Sports
Torrid Clippers take on suddenly surging Sixers
Feb 1, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard (2) against Phoenix Suns forward Dillon Brooks (3) in the first half at Mortgage Matchup Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images After another top defensive performance, the Los Angeles Clippers return home Monday to face the Philadelphia 76ers at Inglewood, Calif., as their NBA-best run of success is now over a month old.
The Clippers improved to 17-4 since Dec. 20 with a 117-93 victory on Sunday over the host Phoenix Suns that came without the services of veteran James Harden, who was out on the first day of a back-to-back for personal reasons.
Kawhi Leonard scored 25 points for Los Angeles and had plenty of help from Jordan Miller, who scored 20 points off the bench, while center Ivica Zubac had 20 rebounds with 14 points. It was Zubac’s first 20-rebound game of the campaign after hitting that mark five times last seasons.
Los Angeles is ninth in the Western Conference standings, one game ahead of the Portland Trail Blazers. The Clippers sit three games behind the Golden State Warriors for eighth place.
Leonard’s play has led the Clippers’ resurgence, while team defense has made a major impact. Los Angeles has held opponents under 100 points six times during their current run of success.
“Playing together, trusting, believing, and just playing for one another,” Los Angeles head coach Tyronn Lue said about the recent stretch. “James (Harden) was out tonight and he is one of our big dogs, but other guys stepped up in his absence.
“… Once we hit that rough start at 6-21, once we challenged the guys, they’ve really taken off and they’ve really been good.”
The Clippers are 10-1 at home since their turnaround began, including five consecutive victories.
The 76ers arrive in the Los Angeles area on a three-game winning streak after a 124-114 home victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday. Joel Embiid scored a season-high 40 points for Philadelphia with 11 rebounds.
Embiid was 13 of 27 from the floor (48.1%) and matched a season high with three 3-pointers on five attempts. Kelly Oubre Jr. scored 19 points with 10 rebounds and All-Star Game starter Tyrese Maxey had 18 points with eight assists.
The win streak has come after the Sixers lost five of seven games going back to Jan. 14.
Embiid has averaged 26.2 points in 28 games and has at least 29 points in seven consecutive games but was not selected an All-Star reserve on Sunday. Leonard was not named, either, even as he has averaged 27.7 points in 34 games for the Clippers. Both have delivered despite histories of chronic knee issues.
Leonard could be a candidate to replace Milwaukee Bucks All-Star Giannis Antetokounmpo (calf injury).
“Keep pushing,” Embiid said. “It was supposed to be basically a tryout for next year and moving forward. How are we going to do this? I would say I think we figured out the schedule and what we have to do every single day to make sure that I’m prepared and I feel good.”
Sunday’s game was expected to be the return of Philadelphia’s Paul George against one of his former teams, but that was derailed by George’s 25-game suspension for violating the NBA’s anti-drug policy. His suspension was handed down before Saturday’s game.
Without their sharpshooter in George, the Sixers still went 17 of 36 (47.2%) from 3-point range Saturday against New Orleans, tied for their second-best accuracy mark from distance this season.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Matt Fitzpatrick catches break en route to 63, takes RBC Heritage lead
Apr 17, 2026; Hilton Head, South Carolina, USA; Matt Fitzpatrick putts on 16 green during the second round of the RBC Heritage golf tournament. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images Matt Fitzpatrick of England shot a spotless, 8-under 63 to vault into the lead halfway through the RBC Heritage on Friday in Hilton Head Island, S.C.
Fitzpatrick climbed to 14-under 128 at Harbour Town Golf Links, while Norway’s Viktor Hovland came close to tying him at the end of the day but settled for a 65 and second place at 13 under.
Harris English sits third at 10 under following a 68, and first-round leader Ludvig Aberg of Sweden made three back-nine bogeys on his way to 70, slipping into a tie at 9 under with Patrick Cantlay (64) and Austrian Sepp Straka (67).
There is no 36-hole cut at the post-Masters signature event with a $20 million purse. Justin Thomas, last year’s champion, will be grateful to see the weekend as he’s fallen to dead last in the 82-man field following rounds of 76 and 75 (9 over).
Fitzpatrick, 31, won the Heritage in 2023 in its first year as a signature event. With the course comfortability came a lucky break at the par-3 14th on Friday.
His tee shot flew far left of the green, but his ball appeared to bounce off a tree and a cart path to come back to the green with some speed. It nearly rolled all the way off into the water, but a sprinkler head helped bring it to a stop. The head allowed Fitzpatrick a free drop for relief, and from just off the green he drilled a 33-foot putt for birdie.
Akshay Bhatia matched Fitzpatrick for the round of the day, shooting 63 and tying a tournament single-round record with 11 birdies. After a poor first round, he moved up to 6 under on the leaderboard.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Kyle Larson looks to defend title at Kansas' AdventHealth 400
Apr 12, 2026; Bristol, Tennessee, USA; Hendrick Motorsports driver Kyle Larson (5) at Bristol Motor Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-Imagn Images Through eight Cup Series races, five different drivers have been the first to the checkers and positioned their teams nicely at the top of the standings.
Reigning series champion Kyle Larson is hoping it’s his turn to join that list Sunday at the AdventHealth 400 at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kan.
In its effort to crown a championship by creating more competition in every race instead of a Game 7 scenario for just four drivers, NASCAR scrapped its system and revisited the “Chase” format reminiscent of 2004’s Chase for the Nextel Cup, which had 10 drivers competing in a 10-race playoff.
Some variations made their way into the new 16-race postseason, but the most significant is the 55-point reward to each race winner, a 15-point bump from 2025.
Though five drivers have won a race so far, 23XI Racing’s Tyler Reddick has been victorious in half, owning four total victories to give him a 62-point advantage over second-place Ryan Blaney.
Winning mattered a lot in 2025. First, it was a “win and you’re in” the playoffs, then it was tacking on postseason points with another. Finally, winning in the final three stages advanced a driver to the next one.
However, winning matters even more now and can create a gap from the pack from Race 1 to Race 36, even after a lone 26-race reset that favors the points leader.
Win a lot and a hot shoe can be in Reddick’s perch, sitting pretty in the catbird seat.
Denny Hamlin, Bristol first-time victor Ty Gibbs and Chase Elliott occupy third through fifth, which leads to the first non-winner in sixth place, Larson.
Hamlin arrives at Kansas as one of the betting favorites, but Larson appears on a quest because the Hendrick Motorsports pilot has yet to end a race as the top dog on a Cup Series Sunday.
It’s been a minute since grabbing the checkers.
Larson finds himself in a unique position Sunday: It marks the final time this regular season where he is a defending race winner. The Elk Grove, Calif., product also won at Homestead-Miami (this season’s finale) in March of 2025 and Bristol last spring.
“I feel like we’re really close, like we could have won four to five races in this time span of not winning, maybe even more,” said Larson, who has 260 points and is second to Blaney with 72 stage points. “It’s kind of wild to think it’s been almost a year since I’ve won because I don’t feel like we’re that bad. … It just hasn’t happened.”
Larson, 33, said last November’s championship in the Arizona desert made his current 32-race winless streak seem like no big deal, saying, “Ultimately, celebrating the championship in Phoenix felt like a win in a lot of ways.”
The two-time series champ does not lead single-digit laps at Kansas. Larson runs the point in chunks and is usually the guy being chased at the leaderboard’s perch.
Larson led 221 laps a year ago in his last victory and is a three-time winner at the 1.5-mile track in the past nine races.
Since 2021, his No. 5 Chevy has paced 761 circuits there, more than double that of Hamlin (337), the next highest leader.
But just leading the final one Sunday will be fulfilling.
–Field Level Media
Sports
WTA roundup: Coco Gauff, Iga Swiatek both upset at Stuttgart
Elena Rybakina hits a shot against Aryna Sabalenka during the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif., March 15, 2026. Top-seeded Elena Rybakina escaped in a third-set tiebreaker while No. 2 Coco Gauff and No. 3 Iga Swiatek were upset victims to Karolina Muchova and Mirra Andreeva, respectively, in Friday’s quarterfinals of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Germany.
No. 7 Muchova saved 12 of 15 break points during a 6-3, 5-7, 6-3 victory that marked her first win over Gauff in seven career meetings. The Czech will next face No. 4 Elina Svitolina after the Ukrainian delivered a 7-6 (2), 7-5 win over Czech Linda Noskova.
No. 6 Andreeva of Russia rallied for a 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 win to defeat Swiatek of Poland for the third consecutive time. Andreeva saved 9 of 14 break points while winning in two hours, 36 minutes.
Andreeva next faces Rybakina, who staved off a second match point against Canada’s Leylah Fernandez as part of winning the final three points to score a 6-7 (5), 6-4, 7-6 (6) victory. Rybakina had a 7-6 edge in aces and hit 51 winners while winning in three hours, two minutes.
Rouen Metropolitan Open
Teenage qualifier Veronika Podrez of Ukraine reached the semifinals in her first main-draw tournament by rolling to a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Brit Katie Boulter in Rouen, France.
Podrez, 19, had 28 winners against 11 unforced errors while finishing off Boulter in 78 minutes. Podrez’s semifinal opponent will be second-seeded Sorana Cirstea after the Romanian registered a 7-6 (2), 6-2 victory over Anna Bondar of Hungary.
Top-seeded Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine and Tatjana Maria of Germany will meet in the other quarterfinals. Kostyuk ousted Ann Li 6-0, 6-7 (4), 6-3, while Maria beat Belarus’ Iryna Shymanovich 7-6 (5), 6-2.
–Field Level Media
Matt Fitzpatrick catches break en route to 63, takes RBC Heritage lead
Kyle Larson looks to defend title at Kansas' AdventHealth 400
