Good Morning! Here’s what happened in the world of sports on Tuesday, January 7.

NBA

We begin this morning with a little b-ball:

• After a lengthy absence due to a hamstring injury, Zion Williamson is back on the floor for the New Orleans Pelicans. And he’s back in a big way– watch this 360 breakaway dunk! Alas, the Pels lost to the Timberwolves 104-97. Anthony Edwards dropped 32 points.

• Four seconds left, Utah Jazz ball. Down three, Colin Sexton drains it! We’re headed to overtime! But wait… Trae Young has an answer. The Hawks beat the Jazz 124-121, thanks to this magnificent half-court shot at the buzzer.

• You know it takes something special to unseat a game-winning shot from the coveted final bullet point in the Remix. Well, have you ever heard of LeBron James? The Lakers lost 118-97 to a Mavericks team playing without Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. There are clearly some problems for the purple and gold. But that takes nothing away from this dunk-of-the-year candidate, courtesy of the GOAT:

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

Dunks aren’t just for the pros, ya know:

• Down go the Vols! The last undefeated team in men’s DI college basketball were the top-ranked Tennessee Volunteers… that is, until they got demolished by the Florida Gators. Tennessee was crushed 73-43. Watch out for UF this March. They’re legit.

• Michigan visited UCLA last night for a ranked conference matchup. They sent a clear message to the home team that they weren’t messing around– Vlad Goldin scored 36 points and the Wolverines crushed the Bruins 94-75.

• Apologies to the Duke fans who pointed out their absence from yesterday’s big games section. The Blue Devils had a potentially tricky game against Pitt last night… I say potentially, because they won 76-47. Cooper Flagg had 19 points and 10 rebounds. He also did this:

NHL

Hockey time! To the ice we go…

• Congratulations to Connor Hellebuyck, who became the third-fastest goalie in NHL history to reach 300 career wins. Hellebuyck and the Jets beat the Nashville Predators 5-2.

• The Dallas Stars went down 3-0 early in the first period against the New York Rangers. But they stormed back, taking the game to overtime and eventually winning 5-4. Veteran leader Jamie Benn slotted home the winning tally on a power play.

• Watch out, the Red Wings are getting hot! Patrick Kane scored the winning goal in overtime against Ottawa, and Detroit has now won five games in a row.

THE GOLF LEAGUE

The Bay Golf Club (Shane Lowry, Wyndham Clark, Ludwig Aberg) beat the New York Golf Club (Xander Schauffele, Matt Fitzpatrick, Rickie Fowler) last night in the first-ever TGL competition. I watched for a few minutes and didn’t really get the appeal, but I think there was a crowd that really enjoyed it? On one hand, you’re taking away all the quietness and beautiful scenery that makes golfers love the sport. However, TGL moves quickly, has super cool technology, and shows off the top players in a unique team format.

It’s hard to explain TGL without actually seeing the giant simulator and rotating green for yourself (the highlight video below is only two minutes if you want to check it out). For now, the Remix is putting TGL results on a probationary status– you let us know if this newfangled golf experiment is worth covering:

NOTEWORTHY NEWS

The Las Vegas Raiders have fired head coach Antonio Pierce after one year in charge. Vegas joins Chicago, New England, New Orleans, Jacksonville, and the Jets in the search for a new leader this offseason.

South Carolina will be without star forward Ashyln Watkins for the remainder of the season due to a torn ACL. If any team has the depth to overcome an injury, it’s South Carolina. Still, tough news for Watkins and the reigning champs.

Justin Verlander has signed a one-year contract with the San Francisco Giants. Although the 41-year old isn’t the dominant ace he once was, Verlander will be a welcome addition to the San Francisco rotation as they look to compete in the extremely tough NL West.

Just because I can (and because I forgot about it earlier), I’m going to include this wacky LaMelo Ball highlight in this section at the end. Enjoy:

TODAY’S BIG GAMES (all times Eastern)

THUNDER @ CAVALIERS, 7 PM on ESPN

• The top two teams in the NBA go head-to-head on national television. That’s the definition of a big game. And afterwards, Wemby and the Spurs take on Giannis and the Bucks.

NHL:

• Avalanche @ Blackhawks, 7:30 PM on TNT

• Panthers @ Utah Hockey Club, 10 PM on TNT

COLLEGE BASKETBALL:

• MEN: (10) Texas A&M @ (17) Oklahoma, 9 PM on SEC Network

• MEN: Penn State @ (13) Illinois, 9 PM on Big Ten Network

• WOMEN: (9) Ohio State @ (25) Michigan, 7 PM on Big Ten Plus

• WOMEN: (4) USC @ (8) Maryland, 8:30 PM on FS1

• WOMEN: (12) Kansas State @ (22) Utah, 9 PM on ESPN+

Enjoy your Wednesday! Get all your errands done, too– if you like football, you’ll want to clear your calendar for a pretty awesome next few days.

And sending our best to everyone in LA dealing with the fires. Be safe