After scoring four goals in its first four matches, Charlotte finished it off early in the second half by capitalizing on miscues by the Red Bulls.
Vargas scored from the center of the box after New York’s Omar Valencia overran the ball trying to intercept a pass from Djibril Diani. After securing possession, Vargas put a left-footed shot from the center of the box into the bottom left corner of the net.
In the 52nd, New York’s Gustav Berggren was shown the red card and kicked out for a foul on Toklomati, resulting in a free kick.
Biel took the kick and his left-footed shot from outside the box found a gap in New York’s eight-man wall and cruised into the bottom left corner.
Wilfried Zaha also scored in the 68th as Charlotte matched the team record of four goals they set five previous times. Archie Goodwin finished off the rout with a goal in the 77th and another in the third minute of stoppage time.
Julian Hall scored late for New York, which attempted 23 shots.
Goalie Kristijan Kahlina made seven saves. He solidified the blowout with consecutive saves on Mohammed Sofo and Valencia in a span of two minutes shortly after Charlotte took a three-goal lead.
New York (2-2-1, 7 points) tied a team record by allowing six goals for the fourth time and first instance since a 6-2 loss at Inter Miami on May 4, 2024. The Red Bulls have been outscored 9-1 in their two losses under first-year coach Michael Bradley.
New York goalie Ethan Horvath allowed six goals on 10 shots.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Luke Kennard's last-second shot beats Magic; Lakers' win streak at 9
Mar 21, 2026; Orlando, Florida, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Luke Kennard (10) reacts after hitting a game winning basket at the buzzer against the Orlando Magic in the fourth quarter at Kia Center. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images Luke Kennard drilled a go-ahead 3-pointer with 0.6 seconds remaining on Saturday to lift the Los Angeles Lakers to a 105-104 victory over the host Orlando Magic.
Trailing by two with 2.6 seconds left, Marcus Smart inbounded a pass to a wide-open Kennard, with the Lakers’ sharpshooter hitting his third 3-pointer of the game and clinching the team’s ninth straight win.
Los Angeles (46-25) was led by Luka Doncic’s 33 points and eight assists, while Austin Reaves had 26 points and Kennard had 13. LeBron James scored 12 points and passed Robert Parish for most games played in NBA history with 1,612.
Orlando (38-32) was paced by Paolo Banchero’s 16 points and Jalen Suggs’ 14. Wendell Carter Jr. and Jevon Carter added 13 apiece for the Magic, who lost their fourth straight.
Trailing by four in the third quarter, Los Angeles’ 12-0 run was capped with James’ layup to give the visitors a 78-70 edge.
From there, Orlando finished the third on a 17-4 run, holding the Lakers to just one made field goal across the final six minutes of the quarter.
After falling behind by seven to start the fourth, Los Angeles went on a 10-2 run — which included Reaves’ six points — to take a 92-91 advantage with 6:31 left.
James’ layup cut the Lakers’ deficit to a point at the 2:02 mark, before Banchero’s basket gave Orlando a 100-97 lead. Doncic and Carter then traded jumpers on the team’s subsequent possessions.
Banchero then hit two free throws to push the Magic’s lead to five with 50 seconds remaining.
After Reaves’ layup, the Lakers forced an Orlando miss on the other end. Reaves then missed a game-tying 3-pointer with 10 seconds left. Deandre Ayton got the offensive rebound and was fouled, splitting the free throws to leave the Lakers’ deficit at two.
Suggs then threw the ball away for an Orlando turnover with 4.1 seconds left, leading to Kennard’s game-winner.
After setting the new record, James’ fast-break dunk helped Los Angeles grab an early 6-0 lead.
Doncic’s fadeaway jumper gave the Lakers their first double-digit lead at 30-20. The margin grew to 14 on Reaves’ dunk, before Orlando finished the opening quarter on a 7-0 run to cut its deficit in half.
The run continued into the second quarter as the Magic answered Reaves’ floater with a 13-0 run, stamped with Tristan da Silva’s floater to put Orlando ahead by six.
After Suggs’ stepback trey, Reaves beat the first-half buzzer with a mid-range jumper, trimming the Lakers’ halftime deficit to 65-62.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Senators continue playoff push with resilient win over Maple Leafs
Mar 21, 2026; Ottawa, Ontario, CAN; Ottawa Senators defenseman Jordan Spence (10) lines up a shot past Toronto Maple Leafs center Bo Groulx (29) in the first period at the Canadian Tire Centre. Mandatory Credit: Marc DesRosiers-IMAGN Images The Ottawa Senators did themselves a world of good in the playoff picture, withstanding a late push to top the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs 5-2 on Saturday night.
Defensemen Tyler Kleven and Jordan Spence led the way for the Senators (36-24-9, 81 points) with two assists each. Linus Ullmark turned away 12 of 14 shots for Ottawa, which has won four of its last five.
Rookie Easton Cowan tallied a goal and an assist for the floundering Maple Leafs (29-29-13, 71 points). Toronto goaltender Joseph Woll finished with 38 saves when he was forced to man the posts for the second night in a row after Anthony Stolarz was hit in the throat by a puck during pregame warmups.
Tim Stutzle opened the scoring late in the first period on the man advantage, walking the puck into the right faceoff circle and sniping it under the arm of Woll. It was his first power-play marker since the return from the Olympic break.
Claude Giroux extended Ottawa’s lead at 9:09 of the second period, pouncing on Kleven’s low shot from the point to flip the puck up and over the pad of Woll. The goal snapped the 38-year-old’s 13-game scoring slump.
Deadline acquisition Warren Foegele made it 3-0 when he pounced on an ill-advised pass by Toronto in its defensive zone. Foegele’s soft shot deflected off Simon Benoit and into the net for his fourth tally in eight games with the Senators.
John Tavares responded with one of the Leafs’ few creative sequences on the night, trading puck possession with linemate Cowan and beating Ullmark blocker side for his 25th goal of the season.
The Senators outshot the Leafs 19-5 in a dominant middle-frame showing. Toronto has now been outshot in eight consecutive games.
The Leafs made it interesting early in the third. Cowan scored 4:52 into the period when he scored on a rebound of a Benoit shot.
But Michael Amadio quickly quashed any hope of a comeback with a goal less than five minutes later. Ridly Greig extended Ottawa’s lead back to three with 6:49 left, putting the game to rest.
The Senators sustained another injury to their defense when Dennis Gilbert left the game after taking a hard hit from Oliver Ekman-Larsson late in the third.
The Leafs were without defenseman Morgan Rielly, who aggravated a lower-body injury Friday against Carolina.
–Field Level Media
Charlotte FC set team record for goals, blow out Red Bulls
This $430 MacBook Pro deal wont stick around for long — act fast to save
