Sports
Anto Balian follows in father's footsteps as an Armenian basketball star
It’s almost 11:30 p.m., and the sound of a bouncing basketball near the garage of the Balian family home in Glendale is as common as a barking dog. Except none of the neighbors have called police to complain.
“Not yet,” 6-foot-2 junior guard Anto Balian of Pilibos High said gratefully.
Maybe it’s because the houses on both sides of the Balian home have occupants of Armenian descent and know the 16-year-old practicing from 9 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. in the front and back yards is simply doing his basketball homework.
“He just works real hard at his craft,” said his father, Sarkis, who’s also the basketball coach and athletic director at Pilibos. “He puts in a lot of work on his own.”
California is home to the largest Armenian population of any state, at 250,733, according to the 2020 census. Los Angeles is the epicenter of culture and activities, where three Armenian schools — Pilibos, Holy Martyrs and AGBU Manoogian-Demirdjian — are every bit competing in sports with the intensity of a rivalry matchup similar to when Catholic or Jewish schools play before sold-out crowds.
Sarkis was a star guard at Holy Martyrs during his high school days. He has spent the last 28 years at Pilibos, which is a K-12 school in Little Armenia near Hollywood. He coached his oldest son, Kevork, who graduated three years ago. Now Anto is the focus. Sarkis’ name is legendary in the Armenian basketball community, so don’t doubt how much support and following Anto could end up receiving as he continues to develop.
Junior guard Anto Balian, left, and Pilibos coach Sarkis Balian, his father.
(Craig Weston)
Los Angeles’ many diverse ethnic communities are known to come out in force to root for one of their own. Think back to the days Kobe Paras arrived from the Philippines to play basketball for Cathedral High. Filipinos were filling gyms in 2014-15 for his senior year to record videos of his dunks, offering high-fives to friends in the bleachers and lining up for autographs.
Anto has been attending Pilibos since preschool. So many of his high school friends have played together since they learned how to walk, talk and get dirty in the sandbox.
“You’re more than friends,” Anto said. “You know them like your parents. It becomes a family, especially in the Armenian community, where everyone knows each other.”
To see the determination on his face as he maneuvers toward the basket on a drive or grabs a rebound is a hint of his passion. He’s already a member of the Armenian national team that came to Los Angeles last summer to play two games against France at Cal State Northridge. He could join the team in February in Armenia depending on his availability during the Southern Section playoffs.
He played many sports growing up, but his father’s basketball background was always going to lead Anto on a path to explore the sport.
This season he’s averaging 31.2 points a game. His physicality, strength and ability to finish drives or draw fouls helps keep his scoring average going up. He can make three-pointers and his work ethic is unyielding, which means constant improvement is going to keep happening. He had 33 points last week in a game against Sierra Canyon.
He said he wants to play Division 1 basketball and has received interest from such schools as the University of San Diego, coached by Steve Lavin. He received an offer this week from Biola. He stepped out of his Pilibos comfort zone by playing club basketball and participating in the Nike EYBL, challenging himself on the court and forcing himself to meet new people. It’s an important journey for someone so closely tied to a single school to explore life outside of his community.
“It’s teaching me what I have to look forward to in the coming years,” he said.
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The Kentucky Wildcats basketball team may still make the NCAA Tournament, but Dick Vitale thinks this iconic program should be much better than their 19-12 record this season considering their whopping $22 million roster.
The legendary ESPN college basketball analyst didn’t hold back his feelings about the Wildcats as they played Florida during Saturday’s prime SEC matchup. After the Gators hit some free throws to extend their first-half lead to 26-19, Vitale started to lay into the Wildcats.
Head coach Mark Pope of the Kentucky Wildcats in a game between the Florida Gators and the Kentucky Wildcats on March 7, 2026, at Rupp Arena in Lexington, KY. (Jeff Moreland/Icon Sportswire)
“I’m going to say this right here, I’ve done several Kentucky games, win or lose, $22 million this team [which has been reported] in terms of the NIL for their players,” he said, per Awful Announcing. “I think in $22 million, they could have put together a better roster than they did. I really do.”
The Wildcats ended up losing by a score of 84-77, and Vitale continued about Kentucky near the end of their 12th loss of the season.
“I’ll tell you one thing, you don’t want to walk out of here thinking you got a moral victory,” Vitale said, referencing a hard-fought game against the No. 5-ranked Florida team. “Moral victories don’t count at this level of basketball. And you hear some of the people, ‘We played them close. We played them tough.’
“The bottom line is you’re Kentucky. You’re Kentucky. And you’ve got to leave here with a win, especially at home. There are no moral victories. Come on. I don’t want to hear that.”
Collin Chandler and Jasper Johnson of the Kentucky Wildcats celebrate in the first half against the Ole Miss Rebels at Rupp Arena on Jan. 24, 2026 in Lexington, Kentucky. (Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
The Wildcats were once the top program in the country under former Coach John Calipari, who left for Arkansas after being unable to make a long March Madness run in recent seasons, including a shocking first round upset to the Oakland Golden Grizzlies in the 2024 NCAA Tournament.
The Wildcats have been coached by Mark Pope since, and they made the Sweet 16 in last year’s tournament before losing to Tennessee.
Kentucky Jasper Johnson in action vs Michigan State at Madison Square Garden in New York, NY on Nov. 18, 2025. (Erick W. Rasco/Sports Illustrated )
But this year, Kentucky is 10-8 in SEC play, and now face the No. 9 seed in the upcoming tournament this week. The winner of each conference earns a tournament berth, but the Wildcats know good seeding in the NCAA Tournament requires a strong run heading into Selection Sunday this upcoming weekend.
The Wildcats will start their SEC Tournament play on Wednesday against No. 16 LSU.
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The Chargers bolstered their efforts to protect quarterback Justin Herbert all while diversifying their offense by agreeing to a multiyear deal with veteran fullback Alec Ingold on Sunday, the team announced.
Ingold’s deal with the Chargers reportedly is for two years and $7.5 million.
Ingold will be no stranger to the Chargers’ plans on offense. He played the past four seasons in Miami under coach Mike McDaniel, the Chargers’ new offensive coordinator. Last year he caught eight passes for 52 yards and ran the ball twice in 17 games.
Ingold caught 47 passes for 372 yards and rushed for 34 yards in 20 carries in four seasons with the Dolphins. He also had two rushing touchdowns and a receiving touchdown.
Before his time in Miami, Ingold played three seasons with the Raiders.
The deal comes two days after the Chargers signed veteran center Tyler Biadasz to take over for the retiring Bradley Bozeman. They agreed to terms on a one-year deal with edge rusher Khalil Mack on Saturday.
With the free agency negotiation period set to begin Monday at 9 a.m. PDT, the Chargers remain in strong position to be significant players in the free-agent market. They rank among the top-five teams in salary cap space, per Overthecap.com.
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Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott and his fiancée, Sarah Jane Ramos, reportedly broke up with their wedding around the corner.
Prescott and Ramos’ relationship had been “rocky” in the weeks leading up to the breakup and things exploded between the two at their joint bachelor and bachelorette parties, TMZ Sports reported on Saturday.
Dak Prescott and Sarah Jane Ramos attend the Farrah Fawcett Foundation Tex-Mex Fiesta on Oct. 30, 2025 in Dallas, Texas. (Omar Vega/Getty Images for Farrah Fawcett Foundation)
Ramos shared pictures of her trip with her friends on Instagram on Friday.
“I truly believe you can get through anything in life as long as you have really great friends. I love these girls so much,” Ramos captioned the collage of snaps.
Prescott was not pictured in any of the 16 photos and videos posted to her social media account.
Sarah Jane Ramos and Dak Prescott pose for a photo before Dak Prescott’s Faith Fight Finish Foundation Gala on May 17, 2024 in Dallas, Texas. (Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images for Faith Fight Finish Foundation)
Ramos also posted photos of her bridal shower back on Feb. 23. There were no photos of Prescott in the carousel either.
“The most intimate and beautiful bridal shower of my dreams,” she added on Instagram. “So grateful for my aunts who hosted it and my girlfriends and family that came to celebrate. I love you all so much and can’t wait to marry the love of my life with all of you by my side.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Prescott’s representative for comment.
Prescott posted a series of photos on his Instagram of Ramos and his family on July 20, 2025. There’s only a September advertisement posted on his account since.
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott and Sarah Jane Ramos pose on the NFL Honors Red Carpet before Super Bowl LX at Palace of Fine Arts on Feb. 5, 2026. (Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)
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The NFL star and Ramos announced they were engaged on Oct. 18, 2024. The couple have two children together.
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