Category: Sport

The Pittsburgh Steelers have hired Mike McCarthy as their next head coach, the team announced Saturday.

McCarthy, a Pittsburgh native, will replace Mike Tomlin, who stepped down after a 19-season run leading the Steelers. Tomlin was the longest-tenured head coach in the NFL before he resigned.

Advertisement

McCarthy, 62, is the Steelers’ fourth head coach since 1969. He follows in the footsteps of Tomlin, Bill Cowher and Chuck Noll, who were 34, 34 and 37 years old, respectively, when they were given the keys. Noll coached Pittsburgh to four Super Bowl wins over 23 seasons. Cowher delivered a Lombardi in 15 seasons, and Tomlin ushered in another early in his nearly two-decade stay.

The McCarthy hire bucks the trend of the Steelers hiring young up-and-comers. After all, this will be his third head-coaching gig. He previously coached the Green Bay Packers for 13 seasons from 2006-18 and the Dallas Cowboys for five seasons from 2020-24. He led the Packers to a Super Bowl win during the 2010 season, coincidentally over Tomlin’s Steelers in that game.

McCarthy’s quarterback at the time? Aaron Rodgers, whose NFL career took off under McCarthy’s watch, as he won the first two of his four league MVP awards with McCarthy at the helm. The Steelers hiring McCarthy wasn’t about convincing Rodgers to play another season in Pittsburgh, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, but the head coach’s presence could entice the 42-year-old signal-caller to run it back once more.

Advertisement

[Get more Steelers news: Pittsburgh team feed]

In McCarthy’s 18 seasons as a head coach, he’s responsible for 12 playoff trips and a 174-112-2 record. McCarthy guided the Cowboys to a pair of NFC East titles and, before that, the Packers to six NFC North crowns.

He and Steelers general manager Omar Khan crossed paths in 2000, when Khan was working in football operations for the New Orleans Saints and McCarthy was the team’s offensive coordinator.

McCarthy’s Pittsburgh ties run deeper. His father was a Pittsburgh firefighter and owned a bar that McCarthy cleaned weekly before church services, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Additionally, near the beginning of McCarthy’s coaching career, he served as a graduate assistant at Pitt from 1989-91 and, per Schefter, doubled as an overnight shift toll collector on the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

Advertisement

Under the ownership of the Rooney family, the Steelers have become known for their organizational stability, in part because of their expertise in picking coaches to pilot the franchise.

Pittsburgh’s six Super Bowl titles are tied for the most in NFL history. The New England Patriots matched that total during the second leg of their 21st-century dynasty.

The Steelers haven’t won it all since the 2008 season. They last made it to the Super Bowl during the 2010 campaign, and they haven’t won a playoff game since the 2016 season.

While Tomlin never had a losing season, he lost his last seven playoff games as head coach. Team owner Art Rooney II would have welcomed Tomlin back in 2026, but now that he’s gone, the franchise has hit the reset button. That said, Rooney doesn’t like the word “rebuild.”

Advertisement

He told reporters that the Steelers will try to compete from Day 1.

McCarthy will be tasked with returning postseason success to the Steel City while maintaining the hard-nosed culture and proud tradition his predecessors stewarded.

Saturday’s game between the Minnesota Timberwolves and Golden State Warriors was postponed after a 37-year-old man was shot and killed by federal agents in Minneapolis amid the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown in the city.

“The decision was made to prioritize the safety and security of the Minneapolis community,” the league said in a statement.

Advertisement

The NBA announced that the game has been rescheduled for 5:30 p.m. ET Sunday at Target Center.

The victim was identified by his parents as Alex Pretti, an intensive care unit nurse.

Including the Jan. 7 shooting death of Renee Good, it was the second fatal shooting and third in 17 days involving Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Minneapolis.

The Steelers’ hiring of Mike McCarthy as head coach Saturday is reportedly not intended to convince quarterback Aaron Rodgers to play for Pittsburgh for another season, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.

McCarthy is a Pittsburgh-area native and is the franchise’s fourth head coach since 1969. At 62, McCarthy is the oldest head coach in Steelers history.

McCarthy coached Rodgers with the Green Bay Packers from 2006 to 2018. The pair went 108-62-1 together and won a Super Bowl over the Steelers in 2011. Rodgers also won two MVPs under McCarthy’s leadership.

Advertisement

Rodgers, 42, has not yet announced his plans for next season, as his contract expired at the end of last season. While undecided on his future, the Steelers are reportedly open to bringing him back. While McCarthy’s hiring wasn’t intended to directly lure Rodgers back, it reportedly won’t hurt his chances of returning, ESPN reported.

Rodgers was rejuvenated this past season with the Steelers. After a three-year postseason drought, Rodgers threw for 3,322 yards, 24 touchdowns and 7 interceptions while battling a wrist injury late in the season. He led the Steelers to their first AFC North title since the 2020 season.

Rodgers was vocal about how much he enjoyed his time in Pittsburgh and playing for former head coach Mike Tomlin. After the Steelers’ wild-card loss to the Houston Texans, Tomlin surprisingly stepped down as head coach after 19 seasons.

Steelers owner Art Rooney II told reporters that he was looking to compete rather than rebuild. McCarthy sat out last season after spending his previous five years as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys. McCarthy went 49-35 and 1-3 in the playoffs with the Cowboys.

Rick Pitino won his 900th career college basketball game on Saturday as St. John’s topped Xavier 88-83.

The Red Storm took a 25-23 lead midway through the first half, but the Musketeers finished the opening 20 minutes on a 26-12 run for a 12-point lead at the break. The second half saw St. John’s climb back as it outscored Xavier 51-34 to improve to 15-5 on the season.

Advertisement

Junior guard Dylan Darling, who scored all 11 of his points in the second half, hit a key 3-pointer with 53.2 seconds to play.

The milestone victory was extra special for Pitino as it came against his son Richard, who took over the Musketeers’ job in March.

“I don’t like beating him, obviously, but it’s beating Xavier,” Pitino told TNT’s Andy Katz afterward. “Richard did a phenomenal job. … From where they were, losing to Santa Clara, to now is one of the best coaching jobs I’ve seen in basketball. I can’t love him or be more proud of him.”

Dad now owns a 4-1 lifetime record against son.

Advertisement

Pitino, who joined the Red Storm in 2023 and has Providence, Kentucky, Louisville and Iona among his stops on his collegiate coaching résumé, technically has 777 wins in the eyes of the NCAA after 123 wins and a national title were vacated due to infractions while he was with the Cardinals.

Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski is the all-time men’s coaching wins leader with 1,202.

The 73-year-old Pitino has won two national titles, reached seven Final Fours, was named the John Wooden National Coach of the Year in 1987, and is the reigning AP national co-coach of the year. He helped the Red Storm return to the NCAA tournament and into the second round last year for the first time since 2019.

Advertisement

Saturday’s win gives the Red Storm an 8-1 record in the Big East, one game behind No. 2 UConn, which knocked off Villanova in overtime 75-67.

“Players get coaches wins, but there’s nothing sweeter than getting 900 because of these guys,” Pitino said.

UConn was 6-7 in games decided by five or fewer points last season. The No. 2 Huskies entered Saturday’s matinee against Villanova 6-1 in those outings this time around.

They pulled out another thriller versus an upset-minded Wildcats team that forced an extra frame. UConn (19-1, 9-0 Big East) scored the final eight points in overtime, fending off Villanova 75-67 at Storrs’ Harry A. Gampel Pavilion.

Advertisement

Dan Hurley’s crew did so despite losing sharpshooting freshman Braylon Mullins to injury. Early in the second half, Mullins took an elbow to the head and didn’t return to the back-and-forth affair.

UConn got 24 points from junior guard Solo Ball, his second most in a game this season. Ball accounted for five of the Huskies’ eight 3s, including one with 2:08 left in OT.

Ball scored 14 of his points in the second half and overtime. Even more so, senior forward Alex Karaban came on late for UConn. He went 0 of 5 from the field in the first half and then supplied 17 points the rest of the way. The veteran hit four free throws during the Huskies’ game-ending 8-0 run.

Advertisement

Villanova (15-5, 6-3), meanwhile, was led by Tyler Perkins, who stacked 16 points and 10 rebounds. Down the stretch of the second half, the 6-foot-4, 212-pound guard played bigger than his size in the paint. Over a four-and-a-half-minute span, he scored eight of Villanova’s 10 points.

The Wildcats wouldn’t have given the Huskies as big of a scare without Duke Brennan. The Grand Canyon transfer forward logged his eighth double-double of the season, pairing 16 points with 14 rebounds. Of his 14 boards, seven came on the offensive glass. And, despite coming in as a 55.3% free-throw shooter, he made 8-of-9 attempts from the charity stripe.

Brennan caused a tie-up that set the stage for a go-ahead Matt Hodge 3, his fourth of the day, with 1:06 to go in regulation. But a tip-in from center Tarris Reed Jr. knotted things up at 61-61.

That was the score heading into overtime, which began with Perkins knocking down a triple but ended with UConn pulling away for its latest triumph.

Advertisement

The turning point came when junior guard Silas Demary Jr. hit the deck for a steal with 3:35 left in the extra frame. He kept his head up and found Reed streaking down the court. The big man deposited a dunk that put UConn’s wheels in motion.

The Huskies are 9-0 in Big East competition, in part because of their brilliance in the clutch this season.

The Miami Dolphins are promoting senior passing game coordinator Bobby Slowik to offensive coordinator, according to multiple reports Saturday.

Slowik, a 38-year-old who previously served as the Houston Texans’ OC from 2023-24, also interviewed for the Philadelphia Eagles’ OC opening this cycle.

Advertisement

Slowik helped Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud hit the ground running in the pros, as Stroud went from Ohio State star to NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2023. Stroud threw 23 touchdowns against just five picks, recording the lowest interception rate in the league while making the Pro Bowl.

Houston went from worst to first in the AFC South and reached the divisional round of the playoffs, starting the best three-season stretch in the young franchise’s history.

But Slowik wasn’t around for the latest leg.

Following his breakthrough 2023 campaign, which was followed by head-coaching interviews and, ultimately, a reported raise from the Texans, he took a significant step back during the 2024 season.

Advertisement

Although Houston won 10 games and the division again, Stroud was sacked a whopping 52 times, the second most in the NFL that season. His numbers were worse in practically every category. Perhaps most notably, his interception rate hiked up from 1% to 2.3%.

The Texans went from being tied for 13th in scoring (22.2 points per game) in 2023 to ranking 19th in that category (21.9 points per game) in 2024. The unit frequently sputtered in second halves. It finished tied for 19th in third-down conversion rate (37.7%) and ranked 26th in red-zone touchdown percentage (49.1%).

And, so, Slowik was fired, along with offensive line coach Chris Strausser and assistant O-line coach Cole Popovich.

It’s worth noting, however, that, even after an OC change, Stroud is still looking to match his rookie-season success. While he played better in 2025 than he did in 2024, his turnover-ridden playoff performances raised eyebrows.

Advertisement

Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans had initially brought Slowik over from San Francisco, where they overlapped for six seasons with the 49ers.

This past offseason, Slowik joined the Dolphins. He worked on Mike McDaniel’s offensive staff and will now serve as Jeff Hafley’s play-caller.

Miami moved on from McDaniel and hired Hafley as its next head coach. Hafley is a defensive coach who spent the past two seasons coordinating the Green Bay Packers on that side of the ball.

Just as it was important for Hafley to find the right OC, it will be critical for Slowik and Hafley to identify the team’s quarterback for next season. With the Tua Tagovailoa era likely over in Miami, the Dolphins will now explore their options at the position.

Pitcher Yu Darvish has reportedly told the San Diego Padres that he intends to retire with three years remaining on his contract, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune.

However, Darvish’s agent, Joel Wolfe, told USA Today’s Bob Nightengale that the veteran pitcher “has not made a final decision yet.

Advertisement

“This is a complicated matter we are still working through,” Wolfe said in response to reports.

Darvish repeated that sentiment in a statement he posted to social media.

“Although I am leaning towards voiding the contract, there’s still a lot that has to be talked over with the Padres so the finer details are yet to be decided,” Darvish wrote.

“Also, I will not be announcing my retirement yet,” he added. “Right now, I am fully focused on my rehab for my elbow.”

The Padres later released a statement from general manager A.J. Preller, who said the team would support Darvish with whatever he wants to do:

“We have been in regular communication with Yu throughout the offseason and his post-surgery rehab. We have great respect for him and will continue to support him in his decision-making process.”

[Get more San Diego news: Padres team feed]

Darvish, 39, has pitched for the Padres for the past five seasons, compiling a 3.97 ERA while averaging 9.4 strikeouts per nine innings. Last season, he recorded a 5.38 ERA and 5-5 record with a strikeout rate of 8.5 per nine innings in 15 starts.

Advertisement

The right-hander is under contract with San Diego for three more seasons with a total salary of $46 million. He signed a six-year, $108 million extension with the Padres before the 2023 MLB season.

Darvish is recovering from UCL surgery that he had in late October. He was expected to miss the entire 2026 season because of the procedure. Turning 40 in August, it was worth considering whether or not a return to MLB was feasible. He was apparently asking himself the same questions in December.

“The way my rehab is going now, I am focused on getting right, not on coming back,” he told the SDUT’s Kevin Acee. “Right now I’m not really thinking too much about the future. Just knowing the way I think, I’m sure I will one day want to throw again. All I’ve thought about in my life is baseball.”

Darvish has made only 31 starts over the past two regular seasons due to elbow difficulties. Yet he pitched well in the 2024 postseason, posting a 1.98 ERA in two starts with seven strikeouts in 13 2/3 innings.

Advertisement

However, Darvish reportedly had an understanding with Preller that surgery on his right elbow would eventually be necessary. The pitcher acknowledged the possibility that he might “get rid of” the remainder of his contract, Acee reported. Darvish considered retiring last March when he was shut down during spring training.

Despite the uncertainty, Darvish has been a regular presence with the Padres, sitting in on meetings with free agents and attending press conferences.

If Darvish does retire, he’ll do so with a career record of 115-93, a 3.65 ERA and a rate of 10.5 strikeouts per nine innings (with 2,075 career Ks) in 297 starts. During his 13 MLB seasons, he also pitched for the Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs.

Advertisement

Between his MLB career and seven seasons pitching for the Nippon Ham Fighters of Japan’s Pacific League, Darvish’s 209 wins are the most for anyone who has played in both leagues. He finished as the runner-up in Cy Young Award voting in 2013 (with Texas) and 2020 (with the Cubs).

Missouri needed a buzzer-beater to get to overtime against Oklahoma on Saturday and another one to win the game.

The Tigers took down the Sooners 88-87 on Mark Mitchell’s 3-pointer as time expired. Mitchell, the Tigers’ leading scorer, rushed up the court after taking an inbounds pass with less than five seconds to go after Xzayvier Brown put Oklahoma up two.

Mitchell’s basket came five minutes after Trent Pierce hit a 3-pointer while still on the midcourt logo as time expired in regulation.

Advertisement

Pierce hit his shot following two Tae Davis free throws to give Oklahoma a three-point lead. Davis was fouled after he grabbed a rebound when Mitchell missed a potential go-ahead basket in the lane with six seconds remaining in the second half.

Pierce’s shot was the only field goal he made all game. He was 1-of-6 from the field and finished with four points.

Mitchell’s 3-pointer was on just his second attempt from behind the arc all game. He entered the game shooting just 7-of-26 from behind the line and is still below 30% on the season.

He finished with a team-high 25 points as guard T.O. Barrett scored 21 in his first start of the season. The win pushed the Tigers to 14-6 overall and 4-3 in the SEC after their first home loss of the season on Tuesday night to Georgia.

Advertisement

Oklahoma was led by Nijel Pack’s 25 points. The Sooners dropped to 11-9 overall and 1-6 in SEC play.

Keaton Wagler made a program-record nine 3s and erupted for 46 points, double his previous single-game high and the most ever by an Illinois freshman, while leading the No. 11 Fighting Illini to an 88-82 victory over No. 4 Purdue on Saturday.

Wagler was unfazed by the hostile environment, scoring the most points by a visiting player in Mackey Arena history. He thrived in the pandemonium, shooting 13 of 17 from the field, including 9 of 11 from long range, in a game where the lead changed 14 times.

Advertisement

A quartet of 3s, bookended by big man Zvonimir Ivisic, helped the Fighting Illini tip the scale in the final minutes on the road.

Illinois (17-3, 8-1 Big Ten) made 18-of-38 attempts from deep, or 47.4%. The Fighting Illini were down by as many as 11 points in the first half and were without third-leading scorer Kylan Boswell — the senior is currently sidelined with a hand injury — but they’ve now won nine games in a row. Purdue (17-3, 7-2) had a streak of that kind before this week.

The Boilermakers have since dropped back-to-back games: first a nail-biter at UCLA on Tuesday and then a back-and-forth heavyweight match with Illinois on Saturday.

Advertisement

Senior point guard Braden Smith stepped up with a team-high 27 points on 11-of-16 shooting to go along with 12 assists. After Illinois’ barrage of triples, Smith drilled a 3-pointer with 45 seconds remaining to pull Purdue within two.

Wagler, though, answered by floating in a shot that restored the Illini’s two-possession lead. While Smith used a crossover to set up a 3 that drew an Andrej Stojakovic foul, he made only two of the three ensuing free throws.

That invited Illinois to ice the game at the line, starting with Wagler, who capped his prolific performance with a pair of makes at the charity stripe.

“We can win these types of games, in these types of environments if we just play tough and together,” Wagler told Fox Sports in his on-court postgame interview.

Just a three-star recruit and the No. 179 overall prospect in the 2025 class, according to Rivals, Wagler has already earned three Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors.

Advertisement

Another is likely on its way to Champaign, Illinois.

The Shawnee, Kansas, native wasn’t the only freshman to go off Saturday. In fact, per CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander, for the first time since March 6, 1997, two freshmen scored 40-plus points on the same day.

In addition to Wagler, Kingston Flemings accomplished the feat for No. 6 Houston, piling up 42 points in a 90-86 loss at No. 12 Texas Tech.

Novak Djokovic came a few inches from repeating some unfortunate Grand Slam history at the Australian Open.

Facing the unseeded Botic van de Zandschulp on Saturday, Djokovic won a point in the second set when his opponent left the ball long in a rally. The 10-time Australian Open champion was still frustrated enough to smash the ball to the side.

Advertisement

Replay showed he came with in inches of striking a ball girl crouching by the net.

Djokovic apologized for the incident while speaking with reporters after the match, which he won 6-3, 6-4, 7-6:

“I apologize for that. That was not necessary, in the heat of the moment. Yeah, I was lucky there and I’m sorry for causing any distress to the ball kid or anybody.”

The matter is reminiscent of what happened with Djokovic in the 2020 US Open. In that case, a frustrated Djokovic hit the ball in anger and struck a line judge in the throat. He was quickly defaulted from the tournament, ending a 26-match winning streak to open the 2020 season.

Had Djokovic struck the ball girl, the code of conduct section of the 2026 Grand Slam rulebook would have given tournament referee Wayne McKewen the power to default him again:

“Players shall not violently, dangerously or with anger hit, kick or throw a tennis ball within the precincts of the tournament site except in the reasonable pursuit of a point during a match (including warm-up). Violation of this Section shall subject a player to fine up to $50,000 for each violation. In addition, if such violation occurs during a match (including the warm-up) the player shall be penalised in accordance with the Point Penalty Schedule (where a player receives a warning, then a point penalty, then a game penalty).

“The Referee in consultation with the Grand Slam Supervisor may declare a default for either a single violation of this Code or pursuant to the Point Penalty Schedule.

Advertisement

Because he avoided a default, Djokovic was able to keep playing and notch an unprecedented 400th career win in a Grand Slam. Roger Federer has the next-most at 369 and only eight men (Djokovic, Federer, Rafael Nadal, Jimmy Connors, Andre Agassi, Ivan Lendl, Pete Sampras, Andy Murray) have notched even 200.

Djokovic advanced to face No. 16 seed Jakub Menšík in the fourth round. Should he win there, he will face either No. 5 Lorenzo Musetti or No. 9 Taylor Fritz in the quarterfinal, with No. 2 seed and BetMGM tournament favorite Jannik Sinner on track for his side of the semifinals.