Sports
No. 4 Alabama seeks to stay hot with Georgia nigh
Jan 29, 2025; Starkville, Mississippi, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide guard Chris Youngblood (8) reacts after defeating the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Humphrey Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Wesley Hale-Imagn Images On a four-game winning streak and two weeks away from playing host to a showdown of top teams in the nation, No. 4 Alabama receives a visit from Georgia on Saturday at Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Since a surprising 74-64 home loss to Ole Miss on Jan. 14, Alabama has fine-tuned the best offense in Division I by averaging 93.3 points during its four-game streak. That outburst has increased its national-best scoring average to 90.2 points.
The Crimson Tide (18-3, 7-1 SEC) continue to build momentum toward a must-see SEC duel with No. 1 Auburn on Feb. 15.
Alabama has topped the 100-point mark in two of the last four victories and enters Saturday’s game off an 88-84 victory at No. 14 Mississippi State on Wednesday. Chris Youngblood scored 23 points while making a career-best seven 3-pointers and Mark Sears added 17 points with nine assists.
“I thought a lot of guys made a lot of big plays and (Sears) had a great bounce-back game,” Alabama head coach Nate Oats said of his point guard, who went 0 of 5 from the floor and was scoreless in a victory over LSU last Saturday. “A lot of big plays and a huge road win over a really good team.”
Alabama didn’t take the lead for good against Mississippi State until Grant Nelson made a 3-pointer for an 83-80 edge with 2:30 remaining.
“That was quite the game if you like big shot-making,” Oates said.
Sears leads the Crimson Tide with 18.0 points and 5.0 assists per game. Nelson scores 12.7 points while adding a team-best 8.3 rebounds.
Alabama owns five wins over teams ranked among the top 15 and seven victories over Top 25 teams overall.
A win over Georgia (15-6, 3-5) would not add to the Crimson Tide’s total, but the Bulldogs put a four-game losing streak to rest with a 71-60 home victory over South Carolina on Tuesday. Asa Newell scored 17 points with 10 rebounds, while graduate transfer Dakota Leffew added 14 points in his first start for the Bulldogs.
The Bulldogs shot 51.0 percent from the floor and 46.7 percent (7 of 15) from 3-point range.
“We made some good decisions, simple plays, pitch ahead, and shot it with confidence,” said Leffew, who was 2 of 4 from 3-point range. “That’s what you’ve got to do in this league. Make or miss. Miss three in a row, shoot it again. If you’ve got an A shot, you can’t worry about whether it’s going to go in or not. SEC shooters just let it fly.”
Georgia was ranked No. 23 when its losing streak began, with three of the losses coming against No. 6 Tennessee, No. 1 Auburn and No. 5 Florida. Now comes another test against a team inside the top 10.
“We’ve been here before,” Leffew said. “We’ll be excited about the opportunity to see how well we can play against one of the best teams in the country.”
Alabama has defeated Georgia six of the past seven times the programs have met. The Bulldogs haven’t won a road game in the series since February 2017 and have 99 all-time losses against the Crimson Tide.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Hannah Green wins her 2nd HSBC Women's World Championship
Aug 21, 2025; Mississauga, Ontario, CAN; Hannah Green plays her tee shot at the third hole during first round play at the CPKC Women’s Open golf tournament. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images Australia’s Hannah Green held off Auston Kim on Sunday to win the HSBC Women’s World Championship in Singapore for the second time.
Green, the 2024 champion, balanced three birdies and three bogeys on an eventful back nine to finish with a 3-under 69 and a final score of 14-under at Sentosa Golf Club. The 2019 Women’s PGA Championship winner tapped in for bogey at the 18th for her seventh LPGA Tour title.
“When I did win Singapore two years ago, I went on to win two other tournaments that season and pretty much had my best season on tour,” said Green, 29. “So having a win so early in the season gives me a bit more flexibility with the tournaments that I can play. So I’m hoping that this puts me in good stead for the rest of the year.”
Green was at 16-under after birdies at the first, 11th and 13th holes and an eagle at the par-5 eighth hole. Her birdie at the par-3 15th helped her survive a bogey-bogey finish.
“I knew that I had enough of a lead to be able to get away with making mistakes coming down the stretch. But I think 15 was the real turning point,” she said.
First- and second-round leader Kim nearly chased down her first title, matching the low round of the day with a 67 to finish one shot behind Green in the 72-hole, no-cut tournament.
Kim carded six birdies and an eagle at No. 8, but a bogey at the par-3 15th proved costly for the 25-year-old American.
“Overall, I think it was a really solid week,” Kim said. “A great way to start the year. I hit a lot of bad shots but I also hit a lot of good ones, and it was really confidence boosting. I hit all these bad shots, and I didn’t feel like I had anything chose to my A game, but I was still able it pull off a result like this and play some really solid golf.”
Australia’s Minjee Lee (72 on Sunday), Angel Yin (71) and France’s Pauline Roussin-Bouchard (68) tied for third place at 11-under with South Korea’s Haeran Ryu (72) another shot back in solo sixth.
World No. 1 Jeeno Thitikul of Thailand finished with a 73 and tied for 31st at 2-under, one shot behind defending champion Lydia Ko (72) of New Zealand.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Cards extend manager Oliver Marmol through '28 season
Feb 22, 2026; West Palm Beach, Florida, USA; St. Louis Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol (37) looks on from inside the dugout against the Houston Astros during the fifth inning at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images St. Louis Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol received a two-year contract extension through the 2028 season, the team announced Sunday.
Financial terms were not disclosed by the team, which holds an option for the 2029 season.
“As I’ve gotten to know Oli, I’ve seen someone who cares about this organization and knows what has made the Cardinals special over time — and who understands that for us to get where we need to go, we must compete relentlessly to set new standards in everything that we do,” president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom said.
“He is invested in the progress of our young core and is unafraid to challenge himself and to help those around him grow. I am energized to continue working with him towards the on-field success that we expect and that our fans deserve.”
Marmol, 39, has guided the Cardinals to a 325-323 record during his four seasons as the skipper. He led St. Louis to the National League Central title in 2022 before the team fell in the wild-card series to the Philadelphia Phillies.
Last season, the Cardinals posted a 78-84 record to finish in fourth place in the NL Central.
Marmol was a coach with St. Louis from 2017-21 under previous managers Mike Shildt and Mike Matheny.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Tyler Reif treated for heat exhaustion after Trucks race
Oct 31, 2025; Avondale, Arizona, USA; NASCAR Truck Series driver Tyler Reif (41) during the NASCAR Truck Series Championship race at Phoenix Raceway. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series rookie Tyler Reif was treated for heat exhaustion after Saturday night’s street race in St. Petersburg, Fla.
Reif, 18, was transported to an area medical facility after finishing 16th in the race in the No. 42 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet. He was later released.
“Tyler and his family would like to express their gratitude to the NASCAR officials, track medical workers and the local medical facility staff for their care,” Niece Motorsports said in a release.
Reif made his debut in the NASCAR Craftsman Trucks Series in 2025. Saturday’s race was just his third on the circuit, including a 17th-place finish at Atlanta on Feb. 21.
–Field Level Media
Hannah Green wins her 2nd HSBC Women's World Championship
Cards extend manager Oliver Marmol through '28 season
