Sports
Kentucky Flourishes Under Mark Pope While John Calipari Fumbles in Arkansas
It’s funny to remember just how down Big Blue Nation was when Danny Hurley, Billy Donovan and Scott Drew all rejected Kentucky’s overtures to become its next head basketball coach.
Fans wanted the biggest of big-name hires after John Calipari stepped down in April. The man they wound up with instead, Kentucky alum Mark Pope, had nowhere close to the track record of those three former national champions.
But to Kentucky fans’ credit, they found hope in Pope. They’re certainly waking up with a smile Sunday, as it’s become clear they’re winning the breakup with Calipari.
No. 10 Kentucky hosted No. 6 Florida on Saturday in a matchup that not only kicked off Southeastern Conference play but also lifted the lid on a titanic day of college hoops in general thanks to its 11 a.m. tip. Florida had a surprisingly strong start to the year and came to Lexington 13-0.
Pope, Koby Brea and company met the challenge head-on and beat Florida 106-100 with some of its best offense of the season. Brea went 7-for-9 from three, six players scored at least 14 points, and the Wildcats’ ball movement was spectacular, with 25 assists to just six turnovers in a fast-paced game.
The very next TV timeslot saw Calipari take No. 23 Arkansas to No. 1 Tennessee and basically get laughed out of the building, 76-52.
People were quick to do the math. Arkansas didn’t muster half of what Kentucky scored in its game.
“My disappointment wasn’t in coming to Tennessee and losing a game,” Calipari said postgame. “It was they kind of manhandled us. … We got to do some soul-searching, because this league, what they play like, everybody plays like.”
This game was so lopsided that the Volunteers grabbed more offensive rebounds (24) than they allowed in defensive rebounds (20), and the Razorbacks committed six more turnovers than assists.
And like the Tim Robinson hot dog meme, Calipari is trying to find the guy who did this.
Perhaps the most damning thing to come out of his postgame presser was that Calipari had Arkansas skip its shootaround, which he came to regret.
“The one thing I would do different in this game, and I all night tossed and turned,” Calipari said, performatively tapping his fist on the table, “(was) we didn’t do a shootaround today. And I just felt, our body (clock) is noon, pretty early. If I had to do it over again, we would’ve (done the) shootaround. Because we had three or four guys kind of no-show.”
Is there any wonder why Boogie Fland went 5-for-15? Why was Johnell Davis 0-for-4 across 25 minutes?
Kentucky fans are undoubtedly familiar with the pattern. Calipari’s final four years at the school resulted in a 9-16 record and missed tournament, first-round losses to Saint Peter’s and Oakland, and one second-round appearance. The knock on him late in his career is that he’s been a talent collector and not a great coach, and that was peeking through again Saturday.
There’s disagreement in Big Blue Nation over whether to keep track of their ex and troll him for every loss or simply to move on. I don’t take a side there either way. But it’s got to be comforting for them to have their arrow pointing up thanks to Pope, while Calipari’s arrow points God knows where.
Both Calipari and Pope had precious little time to build a new roster in April and May following their job changes. Both had to rely heavily on transfers—that’s what the job is in the 2020s. But Pope has coached his guys to three wins over top-10 teams, and Calipari, a Hall of Famer, can’t decide whether to hold a shootaround before facing the No. 1 team.
Feb. 1, 9 p.m. ET. Calipari returns to Kentucky wearing Razorback red. You have to imagine one team will be in a pretty lofty spot in the SEC standings. The other may have its tournament aspirations on life support, the way they looked Saturday.
Sports
Raptors' Brandon Ingram in walking boot ahead of Game 7
Apr 26, 2026; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Raptors forward Brandon Ingram (3) shoots the ball as Cleveland Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen (31) defends during game four of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images Toronto Raptors forward Brandon Ingram was seen in a walking boot during the team’s shootaround on Sunday morning, several hours before Game 7 of the Eastern Conference first-round series against the host Cleveland Cavaliers.
Ingram is listed as questionable to play in the game due to right heel inflammation.
An All-Star this season for the second time in his career, Ingram was limited to 11 minutes and scored one point in Toronto’s 125-120 setback to Cleveland in Game 5 on Wednesday. He did not play in Toronto’s 112-110 overtime victory in Game 6 on Friday.
During the regular season, the 28-year-old Ingram averaged a team-high 21.5 points over 77 games. He also averaged 5.6 rebounds and 3.7 assists and drilled 38.2% of his 3-point attempts.
–Field Level Media
Sports
76ers' Joel Embiid to home fans: 'Don't sell your tickets'
May 2, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; New York Knicks guard Josh Hart (3) scores a three pointer against the Philadelphia 76ers with 25 seconds to go in game six of the first round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images It’s just a little more than 100 miles from Madison Square Garden in New York to Xfinity Mobile Arena in South Philadelphia — a relatively short car ride or train trip for Knicks fans who wanted to see their team in action against the 76ers in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
But 76ers star Joel Embiid, who was the NBA’s Most Valuable Player and a first-team All-Pro selection in the 2022-23 season, wants no part of Knicks fans invading his team’s home arena.
In his postgame interview Saturday night after the Sixers stunned the Boston Celtics in Game 7 of their series to advance, he put 76ers fans on notice.
Don’t sell your playoff tickets — especially not to Knicks fans.
New Yorkers overtook the Philadelphia arena two years ago when the No. 2-seeded Knicks eliminated the No. 7 Sixers in the opening round of the postseason. It has been presumed that Knicks fans bought their tickets from 76ers fans.
“I just have a message for our fans,” Embiid said Saturday night. “Last time we played the Knicks, it felt like [Philadelphia] was Madison Square Garden East. We’re going to need the support.
“Don’t sell your tickets. This is bigger than you. We need you guys.”
Embiid offered a solution, if need be.
“Knicks fans travel — they buy tickets,” he said. “There’s going to be people who will sell the tickets because they need the money. Don’t do it, we need you guys. We need the support, and we need them to be extremely loud. If you need money, I’ve got you.”
The Eastern Conference semifinal between the teams begins Monday in New York, with Game 2 set for Wednesday. The series will move to Philadelphia on Friday for Game 3, followed by Game 4 on Saturday.
The Knicks defeated the Atlanta Hawks in six games to advance.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Jannik Sinner wins Madrid, shatters record for consecutive ATP Masters 1000 titles
Mar 29, 2026; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; Jannik Sinner of Italy celebrates his victory over Jiri Lehecka of the Czech Republic in the final of the men’s singles at the Miami Open at the Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mike Frey-Imagn Images Jannik Sinner became the first player to capture five straight ATP Masters 1000 titles when he breezed past Germany’s Alexander Zverev 6-1, 6-2 on Sunday in the Mutua Madrid Open final.
The 24-year-old Italian, who ranks No. 1 in the world, started his unprecedented streak in France by winning the Paris Masters on Nov. 2. He set the record there for losing the fewest number of games (29).
Sinner won the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells in March, where he became the first player not to lose a set in two consecutive ATP Masters 1000 events. He followed that by claiming the Miami Open, the Monte-Carlo Masters and now the Mutua Madrid Open. The last four victories have come in a nine-week span.
In Sunday’s win over the second-seeded Zverev, Sinner never faced a break point while converting all four of his break points against Zverev. Of his 29 first serves that landed, he won the point on 27 (93.1%). He averaged 130 miles per hour on his first serves compared to Zverev’s 124 mph.
Sinner needed just 25 minutes to complete the first set and 31 minutes to take the second set and wrap up his ninth consecutive win over Zverev. The German sensed the match might go this way.
“He’s world No. 1 and hasn’t lost a match since the beginning of February,” Zverev told reporters after capturing his semifinal match on Friday. “Right now he’s definitely the best player in the world. I have to play very, very good tennis to have a chance.”
–Field Level Media
Raptors' Brandon Ingram in walking boot ahead of Game 7
Smutty Netflix Movie Has Women Dating Hairy Beasts For Kink And Comedy
