In today’s newsletter…
1. Leading Off: LIV Golf loses players but gets points in dramatic start to 2026
2. Game of the Day: Mammoth have won 7 of 10
3. Scouting Report: Edwards scores nearly 7 points more on the road than in MN
4. By the Numbers: SEC’s No. 1 team is unranked
5. Overtime: Don’t look for an extra week in the NFL anytime soon
1. Leading Off
The day after the PGA Tour’s self-imposed deadline for LIV Golf players to seek reinstatement passed, the Official World Golf Ranking announced that golfers on the Saudi-backed tour will be eligible to earn ranking points for the first time since the league launched in 2022. The catch: Only the top 10 finishers in LIV tournaments will receive points, and even those will be a fraction of what’s available at PGA Tour events.
LIV will move to a 72-hole format this season after previously playing 54-holes, but it still features far smaller fields. LIV events will remain capped at 57 players, compared with 120 or more at standard PGA Tour tournaments — though the Tour’s signature events now sit closer to 70 to 80.
“We fully recognized the need to rank the top men’s players in the world but at the same time had to find a way of doing so that was equitable to the thousands of other players competing on tours that operate with established meritocratic pathways,” OWGR chairman Trevor Immelman said.
LIV, which has pushed for ranking recognition since its inception, didn’t seem thrilled with the compromise. Under the new structure, only a small portion of each LIV field will have a realistic path to climbing the global standings.
“No other competitive tour or league in OWGR history has been subjected to such a restriction,” LIV wrote in a statement. “We expect this is merely a first step toward a structure that fully and fairly serves the players, the fans, and the future of the sport.”
The timing is hard to ignore. LIV has already seen two high-profile defections back to the PGA Tour this year, with Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed returning ahead of the reinstatement deadline. Koepka left with a year remaining on a reported nine-figure contract, while Reed’s decision followed stalled extension talks with the league.
— Abe Rakov
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2. Game of the Day
Mammoth Have Won 10 of 14, Red Wings Still 2nd in Atlantic Despite Recent Struggles
Nick Schmaltz | Rob Gray-Imagn Images
The Red Wings have fallen behind the Lightning for first in the Atlantic after losing three of four games. Detroit has averaged just 1.5 goals per game during that stretch and lost three games in a row for the first time since November.
The Mammoth were defeated in three of five after a five game winning streak, but it hasn’t been for lack of scoring: Utah has averaged four goals per game over its past four. Nick Schmaltz is coming off a three goal on three shots performance, and added an assist in the Mammoth’s 6-2 win over the Canucks on Monday.
Utah won this head-to-head 4-1 when the teams played in December, with Clayton Keller leading the way with a goal and an assist.
Red Wings (33-18-6, 15-8-4 Away) vs. Mammoth (29-23-4, 16-8-2 Home)
9pm on ESPN+
The Odds
Spread: DET (+1.5, -200), UTA (-1.5, +160)
61% of the money and 78% of the bets are with DET
ATS | DET (road): 17-10, UTA (home): 12-14
Moneyline | DET +122, UTA -146: 91% of the money and 61% of the bets are with DET
Total (6.5): Over +116, Under -142
DET: 28-29, UTA: 29-27
Head-to-Head
Red Wings | Mammoth | |
|---|---|---|
Streak | W1 | W1 |
Last 10 | 5-3-2 | 7-3-0 |
Goals/Game | 3.00 | 3.20 |
Goals Against/Game | 2.95 | 2.79 |
Power Play % | 23.0% | 15.3% |
Penalty Kill % | 79.9% | 79.2% |
Players to Watch
DET RW Alex DeBrincat | Anytime Goal: +170 (0.5 - 0, 0, 2, 1, 1), 4+ Shots: +136 (3.6 - 1, 3, 5, 7, 4), Points: TBA (1.0 - 0, 0, 3, 1, 1)
DET LW Lucas Raymond | Anytime Goal: +240 (0.3 - 1, 0, 0, 0, 1), 2+ Shots: -178 (2.1 - 3, 3, 2, 2, 3), Points: TBA (1.1 - 2, 0, 0, 0, 2)
UTA C Nick Schmaltz | Anytime Goal: +200 (0.4 - 3, 0, 0, 1, 0), 3+ Shots: +102 (2.4 - 3, 1, 2, 1, 0), Points: TBA (0.9 - 4, 0, 0, 1, 0)
UTA RW Dylan Guenther | Anytime Goal: +200 (0.4 - 0, 0, 0, 0, 1), 3+ Shots: -140 (3.2 - 3, 0, 5, 2, 4), Points: TBA (0.9 - 1, 0, 0, 2, 2)
*Player stats are shown as: Today’s total (Season average - Last 5 games from most recent to oldest)
3. Scouting Report
Edwards Scores Nearly 7 Points Per Game More When Timberwolves Play on Road
Anthony Edwards | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images
Timberwolves G Anthony Edwards (at Raptors)
Edwards is only probable tonight with left elbow soreness, but he’s scored 32+ in five of eight games. He’s averaging 33.5 points per 40 minutes this season, three better than his career-high last year, and has the best turnover percentage of his career (8.9%). Edwards scores nearly seven points more on the road than at home, primarily because he shoots more threes and gets to the line more often. The Raptors played two bad defensive games in a row in losses to the Knicks and Magic before holding the surprisingly high-scoring Jazz to 100 points on Sunday.
Points: 28.5 (29.7 - 39, 33, 26, 20, 32), Reb: 5.5 (5.2 - 7, 2, 5, 6, 11), Ast: 3.5 (3.7 - 3, 3, 5, 6, 2)
TOR - W1 (6-4 L10) | Points Allowed: 112.2 (8th), Reb Allowed: 43.6 (13th), Ast Allowed: 24.5 (2nd)
BYU F AJ Dybantsa (at Oklahoma State)
An almost certain top-three NBA Draft pick this year, Dybantsa took his fewest shots in five games while scoring 17 points in a loss to Kansas on Saturday. The freshman struggled to 25 percent shooting in the game prior and was 1-8 from three. After 10 straight contests with 20+ points, he’s scored 17 or fewer in two of four — but put in a career-high 43 points on 15-24 from the floor between those games. Whether he’s running out of steam in his first year in college or is in a micro-slump, now Dybantsa is going up against one of the worst defensive squads in college basketball. Oklahoma State gives up nearly 80 points a night, good for 320th nationally.
Points: 24.5 (23.3 - 17, 24, 43, 13, 25), Reb: 5.5 (6.4 - 1, 4, 6, 3, 6)
OKST - W1 (5-5 L10) | Points Allowed: 79.9 (320th), Reb Allowed: 35.7 (255th), Ast Allowed: 16.7 (345th)
Bruins C Morgan Geekie (at Panthers)
Geekie has scored a goal in four of five games, putting six shots in the back of the net during that stretch. He also has at least one point in seven straight after notching one total point in the seven previous games. Geekie scored a goal on two shots when these teams played in October, which started his season-high streak of six in a row with at least one goal. The two-time defending Stanley Cup champions are struggling, as only six teams in the NHL allow more goals per game and only four have a worse save percentage than Florida.
Anytime Goal: +170 (0.6 - 2, 0, 1, 1, 2), 3+ Shots: +130 (2.3 - 3, 0, 2, 4, 3), Points: TBA (0.9 - 3, 1, 1, 1, 2)
FLA - L4 (4-6-0 L10) | Goals Allowed: 3.27 (26th), Shots Allowed: 1,235 (5th), Save Percentage: .883 (28th)
*Player stats are shown as: Today’s total (Season average - Last 5 games from most recent to oldest)
4. By the Numbers
SEC’s Top Team, 5-1 ATS on Road, is 8.5-Point Underdog to Slumping Alabama
Nate Oates | Gary Cosby Jr.-Imagn Images
NBA
Timberwolves (31-20, 14-12 Away) vs. Raptors (30-21, 14-11 Home)
MIN (-1, -110), TOR (+1, -110): 74% of the money and 72% of the bets are with MIN
ATS | MIN (road): 12-14, TOR (home): 9-16
Total (224.5) | MIN: 25-26 (119.5 ppg), TOR: 20-31 (113.6 ppg)
Grizzlies (19-29, 8-13 Away) vs. Kings (12-39, 9-16 Home)
MEM (+2.5, -112), SAC (-2.5, -108): 84% of the money and 66% of the bets are with SAC
ATS | MEM (road): 9-12, SAC (home): 10-15
Total (229.5) | MEM: 21-27 (115.0 ppg), SAC: 24-27 (110.2 ppg)
Cavaliers (30-21, 3-10 Away) vs. Clippers (23-26, 13-10 Home)
CLE (-1.5, -110), LAC (+1.5, -110): 90% of the money and 84% of the bets are with CLE
ATS | CLE (road): 11-12, LAC (home): 11-12
Total (223.5) | CLE: 24-27 (119.3 ppg), LAC: 26-23 (112.7 ppg)
MCBB
Texas A&M (17-4, 7-1 SEC) vs. Alabama (14-7, 4-4 SEC)
A&M (+8.5, -114), ALA (-8.5, -106): 61% of the money is with ALA but 68% of the bets are with A&M
ATS | A&M (road): 5-1, ALA (home): 4-6
Total (180.5) | A&M : 13-8 (91.8 ppg), ALA: 10-11 (91.2 ppg)
UCF (17-4, 6-3 Big 12) vs. No. 8 Houston (19-2, 7-1 Big 12)
UCF (+15.5, -115), HOU (0-15.5, -105): 60% of the money is with HOU but 61% of the bets are with UCF
ATS | UCF (road): 3-2, HOU (home): 7-4
Total (147.5) | UCF: 8-13 (84.2 ppg), HOU: 10-11 (78.9 ppg)
No. 16 BYU (17-4, 5-3 Big 12) vs. Oklahoma State (15-6, 3-5 Big 12)
BYU (-6.5, -102), OKST (+6.5, -120): 96% of the money and 75% of the bets are with BYU
ATS | BYU (road): 1-3, OKST (home): 5-9
Total (169.5) | BYU: 11-10 (86.4 ppg), OKST: 11-10 (85.9 ppg)
No. 20 Clemson (18-4, 8-1 ACC) vs. Stanford (14-8, 3-6 ACC)
CLEM (-4.5, -102), STAN (+4.5, -120): 56% of the money and 73% of the bets are with CLE
ATS | CLEM (road): 5-0, STAN (home): 6-8
Total (136.5) | CLEM: 9-13 (76.5 ppg), STAN: 9-13 (75.9 ppg)
Oklahoma (11-11, 1-8 SEC) vs. Kentucky (15-7, 6-3 SEC)
OU (+9.5, -102), KEN (-9.5, -120): 68% of the money and 54% of the bets are with KEN
ATS | OU (road): 2-3, KEN (home): 6-8
Total (152.5) | OU: 10-12 (82.8 ppg), KEN: 10-12 (81.4 ppg)
Creighton (12-10, 6-5 Big East) vs. Georgetown (12-10, 4-7 Big East)
CRE (+1.5, -106), GT (-1.5, -114): 73% of the money and 58% of the bets are with GT
ATS | CRE (road): 3-4, GT (home): 2-9
Total (144.5) | CRE: 11-11 (77.3 ppg), GT: 12-10 (75.4 ppg)
Butler (13-9, 4-7 Big East) vs. Providence (9-13, 2-9 Big East)
BUT (+3.5, -110), PROV (-3.5, -110): 57% of the money and 54% of the bets are with BUT
ATS | BUT (road): 3-3, PROV (home): 6-5
Total (170.5) | BUT: 12-10 (82.0 ppg), PROV: 16-6 (88.0 ppg)
5. Overtime
In the News
Patriots quarterback Drake Maye should be healthy for Sunday’s Super Bowl, saying he “threw as much as I would at a normal practice” after suffering a shoulder injury in the AFC Championship game win. “I really had no doubt being 100% for the game, this is the Super Bowl,” Maye said.
James Harden is reportedly headed to his sixth team just a day after news broke that he was once again requesting a trade. The Clippers are only 23-26 but have won 17 of 22. That wasn’t enough to keep Harden, who is now headed to 30-21 Cleveland for Darius Garland (who at 26 is 10 years younger) and a second-round pick, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
In more NBA-trade-deadline-week moves, the Grizzlies sent Jaren Jackson Jr. to the Jazz in an eight-player deal. The Celtics got Nikola Vučević from the Bulls for Anfernee Simons and a second-round pick. Anthony Davis, Johnathan Kuminga, Michael Porter Jr., Ja Morant, and the potential prize of the trade deadline, Giannis Antetokounmpo, are still being shopped and inquired about.
While NFL owners have been talking about finding a way to squeeze in another regular season game — primarily to find a way to play more internationally — their players aren’t sold. “Our members have no appetite for a regular-season 18th game,” NFL Players Association executive director David White said. “The 18th game is not casual for us. It's a very serious issue.”
New Browns head coach Todd Monken didn’t exactly give a ringing endorsement of quarterback Shedeur Sanders’ ability to keep the starting job. “Am I excited about Shedeur? Am I excited about all the quarterbacks in the room? Am I excited to coach this football team? Absolutely. I can’t wait for them to get back and for us to get started,” Monken said.
What to Watch (times ET)
3pm: Manchester City vs. Newcastle (English Carabao Cup) on Paramount+
6:30pm: Seton Hall vs. Villanova on Peacock
7pm: Nuggets vs. Knicks on ESPN (or Bruins vs. Panthers on TNT)
9pm: No. 16 BYU vs. Oklahoma State (MCBB) on FS1 (or Oklahoma vs. Kentucky (MCBB) on ESPN2)
9:30pm: Thunder vs. Spurs on ESPN (or Blues vs. Stars on TNT)
11pm: Utah State vs. New Mexico (MCBB) on FS1 (or Iowa vs. Washington (MCBB) on Big Ten Network)
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