They needed him, the weight of playoff-level intensity resting on his scratched-up shoulders, and so Nikola Jokic didn’t come off the floor.

Not at the start of the fourth quarter Tuesday night, the Nuggets down five and reeling from a second quarter where they were slaughtered in non-Jokic minutes. Not even after a nine-point lead with eight...Read more

Steph Curry raced past Jimmy Butler, with his hands up and ready for the pass, late in the first half of Tuesday night’s game at Memphis.

Curry received the pass he wanted and, some 30 feet away from the rim on the right wing, launched a rainbow shot. The ball ripped the net and gave him 32 first-half points, the 22nd time in his career that ...Read more

Magic coach Jamahl Mosley has talked repeatedly about his team wanting to play its best basketball in the months of March and April.

Orlando failed to do that Monday night when it fell to the visiting Clippers at Kia Center but was able to bounce back against the Spurs at Frost Bank Center less than 24 hours later.

On the second night of a ...Read more

HARTFORD, Conn. — The UConn men’s basketball program could have two one-and-done lottery picks in as many years.

Forward Liam McNeeley, the Big East Freshman of the Year, told ESPN that he will be declaring for the 2025 NBA draft on Tuesday.

Projected to be selected in the first round, possibly late in the lottery, McNeeley could be the ...Read more

DETROIT — For the second time in as many days, Michigan basketball landed a player out of the transfer portal.

This time, the Wolverines added a big piece from the Big Ten in Illinois big man Morez Johnson Jr., who shared news of his commitment on his social media accounts Tuesday.

Johnson, a former top-40 recruit, was an impact player on ...Read more

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida coach Todd Golden would rather face anyone but Auburn in the Final Four.

Tigers coach Bruce Pearl knows the feeling.

But two coaches a pair of wins away from a national title will set aside a 20-year relationship for a once-in-a-lifetime experience when the Gators and Tigers square off Saturday in San Antonio.

�...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Every step of Kevin Willard’s journey to Villanova from Maryland should be instructive and sobering. It should strip away any remaining sentimentality about the world of college basketball and how Villanova’s leaders view the Wildcats’ place in it. It should leave no doubt that those leaders wanted to, and perhaps ...Read more

BALTIMORE — Two days after being dumped by Kevin Willard for Villanova, Maryland men’s basketball has moved swiftly and named Texas A&M’s Buzz Williams its next coach.

The school announced Tuesday afternoon that Williams will be introduced Wednesday at Xfinity Center in College Park.

“It is an honor and privilege to be named the head ...Read more

DENVER – The NBA suspended Naz Reid and Donte DiVincenzo each for one game following an altercation between the Minnesota Timberwolves players and multiple members of the Pistons in Sunday’s win over Detroit.

The two will miss Tuesday’s game at Denver (10 p.m. ET, TNT) as the Wolves begin a five-game road trip.

For the Pistons, Isaiah ...Read more

MIAMI — College basketball stinks.

I hate what it has become — and not by sinister attack from the outside, but by its own hand. We are watching a sport cannibalize itself with the institutionalized chaos and greed of the transfer portal and NIL money. College hoops has become an unholy mess that needs major fixing, and I’m here to give ...Read more

The Lakers have “recognized the magnitude” of every game they have to play as the season winds down, their coach JJ Redick saying they have to play each of them with an urgency to determine their own playoff seeding fate in the super-competitive Western Conference.

It really is simple for the Lakers: Keep winning and that will improve their...Read more

The Brooklyn Nets were blown out 120-101 when they faced the Dallas Mavericks last week at Barclays Center.

Two nights removed from snapping a six-game losing streak against the Washington Wizards, Brooklyn showcased better effort at both ends of the court in Monday’s rematch against Dallas American Airlines Center, and it survived 113-109 on...Read more

ORLANDO, Fla. — In a meeting between two of the top three defenses in the NBA, a lack of offense was on full display during a low-scoring affair between the Magic and the Clippers at Kia Center on Monday night.

Ultimately, Los Angeles came out on top, 96-87, when four scorers finished in double figures, including 21 points from six-time All-...Read more

Before the Boston Celtics departed for their longest road trip of the season, Kristaps Porzingis set what seemed like a lofty goal.

Asked what would make Boston’s six-game road trip a success, the big man replied: “For us, probably 6-0, no?”

Well, mission accomplished.

The Celtics closed out a flawless trip Monday night with a 117-103 ...Read more

NEW YORK — One of the top players in the NCAA transfer portal is headed to St. John’s.

The Red Storm are adding Providence forward Bryce Hopkins, head coach Rick Pitino announced Monday, in a major coup for the reigning Big East champions.

“We are so excited to have Bryce Hopkins [as] part of our family,” Pitino wrote on social media. ...Read more

CHICAGO — Imagine leaving the United Center early Thursday night, getting into your car and turning on The Score to listen to the postgame show on the ride home.

You were satisfied with a competitive effort from the Chicago Bulls and a chance to watch Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Dončić do his thing. Perhaps you were there to witness LeBron...Read more

LEXINGTON, Ky. — It turned out, it was hard to beat a good team three times. For Kentucky, a third straight victory over Tennessee this season proved impossible.

Pounding UK on the offensive glass and slicing and dicing the Wildcats’ leaky pick-and-roll defense, Rick Barnes’ Volunteers avenged two regular-season defeats to Kentucky with a...Read more

FORT COLLINS, Colo. — Before Ali Farokhmanesh found a soft spot in Ben Jacobson’s heart, his coach thought he was Charmin soft.

“This isn’t Kirkwood anymore!” Jacobson screamed.

The gasket blew 17 years ago under a grey sky in Cedar Falls, one of those sleepy Iowa towns where the horizon and the sweet nothing beyond it seem to roll ...Read more