Good Morning! Here’s what happened in the world of sports on Tuesday, February 4th.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

Settle in everyone– there’s a a lot of college basketball in today’s issue. First, some highlights from last night:

• Rick Pitino and (12) St John’s added a signature win to their impressive season, taking down (11) Marquette 70-64. Kadary Richmond led the way with 18 points and 11 rebounds.

• Big 10 teams have not fared well when traveling coast-to-coast. After losing this past weekend to USC, (9) Michigan State was upset 63-61 by UCLA.

• (25) Ole Miss won a big game against (14) Kentucky. The Rebels held a 23-point first-half lead and held on for a 98-84 victory.

NBA

The big cities had big wins last night in the Association:

• Let’s hear it for Brooklyn! Down four with 10 seconds left, the Nets scored six points and stunned the Houston Rockets 99-97. One of the crazier finishes you’ll see this year.

• Donovan Mitchell had one of the best dunks of the year, but his Cleveland Cavaliers lost to the Boston Celtics 112-105. The top teams in the East will surely meet again.

• Who knew that Joel Embiid would make such a difference? With their superstar on the floor for the first time in a month, the 76ers beat the Mavericks 118-116. Embiid recorded a triple-double and scored the winning basket with under 30 seconds remaining. 

• What a glorious day for Lakers fans… first, Luka Doncic shows up in the purple-and-gold. Then, against the crosstown-rival Clippers, LeBron puts on a show with 26 points, nine assists, and eight rebounds. An energized LA team crushed the Clippers 122-97. Even Bronny got in on the fun!

NHL

Tuesday was all about the goal scorers in the National Hockey League:

• Patrick Kane scored the winning goal in the shootout for the Detroit Red Wings. In addition to the victory, the goal gave Kane the all-time NHL record for career shootout goals (53). Detroit has won seven games in a row, too.

• Alexander Ovechkin got another one! This time it was an empty-net goal with 0.1 seconds on the clock. Ovi made history again, scoring 25 goals in a season for the 19th time in his career. Only the great Gordie Howe has more.

• William Nylander scored his first career hat trick on February 4, 2017. Exactly eight years later, he got another one. Nylander and the Maple Leafs beat teh Flames 6-3.

• Utah! At the buzzer! Dylan Guenther sent the game to overtime with a third period goal. Then Guenther won it for the Hockey Club on this last-second shot:

NOTEWORTHY NEWS

Two-time Grand Slam champion Simona Halep retired yesterday from professional tennis. At one point the best player in the world, Halep faced a lengthy suspension in 2022 for steroids. That suspension was reduced from four years to nine months after it was ruled Halep was exposed to the illegal substance unintentionally. Her career never recovered from the missed time, however, and now Halep has decided to move on. "I don't know if it's with sadness or joy -- I think I'm feeling both -- but my soul is at peace with this decision, and I've always been realistic with myself. My body can no longer handle as much as it used to, to get me where I probably once was," said Halep following a first-round loss in Romania.

REMIX BRACKETOLOGY

It’s here! Our first in-depth look at the college basketball landscape and which teams have a shot to compete for glory during March Madness. It’s still a bit early (in my opinion) to dive into seeds. Instead, I like to sort each team into distinct categories: “Locks” have guaranteed their spot in the bracket, no matter what happens next. “Trending Well” are the teams where I’d be pretty surprised if they don’t make it. “Inside Bubble” is an eclectic group of tournament teams that still have work to do. “Outside Bubble” are competing for the final few places, with very little margin for error down the home stretch. And everyone’s favorite category, “Still Alive, Barely Breathin” is self-explanatory. Any team that is not listed has been eliminated from an at-large bid. One note before we get to the 66 teams listed below– you may notice that I have two less teams in my bracket than required by the actual tournament. That’s reflective of an unusually weak group of teams on the bubble this season… a lot of basketball still left to be played!

One-bid conferences (20): America East, A-Sun, Big Sky, Big South, Coastal, C-USA, Horizon, Ivy, MAC, MAAC, MEAC, Northeast, Ohio Valley, Patriot, SoCon, Summit, Sun Belt, SWAC, Southland, and WAC

ACC (5): One of the best teams in the country leads the conference, but there’s not much depth behind them

BIG 10 (9): As soon as next week, the Big 10 could see three more teams join the Lock category. This is one tough conference, top to bottom

BIG 12 (8): The new-look Big 12 is difficult to judge. It’s a highly-talented but (excluding Houston) inconsistent group

BIG EAST (4): St. John’s moved to the Lock category with their win tonight. The others still have work to do

MOUNTAIN WEST (3): Keep an eye on San Diego State, a team that started the season very strong

SEC (13): The best conference in college basketball this season. Even the bubble teams will be dangerous in March

WEST COAST (2) : As usual, the WCC is a two-horse race between the Zags and the Gaels

OTHER (2): The Best of the Rest– a very important group when it comes time to make the final cuts on Selection Sunday

And there you have it! Remix Bracketology, Edition #1. Another update will be on the way before you know it.

A quick note about the women’s tournament– a clear top tier of teams has emerged as true title contenders this season. In no particular order, they are UCLA, South Carolina, Notre Dame, UConn, and USC. Texas and LSU are right behind them, with LSU, Kentucky, and Ohio State rounding out the top 10. And TCU, Kansas State, and NC State would be next if any of the top teams falter.

TODAY’S BIG GAMES (all times Eastern)

NHL:

• Bruins @ Rangers, 7 PM on TNT/Max

• Oilers @ Blackhawks, 9:30 PM on TNT/Max

NBA:

• Spurs @ Hawks, 7 PM on ESPN

• Suns @ Thunder, 9:30 PM on ESPN

COLLEGE BASKETBALL:

• MEN: Oregon @ (24) Michigan, 6:30 PM on Big Ten Network

• MEN: (15) Missouri @ (4) Tennessee, 7 PM on SEC Network

• WOMEN: (9) TCU @ (12) Kansas State, 7:30 PM on ESPN+

• WOMEN: (8) Ohio State @ (1) UCLA, 9:30 PM on Peacock

“It’s still a grieving process right now. I miss my hermano,” –Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving