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USTA names Aussie Open boss Craig Tiley as new CEO

Tennis: US OpenSep 7, 2025; Flushing, NY, USA; (from left to right) Former tennis player Ivan Lendl, Jannik Sinner (ITA), Carlos Alcaraz (ESP), and USTA president Brian Vahaly pose for a photo after the final of mens singles at Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike Frey-Imagn Images

Australian Open CEO Craig Tiley, who has overseen massive growth in tennis participation in Australia during his tenure, was named CEO of the United States Tennis Association (USTA) on Tuesday.

Tiley, CEO of Tennis Australia since 2013 and Australian Open director since 2006, will assume his new role in the next few months while working with the board of directors of Tennis Australia to ensure a smooth change atop the country’s governing body for the sport.

“I am truly honored to step into the role of CEO of the USTA later this year,” Tiley said. “I’ve long admired the organization’s leadership in growing the game across the United States and the extraordinary success of the US Open.

“Tennis has shaped my life — personally and professionally — and having begun my tennis journey in the U.S. as an NCAA championship coach, this opportunity feels like a full-circle moment. I’m excited to return to American tennis and to work alongside our leadership locally and nationally to continue building the sport’s reach, impact and future.”

A former tennis coach at the University of Illinois, Tiley also has experience running community tennis and administration for the Australian Open. The first Grand Slam of the season has broken attendance and revenue records under Tiley’s watch.

“From the very beginning of this process, our top priority was identifying the right leader to accelerate participation growth and help us achieve our goal of reaching 35 million players by 2035,” USTA Board Chair and interim Co-CEO Brian Vahaly said. “Craig brings a rare combination of global credibility at the highest level of the sport and a proven commitment to growing the game at the grassroots. That balance is exactly what this moment requires.”

From 1994-2005, Tiley served as Illinois’ head coach and led the team to a national title in 2003 with a 32-0 record. The South African native twice was honored as Division I National Coach of the Year and was inducted into the ITA Men’s Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame.

During Tiley’s tenure as CEO of Tennis Australia, more people play tennis in the country than any other sport besides soccer. Last year, tennis saw 8.3% growth, the most of any sport, and overall participation has grown by 30% in the last five years. Coach membership, and female coaches in particular, has also seen a massive uptick in numbers.

–Field Level Media

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No. 7 Florida drubs No. 20 Arkansas, wins SEC regular-season title

Syndication: Gainesville SunFlorida forward Alex Condon (21) drives on Arkansas forward Trevon Brazile (7) during the first half of an NCAA basketball game at Steven C. O’Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Saturday, February 28, 2026. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]

Thomas Haugh scored 22 points, Ruben Chinyelu had 12 points and 16 rebounds for his 17th double-double, and No. 7 Florida clinched the Southeastern Conference regular-season title with a 111-77 rout of No. 20 Arkansas in Gainesville, Fla., on Saturday.

Alex Condon scored 17 points, Urban Klavzar and Boogie Fland scored 14 apiece and Xaivian Lee added 13 as the Gators (23-6, 14-2 SEC) placed seven players in double figures in their highest scoring game of the season.

The defending champion Gators lead second-place No. 17 Alabama (22-7, 12-4) by two games with two games left, and they own the tiebreaker after a 100-79 victory in their lone regular-season meeting.

Florida has won a season-high nine in a row — eight by at least 13 points — and is a projected No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Billy Richmond scored 22 points and Darius Acuff Jr. added 17 for the Razorbacks (21-8, 11-5), who had won five of six. They are a projected No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Acuff, the SEC’s leading scorer at 22.2 points per game, had a streak of nine straight 20-point games broken. He was 6 of 19 from the field.

Florida led by at least 24 in the final 15 minutes and stretched its advantage to 37 on Condon’s layup in the final three minutes.

The Gators secured their first regular-season title since 2013-14, when they also won the SEC tournament.

Florida shot 56.5% from the field and had a 51-31 rebounding advantage. Condon had six rebounds and Haugh had five. The Gators led the nation with a plus-14.1 rebound margin.

The Razorbacks shot 40.0% from the field.

Florida coach Todd Golden and Arkansas coach John Calipari were hit with double technical fouls with 17:27 left with the Gators holding a 23-point lead.

Klavzar kickstarted the Gators with two 3-pointers and Condon added a dunk in a 12-0 run to give Florida a 23-16 lead nine minutes in.

Lee made three layups later in the first half and Isaiah Brown (11 points) hit two 3-pointers and a transition dunk to push the Gators’ lead to 51-27 with 2:33 left in the first half.

Florida led 53-34 at half, when it totaled 32 points in the paint.

–Field Level Media

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Thomas Muller's first-half brace leads Vancouver to rout of Toronto

MLS: Toronto FC at Vancouver Whitecaps FCFeb 28, 2026; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Whitecaps FC forward Thomas Muller (13) celebrates scoring on a corner kick from midfielder Sebastian Berhalter (16) (not pictured) against Toronto FC goalkeeper Luka Gavran (1) during the first half at BC Place. Mandatory Credit: Simon Fearn-Imagn Images

Thomas Muller scored a first-half brace, leading the Whitecaps to a 3-0 victory over visiting Toronto FC on Saturday night in Vancouver.

Brian White also scored a first-half goal, while keeper Yohei Takaoka made three saves for his second consecutive clean sheet to open the MLS season.

With the victory, Vancouver (2-0-0, 6 points) improved to 4-0-1 in its last five regular-season matches against Toronto.

The Reds (0-2-0, 0 points) are now 6-9-4 in 19 MLS meetings against their Western Canadian rivals.

Trailing 3-0, Toronto had an excellent chance to cut into the lead early in the second half. Djordje Mihailovic thought he’d put Toronto on the board in the 55th minute, but the midfielder was caught offside.

Then in the 74th minute, Takaoka made a diving save off Toronto midfielder Jose Cifuentes – the Reds’ first shot on target of the match.

Vancouver controlled possession in the first half with five shots on target.

Aziel Jackson was awarded a penalty kick after being taken down in the area by Walker Zimmerman in the 24th minute. On the ensuing penalty kick, Muller opened the scoring, putting his right-footed strike in the bottom-left corner past Luka Gavran.

Muller added his second of the half 12 minutes later as Sebastian Berhalter’s corner was headed across to Muller by Mathias Laborda, and the German midfielder ripped his left-footed shot into an open goal.

In first-half stoppage time, off another Berhalter corner, Gavran was caught out of position, allowing White to score on a right-footed strike.

Up next, Vancouver travels to Portland for its first away match of the season next Saturday. Toronto visits Cincinnati next Sunday to wrap up a three-game road trip to open the season.

–Field Level Media

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Pelicans close 1st half strong to beat Jazz for 4th straight win

NBA: New Orleans Pelicans at Utah JazzFeb 28, 2026; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Herbert Jones (2) dunks the ball during the second quarter against the Utah Jazz at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Chris Nicoll-Imagn Images

Saddiq Bey scored 24 points and the visiting New Orleans Pelicans defeated the Utah Jazz for the second time in three nights on Saturday, 115-105.

Bey, who scored a season-high 42 points in the Pelicans’ 129-118 victory Thursday night, was joined in double figures by rookie Jeremiah Fears (18), who added a season-high 11 rebounds, Bryce McGowens (18), Herb Jones (17), and Jordan Poole (11) as New Orleans won its fourth consecutive game.

Leading scorer Trey Murphy III missed his fifth consecutive game because of a right shoulder contusion, and second-leading scorer Zion Williamson had just four points in 11 minutes before leaving the game with a right ankle injury.

New Orleans still had plenty of firepower, leading by as many as 27 points just as it did two nights earlier.

Isaiah Collier scored 21, Keyonte George (ankle) returned from a six-game absence to score 17, Elijah Harkless added 14, Ace Bailey had 13, Kyle Filipowski had 12 and Brice Sensabaugh 10 to lead the Jazz, who lost their fifth straight game.

The Pelicans pushed their 25-point halftime to 27 with 3:57 left in the third quarter, but the Jazz climbed within 89-73 at the end of the period. Utah got as close as seven points early in the fourth quarter, but New Orleans scored the next eight points and maintained a double-digit lead the rest of the way.

The Pelicans scored the first nine points of the game as the Jazz went nearly five minutes before making their first field goal. Utah pulled even at 17 and 19 before New Orleans held a 27-22 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Yves Missi, returning from a five-game absence due to a calf strain, made a dunk to start the second-quarter scoring and Poole followed with a 3-pointer to expand the lead to 10 points.

Jones made two 3-pointers and Bey had five points during a 15-0 run that completed a 20-2 surge, giving New Orleans a 65-40 halftime lead. The Jazz didn’t make a field goal in the final 4:55.

–Field Level Media

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