Sports
Magic, Jazz hope new month brings better results
Jan 27, 2025; Miami, Florida, USA; Orlando Magic guard Cole Anthony (50) dribbles the basketball as Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier (2) defends during the fourth quarter at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images Not much has gone right for the Utah Jazz and Orlando Magic since they last faced each other nearly a month ago.
Utah has lost eight in a row and 11 of 12 since winning back-to-back games at Miami and Orlando on Jan. 4-5. The Magic, meanwhile, haven’t been much better, dropping nine of 12 since that meeting.
The good news? A rough January is over, which gives both teams the chance to open February on a stronger note when they meet on Saturday in Salt Lake City.
The Jazz’s two wins in early January featured breakout performances for Brice Sensabaugh, who scored 34 points against Miami and added 27 in a 105-92 win at Orlando. But Sensabaugh’s minutes and impact have decreased since then as some of Utah’s key contributors returned to the lineup. Sensabaugh only scored three points in 15 minutes in Thursday’s 138-113 home loss to Minnesota.
Keyonte George led the Jazz with 23 points off the bench on Thursday. Collin Sexton, who scored 20 against the Magic, added 19 points against the Timberwolves while Jordan Clarkson and John Collins each had 16. Lauri Markkanen added 15 points.
Even with those mainstay players back in Utah’s rotation, however, the Jazz are struggling to put together a full game. They are competitive for stretches but then fall apart. That happened Thursday when they were outscored 44-22 in the third quarter as the Timberwolves turned a four-point game at halftime into a blowout.
“We’ve had a variety of lineups,” Utah coach Will Hardy said. “It’s not as easy as just plug-and-play when guys are coming back from being injured and sick and not playing. There’s a little bit of rhythm that’s lost in those moments and guys taking different roles. Nobody feels sorry for us and we don’t feel sorry for ourselves. We just keep pushing.”
Hardy isn’t too concerned that Markkanen only made 5 of 13 shots and struggled through a 3-for-10 3-point performance. The Finnish forward has only made 9 of 40 3s since returning to the lineup the past four games after a two-week absence.
“I think Lauri’s one of those players when you’re out, your rhythm can be gone a little bit — your legs,” Hardy said. “Being rested is one thing, but there’s also the feeling of being in really good shape. These guys are built and trained to play a lot of games. I have empathy for the fact he has moments where he feels a little clunky, but overall I’m not seeing a terrible trend in the types of 3s he’s getting.”
Neither Franz Wagner nor Paolo Banchero played in the last Jazz-Magic game due to oblique injuries. Wagner scored 24 points and Banchero had 21 in Orlando’s 119-90 loss at Portland on Thursday.
The Magic struggled after a 35-point first quarter against the Blazers, only scoring 55 points the rest of the game. They’ve lost the first two games in a six-game road trip.
“I think everyone on the team, and it starts from the top — from (Banchero), Franz, to the bottom,” Orlando guard Cole Anthony said. “As a unit, we just gotta stay confident and trust our work. I think a lot of the times, myself included too, stuff starts going the wrong way and we’ll start trying to defer to Franz, defer to (Banchero), and obviously, yeah, they’re great players.
“They help us win a lot of games and will continue to do that, but we got to make it easier for them at times. I think that they carry so much of the weight, so much of the burden, that it becomes overwhelming for them sometimes. We’ve got to try to ease that burden for them as some of the supporting cast.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Florida State stays hot with thorough win over Georgia Tech
Feb 28, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Florida State Seminoles guard Robert McCray V. (6) drives to the basket against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in the first half at McCamish Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images
Robert McCray V scored a game-high 20 points to help visiting Florida State post a wire-to-wire 80-71 victory over Georgia Tech in Atlantic Coast Conference play on Saturday in Atlanta.
Thomas Bassong had 14 points and 12 rebounds, while Chauncey Wiggins chipped in 12 points for Florida State (15-14, 8-8 ACC), which won its seventh game in nine tries.
Kowacie Reeves Jr.’s 17 points led Georgia Tech (11-18, 2-14), followed by Jaeden Mustaf’s 16 and 15 points apiece from Akai Fleming and Kam Craft. The Yellow Jackets lost their 10th straight game.
After trailing by 16 points with three minutes left in the first half, Georgia Tech sliced its deficit to 45-43 on Reeves’ 3-pointer with 17:23 left in the second.
Florida State rebuilt its cushion to eight on AJ Swinton’s dunk and Cam Miles’ layup at the 10:54 mark. McCray’s stepback 3-pointer extended the lead to 65-53.
Meanwhile, Georgia Tech went 8:37 without a field goal until Craft’s 3-pointer with 5:52 remaining cut the Yellow Jackets’ deficit to 68-58.
Martin Sommerville was fouled and made an off-balance floater at the 4:13 mark, then completed the three-point play to give the Seminoles a 72-60 lead. Bassong put the finishing touches on the convincing victory with a dunk with 1:36 left.
McCray’s personal 7-0 run gave Florida State an early 9-2 lead. Kobe MaGee and Swinton drilled triples to extend the visitors’ advantage to 18-8 with 13:42 left in the first half.
Fleming’s 3-pointer pulled the Yellow Jackets within six, but Miles’ layup stamped a 6-0 Seminoles run to put them ahead 26-14 at the 8:34 mark. The margin ballooned to 16 on Wiggins’ corner 3-pointer with 4:41 remaining.
After Somerville drilled three free throws, Georgia Tech answered with a 12-1 run, including Craft and Reeves’ consecutive 3-pointers, to trim the halftime deficit to 41-36.
The Yellow Jackets held Florida State without a made field goal for the final 4:40 of the opening half.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Alex Karaban, No. 6 UConn sink Seton Hall
Feb 28, 2026; Storrs, Connecticut, USA; UConn Huskies forward Alex Karaban (11) shoots the ball against Seton Hall Pirates guard Tajuan Simpkins (2) in the first half at Harry A. Gampel Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images Alex Karaban made 5 of 6 3-point attempts and scored a game-high 23 points, lifting No. 6 UConn to a 71-67 victory over Seton Hall on Saturday in a Big East matchup played In Storrs, Conn.
Solo Ball added 14 points for UConn (27-3, 17-2 Big East), which trailed by eight points midway through the second half.
Karaban sank two free throws to give UConn a 68-65 lead with 20 seconds to play.
After Seton Hall’s Adam Clark missed a 3-pointer, Ball made two free throws that extended UConn’s lead with eight seconds left. Following Najai Hines’ basket, Ball capped the scoring by making a free throw with three seconds remaining.
Seton Hall (19-10, 9-9) received 20 points from A.J. Staton-McCray, 12 from Elijah Fisher and 11 from Hines. Clark, who entered the game averaging a team-high 12.5 points per game, was held to four points.
The Pirates made 9 of 18 3-point attempts after going 0 for 18 from 3-point range in their last game, a 51-47 victory over Georgetown. Seton Hall was 1 of 16 from beyond the 3-point arc when it dropped a 69-64 decision to UConn on Jan. 13.
Despite 15 first-half points from Karaban, Seton Hall had a 33-32 halftime lead.
UConn took a 43-42 lead on a Jayden Ross layup with 14:57 left in the second half, but Seton Hall had a 54-46 advantage – its largest lead of the game – after a Staton-McCray 3-pointer with 9:33 remaining in regulation.
Braylon Mullins capped a 10-0 run that put UConn in front 58-56 with 5:57 left.
It was 63-63 after a Fisher jump shot with 2:02 to play, but the Huskies took a lead they wouldn’t relinquish when Ball made two free throws that erased a 65-64 deficit.
Mullins (11) and Tarris Reed (10) also scored in double figures for UConn.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Notre Dame stuns NC State in OT
Feb 28, 2026; South Bend, Indiana, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish guard Braeden Shrewsberry (11) drives as NC State Wolfpack forward Darrion Williams (1) defends during the first half at Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center. Mandatory Credit: Michael Caterina-Imagn Images Cole Certa scored 12 of his 32 points in overtime to lead Notre Dame to a stunning 96-90 win over North Carolina State Saturday afternoon in South Bend, Ind.
It was Certa’s second 30-plus-point performance in the last four games. After the Fighting Irish (13-16, 4-12 Atlantic Coast Conference) never led in regulation, they took their first lead on Certa’s 3-pointer to open OT and took the lead for good on his second perimeter shot on the ensuing possession.
Certa was 9 of 17 from the floor, making 6 of 10 threes. Jalen Haralson scored 25 points — including the team’s other three in overtime — making 8 of 15 field goals and 9 of 10 free throws.
Braeden Shrewsberry chipped in 16 points with five rebounds and three assists, and Sir Mohammed scored all 10 of his points in the first half for Notre Dame, which pulled off the significant upset to boost its hopes of making the ACC Tournament in Charlotte.
Ven-Allen Lubin scored a season-high 24 points with 10 rebounds for NC State (19-10, 10-6), which has lost four of its last five games to inch closer to the postseason bubble.
Quadir Copeland tallied 17 points and nine assists, and Darrion Williams added 17 on 7-of-17 shooting, including 3-of-10 shooting from 3-point range.
Notre Dame held a 40-32 rebounding advantage, a 38-15 edge in bench points and a 16-2 lead in fastbreak points, shooting 52.5% from the field and 48% from 3-point range (12 of 25).
NC State was held scoreless for the final 3:23 of regulation, with Notre Dame ending on a 7-0 run to rally from a nine-point deficit with 4:46 left. Haralson scored six points during that stretch, including the game-tying free throws with 19 seconds left to send it to OT tied at 81.
NC State jumped out to a 11-2 lead and never trailed in the first half. The Fighting Irish, though, battled back to tie the game at 25.
The Wolfpack immediately went on an 8-0 run, but Notre Dame again didn’t let them fully separate, making its final five shots to trail 44-38 at the half.
NC State also led throughout the second half, responding to each Notre Dame surge, but was never able to extend its lead to double figures. The Fighting Irish cut the deficit to one score three times before finally leveling the score on Haralson’s late free throws in his return to action from an ankle injury on Feb. 10.
–Field Level Media
