Sports
New All-Star format takes center stage in Inglewood
Feb 14, 2026; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Team World center Nikola Jokic (15) of the Denver Nuggets during a news conference for the NBA All Star game at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Inside an arena covered by a shell that could pass for a globe, the NBA will try to entertain on Sunday while also reaching out to the rest of the world.
The NBA All-Star Game’s latest concept involves a team of the league’s top international players competing against two teams composed of domestic talent. The format will be a round-robin, leading to a championship game after one of the three teams is eliminated through a series of head-to-head matchups.
Team World will be without Giannis Antetokounmpo of Greece and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of Canada, yet still features the talents of three-time MVP Nikola Jokic of Serbia, Luka Doncic of Slovenia and Victor Wembanyama of France among its nine players.
The USA Stars team skews younger with Devin Booker, Cade Cunningham and Anthony Edwards, while USA Stripes boasts experience with Kevin Durant, LeBron James and Kawhi Leonard of the host Los Angeles Clippers.
Leonard is eager to showcase what the Clippers’ two-year-old Intuit Dome is all about. He appears less enthusiastic about the All-Star Game format that departs from traditional norms.
“I know it’s three teams and I’m like, ‘Is it a pickup game where we wait until somebody (wins)?” Leonard said. “I’d rather just be East and West and go out there and compete and see what the outcome is.”
At first glance, the setup appears to give players worldwide a chance to represent themselves in basketball’s best league, but even that opportunity feels somewhat empty. At least until the competition kicks off, it does.
“For me, I’m going to play like I played every year,” Jokic said Saturday. “… I’m not sure that it is going to bring (more) fire to me, no, because I play (that way) every game the same.”
The NBA is known for setting trends, but Sunday’s format appears to draw inspiration from the NHL’s 4 Nations Face-Off last year and the ongoing international showdown that is the Milan Cortina Olympics.
And yet, it doesn’t seem to be generating the same passion as either event. Jokic even has a prediction about how it all will unfold.
“We are going to have (veteran) OGs and maybe they’re going to play the most. They’re going to try to prove they can still be in this league,” Jokic said. “They are really good players. Probably all of them are Hall of Famers.
“I think Europeans are going to probably pass the ball a lot and have fun out there. OGs (are) probably going to win it, and the third team is probably going to dunk the most times.”
For all of the complaints that All-Star Weekend no longer moves the needle, Jokic does point out what is on the line for each squad. Perhaps that is the lens to use come Sunday.
“They need something to complain about (and) I don’t think it’s that big of a deal, to be honest, the All-Star Game, All-Star Weekend,” Durant said about All-Star Game criticism. “Just here to celebrate the game of basketball. People still coming to celebrate the game of basketball. They’re coming to watch.”
–Doug Padilla, Field Level Media
Sports
No. 2 Michigan blows out UCLA in second half
Feb 14, 2026; Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; UCLA Bruins forward Tyler Bilodeau (34) is defended by Michigan Wolverines center Aday Mara (15) in the second half at Crisler Center. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images Yaxel Lendeborg had 17 points and eight rebounds as No. 2 Michigan ran away in the second half to earn an 86-56 Big Ten win over UCLA on Saturday in Ann Arbor, Mich.
Michigan (24-1, 14-1), which led 40-38 at halftime, maintained a two-game lead in the conference standings and figures to be the top-ranked team in the country for the first time since 2013 when the Associated Press poll comes out Monday as Arizona lost to Kansas earlier this week.
Morez Johnson Jr. posted 15 points, L.J. Cason scored 13 points, Nimari Burnett had 12 points and UCLA transfer Aday Mara added nine points, eight rebounds and three blocks for Michigan, which never trailed while winning its 10th in a row.
Trent Pery scored 14 points while Donovan Dent and Tyler Bilodeau each added 10 points for UCLA (17-8, 9-5), which had won five of its last six. Senior guard Skyy Clark, who had been out since Jan. 3 with a hamstring injury, contributed eight points in 16 minutes off the bench.
Leading 43-40 early in the second half, Michigan went on a 13-4 spurt to take a 56-44 lead with 13:22 remaining in the game after layup by Trey McKenney.
Michigan continued to grow its lead as Cason scored five points in a 9-0 run to seize a 68-47 lead with 8:17 to play.
During that Michigan spree, UCLA went nearly six minutes without a field goal and 4:06 without scoring.
UCLA had a brief flurry to cut Michigan’s lead to 70-54 with 6:34 left after a 3-pointer by Clark. But Michigan answered with six straight points – highlighted by Mara’s reverse alley-oop dunk of an Elliot Cadeau lob — to take a 76-54 lead with 5:09 remaining and all but put the game away.
Michigan got off to a strong start, taking a 22-12 lead on Cason’s deep 3-pointer with 10:54 remaining in the first half.
Michigan held a 39-28 lead with 2:39 to go until halftime, but UCLA ended the half on a 10-1 run to make it 40-38 Michigan at intermission. Bilodeau started the spree with a 3-pointer and a layup.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Milan Momcilovic helps No. 5 Iowa State dispatch No. 9 Kansas
Feb 14, 2026; Ames, Iowa, USA; Iowa State Cyclones forward Blake Buchanan (23) defends Kansas Jayhawks guard Melvin Council Jr. (14) during the first half at James H. Hilton Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Reese Strickland-Imagn Images Milan Momcilovic scored 18 points and made 4 of 9 three-pointers, and No. 5 Iowa State’s ferocious defense broke No. 9 Kansas’ eight-game winning streak, grounding the Jayhawks 74-56 on Saturday afternoon in Ames, Ia.
The overwhelming victory moved the Cyclones (22-3, 9-3) into a third-place tie in the Big 12 with the Jayhawks (19-6, 9-3).
Joshua Jefferson totaled 11 points, five rebounds and four assists for Iowa State. Tamin Lipsey had 11 points, four assists, three steals and three rebounds. Jamarion Batemon and Blake Buchanan (six boards) added 11 points as Iowa State made 11 of 30 (36.7%) from long range and forced 13 turnovers.
Kansas’ Melvin Council Jr. posted 15 points, five rebounds, four assists and two steals. Flory Bidunga had 11 points and 13 rebounds, and Darryn Peterson had 10 points.
The Jayhawks made just 19 of 51 (37.3%) from the floor.
Kansas went up 6-2 early in the physical matchup as Bidunga, Peterson and Bryson Tiller made baskets, but the home crowd came to life when Buchanan viciously threw down a slam dunk off Lipsey’s missed layup at 12:11 to knot it 6-all. Killyan Toure then sank a 24-footer for Iowa State’s first lead at 11:43 to cap a 9-0 run.
Council sparked the Wildcats’ offense by canning a trio of three-pointers and added an alley-oop assist for Bidunga’s dunk with 13:19 left to give the visitors a 20-16 lead.
With his team struggling from long range, Jefferson drove past Bidunga on one series and then Peterson on another, and both Jayhawks fouled him on a made layup. Jefferson converted the three-point plays, the latter at 3:37 to make it 29-22.
The margin grew to 14 behind a 21-7 run to end the half, which the Cyclones, who forced 10 Kansas turnovers, led 37-27 at the break.
Momcilovic connected on his first two treys in the opening 90 seconds of the second half before Lipsey hit two more from deep for a 49-29 lead with 17:06 left as Kansas was outscored 12-0 to increase the deficit.
After going 3 for 16 from deep in the opening 20 minutes, the Cyclones made their first five – the last one Momcilovic’s third of the second half for a 52-32 lead with 16:09 to play.
Kansas only got as close as 12 points as Iowa State made its first six threes and rolled on to win for the sixth time in seven games.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Pryce Sandfort hits 6 3s, as No. 7 Nebraska defeats Northwestern
Feb 14, 2026; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers forward Pryce Sandfort (21) reacts after a three point shot against the Northwestern Wildcats during the first half at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-Imagn Images Pryce Sandfort swished six 3-pointers on the way to scoring 29 points, as No. 7 Nebraska defeated visiting Northwestern 68-49 on Saturday in Lincoln, Neb.
Nebraska (22-3, 11-3 Big Ten) surpassed last season’s win total despite matching a season-high with 18 turnovers, two fewer than slumping Northwestern (10-16, 2-13).
The Wildcats matched a season-worst with their fifth straight loss. Nick Martinelli scored 11 points to pace the Wildcats, who shot 34.8 percent in the second half.
Arrinten Page split a pair of free throws to put the Wildcats ahead by one point with 12:32 to go. The Cornhuskers regained the advantage on a Cale Jacobsen layup on the next trip down the floor and never relinquished it.
Nebraska held Northwestern without a field goal over a 4:05 stretch midway through the second half. Jacobsen’s layup started the Cornhuskers on a 8-0 run. A Sandfort 3-pointer with 7:46 to go put the hosts ahead by 10 points and set them on a 16-4 spurt to close the game.
Sandfort finished 10-for-21 from the floor, including a 6-for-13 effort from long range.
Sam Hoiberg recorded 14 points, seven rebounds, and five assists, while Jacobsen added 10 points. Rienk Mast grabbed nine boards to help Nebraska to a 40-24 edge on the glass.
Northwestern, which led No. 2 Michigan by 16 in the second half Wednesday before faltering, was unable to sustain momentum after the break Saturday. Angelo Ciaravino scored nine points to go with four rebounds.
Nebraska overcame 10 turnovers and 34.5 percent shooting to take a 28-27 lead into halftime.
Northwestern grabbed a 20-12 advantage when Tre Singleton converted a three-point play with 6:10 left before the break before the Cornhuskers responded down the stretch. Nebraska closed the half on an 8-2 run, bookending the spurt with treys from Braden Frager and Sandfort.
Martinelli, the conference’s leading scorer, didn’t register his first points of the game until he hit a jumper in the paint at the 1:39 mark.
Sandfort led all scorers with 11 first-half points. Jordan Clayton, Ciaravino, and Singleton had five apiece for the Wildcats.
The Cornhuskers improved to 13-2 at Pinnacle Bank Arena this season.
–Field Level Media
No. 2 Michigan blows out UCLA in second half
How to watch India vs. Pakistan in the 2026 T20 World Cup online for free
