Sports
US wins 2nd straight team figure skating gold over Japan, Italy
Gold medalists Ilia Malinin, Amber Glenn, Ellie Kam, Danny O’Shea, Madison Chock, Evan Bates and Alysa Liu of the United States celebrate on the podium after winning the team figure skating event MILAN, Italy — “Quad God” Ilia Malinin vaulted the United States above Japan and to the top of the podium at the Milan Cortina Games on Sunday to cap a thrilling team competition that saw host Italy seize bronze.
With the U.S. and Japan tied going into the men’s free skate, the 21-year-old Malinin met the moment even though he wasn’t at his best to lead the U.S. to a second successive Olympic team title.
“I’m proud of myself,” Malinin told reporters.
“I’m proud of my team for all the work they’ve put into this event, without each other it wouldn’t have happened.”
Malinin had been expected to perform seven quads in his free skate but ended up attempting only five, and even those were not flawless as he stumbled out of his quad Lutz. He turned two planned quads – including the quad Axel – into triples.
But he salvaged his program with a huge quad toeloop followed up by a quad Salchow, both in combinations.
He also landed a backflip on one leg to the delight of a packed crowd, which included a large number of vocal Americans at the Milano Ice Skating Arena.
His score of 200.03 was almost 40 points less than his season’s best but still good enough to defeat Japan’s Shun Sato, who skated cleanly after Malinin but was unable to match his rival’s technical ability.
“Honestly, the moment has still not settled in yet. I still haven’t really figured out that I’m wearing a gold medal from the Olympics,” Malinin said.
“It’s honestly just such an unreal feeling. But overall, I’m just so excited. This brings me so much joy and energy, and of course, the confidence and the motivation leading up to my individual event.”
The U.S. finished with 69 points, one more than Japan, while Italy took bronze with 60 points. Malinin remains the runaway favorite to win gold in the individual event at his first Olympic Games.
The U.S. team included the veteran ice dancing duo Madison Chock and Evan Bates, the pair of Ellie Kam and Danny O’Shea, and Alysa Liu.
Chock and Bates got the chance to savor the gold medal on the night unlike in Beijing 2022, where a failed drug test by a Russian skater changed the team results and the U.S. athletes did not receive their medals until more than two years later.
JAPAN FIGHT BACK
Japan came into the final day of the team competition trailing the U.S. by five points but their gold medal hopes were given new life with stunning performances from Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara in the pairs and Kaori Sakamoto in the women’s free skate — leaving them tied with the U.S heading into the final men’s free skate.
The Japanese pairs world champions opened with a triple twist lift and Miura was left punching the air in delight as the duo closed their program with Kihara lifting her above him into their final pose — a performance that earned them a season’s best 155.55 from the judges.
“We were trying to aim for about 145 or a little bit higher, and when we saw that it was 155, there was so much joy… we were overwhelmed with emotions,” a teary-eyed Miura told reporters following the rousing performance which left Japan trailing the U.S. by just two points with two segments to go.
Japan pulled into a tie with the U.S. when Sakamoto delivered a spellbinding performance that earned her top place in the women’s free skate with 148.62 points.
American Amber Glenn had to settle for third behind Sakamoto and Georgia’s Anastasiia Gubanova after she endured two botched landings at the start of her routine – a result which wiped out the United States’ lead heading into men’s free skate.
“I just physically didn’t feel great,” Glenn said.
“My legs were feeling heavy, I was tired. I just didn’t feel my best.”
U.S. hopes of defending their gold medal from Beijing then rested on the shoulders of Malinin, who made up for his disappointing short program on Saturday by winning the point America needed to top the podium.
Japan held their heads high after pushing the heavily favored U.S. team to the limit.
“Everybody has done a gold-medal performance,” Sakamoto, a three-time world champion, said.
“So it really doesn’t matter what color medal we get.”
ITALY SHINE
In the battle for bronze, Italy’s Matteo Rizzo delivered the performance of his life to keep his team ahead of Canada and Georgia after solid skates by Lara Naki Gutmann and the duo of Sara Conti and Niccolo Macii.
The Italian team shouted “bronze! bronze!” as Rizzo went through the final moments of his performance, drawing a huge roar from the crowd as he finished and knelt with his forehead on the ground, hiding his tears.
Rizzo smiled and slid on his knees over to his delirious teammates in his box when it was clear Italy would be taking home its first Olympic medal in figure skating since 2014.
“I have no words to describe the feeling of staying on the Olympic ice with the crowd cheering while you’re skating the best program of your life.
“I couldn’t hear the music anymore, I could just hear the screaming of the people, the screaming of my teammates.”
Paris Olympic tennis gold medalist Novak Djokovic, NBA Hall of Famer Pau Gasol, and eight-time Olympic medallist in short track American Apolo Ohno were among the notable names in attendance at the arena on the outskirts of Milan.
–Reuters, special to Field Level Media
Sports
Kawhi Leonard racks up 41 to lead Clippers to runaway win over Wolves
Feb 8, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves guard Ayo Dosunmu (13) battles Los Angeles Clippers center Brook Lopez (11) for the ball in the first quarter at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images Kawhi Leonard scored 41 points and grabbed eight rebounds to help the Los Angeles Clippers pull away for a 115-96 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday afternoon in Minneapolis.
John Collins and Yanic Konan Niederhauser added 15 points apiece for Los Angeles, which won its second game in a row. Kobe Sanders contributed 10 points.
Anthony Edwards scored 23 points to lead Minnesota, which has lost three of its past four games. Julius Randle finished with 17 points and eight rebounds, and Rudy Gobert tallied 10 points and seven rebounds.
Ayo Dosunmu scored 11 points in his debut with the Timberwolves, who acquired him from the Chicago Bulls three days earlier. Dosunmu made 4 of 11 shots and was 3-of-7 from 3-point range.
The Clippers led by at least 18 points throughout the fourth quarter. Jordan Miller made a pair of free throws to give Los Angeles its largest lead of the game at 28 points with 3:10 remaining.
Los Angeles entered the fourth quarter with a 21-point lead.
The Clippers started the second half on a 7-0 run to go ahead 61-42 with 10:15 remaining in the third quarter. Collins and Leonard each made a jump shot, and Derrick Jones Jr. punctuated the run with a 3-pointer.
The Timberwolves pulled within seven points after Edwards made a dunk to cut the deficit to 63-56 with 6:21 left in the third quarter.
Leonard and the rest of his Clippers teammates did not allow Minnesota to get any closer. The Clippers finished the third quarter on a 17-3 run to seize an 80-59 advantage. Sanders sank two 3-pointers during the run.
The Clippers led 54-42 at the half.
Los Angeles closed the first half on a 20-6 run to seize the lead. That included a stretch in which the Clippers scored 11 consecutive points on a 3-pointer by Kris Dunn, two free throws and a layup by Leonard, a dunk by Collins and a driving layup by Dunn.
-Field Level Media
Sports
ATP roundup: Felix Auger-Aliassime defends title, sets Canadian record
Jan 19, 2026; Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada in action against Nuno Borges of Portugal in the first round of the men’s singles at the Australian Open at John Cain Arena in Melbourne Park. Mandatory Credit: Mike Frey-Imagn Images Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime successfully defended his Open Occitanie championship on Sunday with a 6-3, 7-6 (4) victory over Adrian Mannarino in Montpellier, France.
Auger-Aliassime, 25, recorded 13 aces and won 87% of his first-serve points to dispatch the Frenchman in 1 hour, 35 minutes. The ninth career ATP title for Auger-Aliassime is one more than Milos Raonic for the most tour-level titles by a Canadian in the Open Era.
A strong service game was nothing new for Auger-Aliassime, who delivered 20 aces while posting a 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-1 victory over French qualifier Titouan Droguet on Saturday.
Auger-Aliassime will elevate one spot to No. 6 in the ATP rankings on Monday.
Davis Cup
The fifth-seeded United States finished a 4-0 sweep of host Hungary on Sunday in Tatabanya to advance to the second round of Davis Cup qualifying.
Christian Harrison and Austin Krajicek defeated Hungary’s Fabian Marozsan and Zsombor Piros in doubles action 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, and Emilio Nava defeated Matyas Fuele 6-2, 6-3 to close out the first round against unseeded Hungary.
In more dramatic action, unseeded host South Korea rallied for a 3-2 win over ninth-seeded Argentina in Busan. After the Argentinian doubles team of Guido Andreozzi and Federico Agustin Gomez defeated Jisung Nam and Uisung Park 6-3, 7-5 to go up 2-1, the Koreans rallied behind a 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 victory from Soonwoo Kwon over Thiago Agustin Tirante and a 6-4, 6-3 win by Hyeon Chung over Marco Trungelliti in the decisive match.
Host India also won 3-2 in the decisive fifth match, beating the fourth-seeded Netherlands in Bengaluru thanks to a 6-4, 7-6 (4) win from Dhakshineswar Suresh over Guy Den Ouden. India also claimed the doubles point in three sets while Dutch competitor Jesper De Jong won the fourth match 5-7, 6-1, 6-4 to level it at 2-2.
Entering the day tied at 1, sixth-seeded France beat visiting Slovakia in both matches in Le Portel. Arthur Rinderknech defeated Alex Molcan 7-5, 7-6 (6) to clinch the result after doubles pair Benjamin Bonzi and Pierre-Hugues Herbert beat Milos Karol and Lukas Klein 6-2, 6-3.
Host Czechia entered Sunday with a 2-0 lead over visiting Sweden and clinched its spot in the second round with the doubles point in Jihlava. Petr Nouza and Patrik Rikl escaped with a 7-6 (4), 6-7 (4), 7-6 (4) win over Andre Goransson and Erik Grevelius. Ollie Wallin beat Maxim Mrva 6-4, 7-6 (1) in Match 4 to put a point on the board for the Swedes.
Belgium completed a 4-0 sweep of host Bulgaria with two more wins in Plovdiv. Sander Gille and Joran Vliegen won the doubles point 7-6 (5), 7-6 (3) over Alexander Donski and Pyotr Nesterov, and Raphael Collignon defeated Ivan Ivanov 6-2, 6-2.
Host Ecuador finished off a 3-1 upset of No. 2 seed Australia in Quito with Gonzalo Escobar and Diego Hidalgo winning in doubles, 7-6 (5), 6-4, over Rinky Hijikata and Jordan Thompson. Jason Kubler beat Emilio Camacho 6-4, 6-2 to salvage a point for the Aussies.
The second round of Davis Cup qualifying is set for Sept. 18-20, with the finals set for Nov. 24-29.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Women's Top 25 roundup: No. 2 UCLA fends off No. 8 Michigan
Feb 1, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins center Lauren Betts (51) reacts after a foul call in the second half against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images Kiki Rice scored 16 of her 20 points after halftime and Lauren Betts tied a season high of 16 rebounds to go with 16 points as No. 2 UCLA escaped with a 69-66 win over No. 8 Michigan on Sunday in Ann Arbor, Mich.
The Bruins (23-1, 13-0 Big Ten) rallied from an early six-point hole to lead by as many as 13 in the third quarter. Michigan was down 69-60 with 29 seconds left, but Olivia Olson and Syla Swords sandwiched back-to-back 3-pointers around a Rice turnover to cut it to three.
After Gabriela Jaquez was sent to the line and missed both free throws, Michigan had a chance to tie at the buzzer but Swords was off the mark.
Jaquez scored 13 points and Gianna Kneepkens had 12 for UCLA in its 17th straight win. Olson scored 11 of her 20 points in the fourth quarter to power Michigan (20-4, 11-2) and Mila Holloway added 15 points and six assists.
No. 3 South Carolina 93, No. 19 Tennessee 50
Ta’Niya Latson scored 21 points to lead all five starters in double figures as the Gamecocks smashed the Lady Volunteers in Columbia, S.C.
South Carolina (24-2, 10-1 SEC) won by 43 for the second straight game while Tennessee (15-6, 7-2) suffered its largest loss of the season. The Gamecocks shot 69.2% from the field and limited the Vols to 28.1%.
Joyce Edwards (20 points, eight rebounds) and Madina Okot (10 points, 15 rebounds) also starred for South Carolina. Talaysia Cooper had 17 points, five boards and five assists for Tennessee.
No. 9 Ohio State 80, Oregon 64
Elsa Lemmila tallied 23 points and nine rebounds to pace the Buckeyes to a thorough win over the Ducks in Eugene, Ore.
Kennedy Cambridge had 20 points, seven rebounds and eight steals while sister Jaloni Cambridge added 19 points, eight assists and six rebounds for Ohio State (22-3, 11-2 Big Ten). The Buckeyes had 14 steals and 28 fastbreak points on the day.
Ari Long scored 16 points and Mia Jacobs and Sarah Rambus added 13 apiece for Oregon (18-8, 6-7), which committed a season-high 23 turnovers to end its four-game winning streak.
Colorado 80, No. 14 TCU 79
Jade Masogayo drew a foul while sinking a fastbreak layup with two seconds to go and converted the accompanying free throw to give the Buffaloes their only lead of the second half and the upset of the Horned Frogs in Boulder, Colo.
Masogayo scored 17 of her 23 points in the second half for Colorado (16-8, 7-5 Big 12) while Desiree Wooten scored 19 with six assists, Logyn Greer had 17 points and Zyanna Walker chipped in 15 points.
TCU (21-4, 9-3) erased a 10-point deficit with a 10-0 second-quarter run, but squandered an eight-point lead in the fourth. Olivia Miles did all she could with 31 points and five rebounds to lead the Frogs, while Marta Suarez had 20 points and five boards.
No. 24 Washington 91, Wisconsin 86 (OT)
Avery Howell poured in a career-high 34 points, including 10 in the extra session, and had a game-high 14 rebounds as the Huskies escaped in Madison, Wis.
Washington (18-6, 8-5) scored the last four points of regulation to push the game to overtime, when Howell hit consecutive 3-pointers to put the Huskies in front. A four-point play by Destiny Howell gave the Badgers (13-11, 5-8) an 86-85 lead with 1:09 to go, but Howell and Sayvia Sellers scored the game’s final six points.
Sellers recorded 23 points and five assists and Elle Ladine had 16 points and seven boards for the Huskies. Destiny Howell (unrelated to Avery) led Wisconsin with 28 points and Gift Uchenna had a season-high 24 points with 12 rebounds.
No. 17 Duke 95, SMU 36
Toby Fournier dropped 26 points on 12-of-16 shooting, freshman Arianna Roberson had career highs of 22 points and 16 rebounds as the Blue Devils thrashed the Mustangs in Durham, N.C.
It marked the largest margin of victory for the Blue Devils this season and their second time holding an opponent below 40 points. Duke led by as many as 60 in the final minutes.
Delaney Thomas added 16 points and 10 rebounds and Ashlon Jackson bundled 11 points with a career-high 10 assists for the Blue Devils (18-6, 13-0 ACC), who outrebounded the Mustangs, 53-29, and scored 20 points off 25 SMU turnovers.
Grace Hall had nine points and seven rebounds to guide SMU (8-16, 1-11). The home team outshot the visitors 52.0% to 22.8% as the Mustangs never led.
No. 5 LSU 77, Auburn 44
ZaKiyah Johnson tallied 16 points and eight rebounds, Amiya Joyner added 10 points and 10 boards and the visitors ran away with the SEC victory in a battle of Tigers in Auburn, Ala.
Mikaylah Williams had 12 points and seven rebounds and Flau’jae Johnson added 10 points and seven boards as LSU (22-3, 8-3 SEC) bounced back from a loss to No. 4 Texas. LSU owned a 54-30 advantage on the glass while overcoming 19 turnovers.
Harissoum Coulibaly paced Auburn (13-12, 2-9) with 13 points and four assists. Clara Coulibaly grabbed 10 rebounds in 22 minutes.
No. 6 Louisville 84, Syracuse 65
Laura Ziegler made 10 of 13 shots from the floor for a team-high 22 points and the Cardinals used a dominant first quarter to sail to victory over the host Orange.
Mackenly Randolph (15 points, eight rebounds), Imari Berry (15 points, five assists) and Tajianna Roberts (12 points, five boards, five assists) also contributed to the Cardinals’ cause. Louisville (22-4, 12-1 ACC) shrugged off a home loss to Duke on Thursday by winning the first quarter 28-6, then shook off Syracuse’s comeback efforts in the second half.
Dominique Darius scored 22 points on 7-for-7 shooting to lead Syracuse (19-5, 9-4). Uche Izoje posted 13 points, eight rebounds and four blocks and Sophie Burrows scored 11.
No. 25 North Carolina 84, Wake Forest 56
Freshman Nyla Brooks went off for 21 points and seven rebounds, both career highs, to power the Tar Heels past the host Demon Deacons in Winston-Salem, N.C.
Brooks made 5 of 11 3-point tries while teammate Nyla Harris scored 13 of her 19 points in the second half to help North Carolina (20-5, 9-3 ACC) win its seventh in a row.
Milan Brown scored 13 points to lead Wake Forest (13-12, 3-10). UNC owned a 41-24 rebounding edge and a 21-1 advantage in second-chance points.
–Field Level Media
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Kawhi Leonard racks up 41 to lead Clippers to runaway win over Wolves
