#defense

#defense

The Lakers closed the game on a 29-8 run from there, with Doncic thwarting his former coach, Jason Kidd's scheme to attack him on defense when the Mavs had the ball. "We counted after the game, he had six straight stops where they targeted him," Lakers coach JJ Redick said of Doncic. "Just a fantastic job from him. Then [he] makes the game-sealing defensive play with the charge on [Naji] Marshall."

"I was definitely hyped," Allen told ESPN. "I had Paul Pierce in my ear telling me, 'Get ready! You stick me every day [in practice]. You should be ready. Let's go! That's Kobe Bryant!'" The No. 25 pick in the 2004 draft was trying to soak everything in and get himself in the right frame of mind for the 54th game of his young NBA career.

Joe Sterling, one of the best three-point shooters in the country, tried to put up a three-point attempt from long range at the outset of the third quarter on Wednesday night at Sierra Canyon. He must have forgotten who was guarding him, because Brandon McCoy came flying like Superman to block the shot, then took the deflected ball, dribbled and delivered an uncontested dunk.

Miami is going through one of its more up-and-down seasons in recent years. Although the argument could be made that they've gone through a stretch of up-and-down seasons going back a few years, now. The current season, however, just seems and feels like a new low, and while there are contributing factors, much of it has to do with star players not playing like star players.

Josiah Nance, a 6-foot-4 junior guard, volunteered to guard 7-foot-4 Cherif Millogo of St. Francis in the third quarter on Thursday night in a tight game. "It was a challenge," he said. "They were letting us be tough. Most physical guy wins." Nance couldn't have been more correct. He was so effective guarding Millogo despite having three fouls that Notre Dame turned a five-point halftime lead into a 20-point bulge through three quarters en route to a 71-48 victory.

Brendan Donovan is a utility player (primarily second baseman) who plays for the St. Louis Cardinals. About to turn 29 on January 16, he was born in Germany while his father was stationed there, and grew up an Army brat, moving around. He's credited that upbringing for forging his team-first mentality, his desire to always do the right thing, and his willingness to work hard.

If the AI rally continues this year, I expect it to return to its roots. AI investors poured into hardware companies early on before coalescing into software companies and driving up broader tech valuations to nosebleed levels. This year, I expect hardware stocks to outperform their software counterparts. Money is moving from hyperscalers into the AI buildout, not the other way around. AI models are yet to generate profits, so for 2026, AI hardware companies are still the best picks.

December ended with Brooklyn leading the NBA in opponent scoring, allowing just 104.6 points per game, nearly six points better than the next-lowest team in the Eastern Conference. It was a sharp reversal for a group that entered the month allowing 113.9 points per game and searching for traction. The question now is whether that version of the Nets can carry into January. So far, the early returns have been mixed, though it's still a small sample.

The Raptors magnetic rookie, Collin Murray-Boyles - nicknamed Magneto for his ability to attract the ball defensively for steals and deflections, the latter of which he is in the 99th percentile in frequency of creating - featured heavily in all of what went well for his squad. A connective piece and playmaker. A touchstone that the ball could pick up energy from before moving on to a shooter or a dunker.

The 49ers offense, which had taken the Kyle Shanahan attack to new heights since their bye week, was limited to a 48-yard field goal by Eddy Pineiro with 1:06 left in the first half. It's kind of hard to expect to really win the game if we're not going to score more than a field goal, tight end George Kittle said in the aftermath. Shout out to Eddy, though. Thank you for making it.

Black is slimming. So are the 49ers' chances of winning the Super Bowl this season after a 13-3 beat-down loss to the Seattle Seahawks Saturday, with San Francisco wearing a one-off, all-black uniform. Only a few days ago, this 49ers season looked inexplicably charmed. The Niners were surging, and the No. 1 seed was sitting right there on the table like a holiday roast the path to a Lombardi Trophy looked like a short road that seemed smoothly paved in gold.