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With LeBron James looking on, Sierra Canyon captures Division I state title

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With LeBron James looking on, Sierra Canyon captures Division I state title

LeBron James’ entrance at Golden 1 Center on Friday night produced a crowd reaction similar to a rock star walking on stage for a concert. Fans began to rise from their seats and shout. Anyone with a camera tried to capture the scene of James, his wife and young daughter walking to their courtside seats to watch son Bryce play for Sierra Canyon against Stockton Lincoln in the state Division I championship game.

James, sidelined because of a groin injury, had another son, Bronny, with the Lakers in Denver, with both games going on simultaneously. It was a fitting ending to James’ six-year run as a Sierra Canyon parent trying to balance his responsibilities as one of the world’s most famous athletes with being the father of two teenage basketball players.

James’ presence helped bring out one of the largest crowds (8,396) for a Friday night state final in years, and Sierra Canyon rallied in the fourth quarter behind Maximo Adams to pull out a 58-53 victory.

Sierra Canyon (27-7) fell behind by four points at halftime after making just one of 13 shots from three-point range. The Trailblazers finally took charge in the fourth quarter when Adams made a three with 1:52 left for a 51-50 lead. The Trailblazers had been three for 23 on three-pointers until that clutch shot.

“My coaches tell me to keep shooting, so why not let it fly,” Adams said.

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Then came a Bryce Cofield basket, a three-point play by Adams, plus two more free throws from Adams.

Gavin Hightower finished with 15 points, Adams 14 points, Cofield 11 and Stephen Kankole 10. Donez Lindsey and Anthony Moore each scored 18 points for Lincoln, which felt the officiating favored the Trailblazers, who made 20 of 30 free throws.

“It wasn’t a great flow tonight,” Sierra Canyon coach Andre Chevalier said. “There were a lot of whistles blown.”

Sierra Canyon has been prominent in the Open Division, but Chevalier will take the Division I title.

“This was hard as heck,” he said. “We’re going to hang this banner like it’s the world championship.”

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Afterward, Lincoln’s Moore was helped up off the floor when LeBron James gave him a hand.

“That was crazy,” Moore said. “I’ll remember that.”

Chevalier said it was “the best coaching job of my career” after overcoming the loss of players who left, the disruption of the L.A. fires and an early loss to Santa Barbara.

Bryce James finished with three points and the first CIF state title in the family.

Division III

San Gabriel Academy 52, King’s Academy 51: Mahamadou Diop, San Gabriel Academy’s 6-foot-11 sophomore center from Mali, is someone fans in Southern California will need to watch in the coming years. He’s that good.

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“My dream is to go to NBA,” the 17-year-old said.

He had 10 points, seven rebounds and four blocked shots in the first half of the state championship game. Three of his baskets came on dunks. He didn’t score in the third quarter when his team’s lead was cut from 13 points at halftime to four. That’s when he rose up to get his team rolling, and San Gabriel held on for its first state title.

Diop finished with 20 points, making 10 of 16 shots, 13 rebounds and seven blocks.

With San Gabriel leading by nine in the final minute, the Eagles started committing turnovers and fouling. King’s Academy closed to within 50-49 with 11.3 seconds left before Xavier Wang made two free throws for a three-point lead.

“I lost about five years in my life in the last 15 seconds,” San Gabriel coach Daniel Piepoli said.

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After San Gabriel’s 25th turnover led to a layup just before the buzzer, the Eagles were able to to run out the clock and celebrate their first championship.

Diop, who doesn’t speak much English, said he likes blocking shots more than dunking.

“He gets better every single day. You can see he can tear the rim down,” Piepoli said.

As Diop improves his shooting touch from outside, his value will only increase.

Division V

San Francisco International 71, Diamond Ranch 52: Conor Maguire scored 32 points to help International come back from a six-point halftime deficit to win the title. Devin Turner scored 16 points and Michael Salazar had 14 points for Diamond Ranch (23-15), the Southern California champion.

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The Panthers were outscored 16-0 during one drought. In the first half Salazar made seven of 10 shots and scored all 14 of his points as Diamond Ranch led 30-24. He got into foul trouble, then fouled out. It was a tough way to potentially end his basketball career.

“I’ve been hooping my whole life,” Salazar said. “It’s hard. I hope I don’t have to give up basketball yet.”

Diamond Ranch coach Kevin Ryan said, “These guys went into every morning practice trying to get better every day. Basketball is a game of runs and they swung at us and hit us hard.”

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Auburn fans shower officials with debris after wild buzzer-beater gets overturned

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Auburn fans shower officials with debris after wild buzzer-beater gets overturned

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A chaotic scene unfolded at Auburn University on Tuesday night as a wild buzzer-beater was waved off well after the Tigers had celebrated on their own court.

With 0.6 seconds remaining and Auburn trailing 90-88, KeShawn Murphy, somehow left wide open, caught an inbounds pass and nailed a long 3-pointer for what was thought to be the game-winner.

However, officials went to the scorer’s table to review the play, which was awfully close.

 

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Auburn Tigers players watch the replay of a possible game-winning shot that was called back as Auburn Tigers take on Texas A&M Aggies at Neville Arena in Auburn, Alabama on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (Jake Crandall/USA Today Network via Imagn Images)

Ultimately, officials ruled that the shot had not gone off in time, ending the Tigers’ celebration and prompting one from Texas A&M.

The officials quickly made themselves public enemy number one and were showered with debris from fans on their way off the court. At least one referee needed his head to be covered.

One fan sitting courtside even turned his back and threw his drink over his shoulder aimed at an official.

“They didn’t say a word. They just said it was no good and ran off the floor. I probably wouldn’t want to talk to me in that moment, anyway,” Auburn head coach Steven Pearl, who took over for his dad, Bruce this season, said after the game. “So, I get why they’d run away from me. Just from the angles that I saw, it looked like it was off his fingers. But that was just, I don’t have all the same angles they have.”

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Texas A&M Aggies players celebrate victory as Auburn Tigers take on Texas A&M Aggies at Neville Arena in Auburn, Alabama, on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (Jake Crandall/USA Today Network via Imagn Images)

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It is now six losses in their last 10 games for the Tigers after starting 5-1. They lost in the Final Four last year to Florida, who won the national championship over Houston.

Auburn (9-6, 0-2) led 47-37 at halftime and extended the margin to 61-45 with 12:29 remaining.

KeShawn Murphy of the Auburn Tigers reacts after officials ruled that his last-second shot did not beat the shot clock to win the game against the Texas A&M Aggies at Neville Arena on Jan. 6, 2026 in Auburn, Alabama. (Stew Milne/Getty Images)

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Texas A&M answered with a steady run fueled by outside shooting, taking its first lead at 8:42 when Pop Isaacs buried a 3-pointer. The Aggies followed with back-to-back triples from Isaacs to open a five-point cushion that they would not relinquish, by the skin of their teeth.

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Former NFL player Jordan Shipley is in critical condition after accident on his ranch

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Former NFL player Jordan Shipley is in critical condition after accident on his ranch

Two-time All-American wide receiver and prominent Outdoors Channel host Jordan Shipley is in critical condition after an accident on his ranch in Texas, his family said in a statement.

Shipley, 40, was described as stable after remaining hospitalized Tuesday night in Austin. The statement said a machine that he was operating near his hometown of Burnet caught fire. The former Texas great suffered “severe burns on his body.”

Shipley abruptly retired in 2012 after three NFL seasons primarily because of persistent concussion issues and chronic knee problems. He quickly transitioned to television shows that showcased his passion for deer hunting, co-hosting “The Bucks of Tecomate” and “Tecomate Whitetail Nation.”

“It was not hard at all,” Shipley said at the time of retiring at 27. “Only because I never saw myself as a football player first. Don’t get me wrong, I worked my tail off for football and I loved it but never saw that as my whole identity because I had such a big background in outdoors. Really, with this opportunity I had I was actually pretty excited about moving forward.”

Although he enjoyed a strong rookie season with the Cincinnati Bengals in 2010 with 52 receptions for 600 yards and three touchdowns, he is best remembered as a record-setting player at Texas.

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Shipley starred as a receiver and a kick returner from 2006 to 2009, setting program single-season records in 2009 with 116 receptions and 1,489 yards. He also remains the career leader for receptions with 248 and ranks second in career receiving yards with 3,191, behind Roy Williams. Shipley also returned four punts or kickoffs for touchdowns.

After being drafted in the third round by the Bengals, he became one of the most popular players with Cincinnati fans, and his No. 11 jersey was worn by thousands. After a debilitating knee injury early in the 2011 season, he was never the same player, and he had short stints with Tampa Bay and Jacksonville before retiring.

According to his family, Jordan was operating a machine at his ranch when it caught fire. He managed to free himself from the machine, but “not before sustaining severe burns on his body in the process.” Jordan was airlifted to the hospital in Austin.

“He was able to get to one of his workers on the ranch, who drove him to a local hospital. He was then care-flighted to Austin, where he remains in critical but stable condition,” the statement said.

Shipley’s younger brother, former Texas wide receiver Jaxon Shipley, 33, asked for prayers in a statement on Instagram: “Please pray for full healing and no infections or other issues on his road to recovery. I don’t want to get into all the details, other than his life was spared today by the grace of God and the sheer will to live. I believe prayer is effective so I’m asking anyone and everyone to lift Jordan up in prayer.”

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Tom Izzo explodes on former Michigan State player in wild scene: ‘What the f— are you doing?’

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Tom Izzo explodes on former Michigan State player in wild scene: ‘What the f— are you doing?’

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Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo has been known to get visibly angry with his players over his years in East Lansing, but what happened Monday night against USC was different.

Izzo let loose his frustration on a former player.

During the Spartans’ blowout over the Trojans, 80-51, Izzo was spotted unloading on former Michigan State center Paul Davis, who played for the team from 2002-06, after he caused a disturbance in the stands.

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Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans reacts to a call during a game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the first half at Pinnacle Bank Arena Jan. 2, 2026, in Lincoln, Neb. (Steven Branscombe/Getty Images)

Referees pointed out Davis, who was a spectator, from his courtside seat after he was among many in the building who disagreed with a call in the second half. Davis stood up and shouted at referee Jeffrey Anderson.

Anderson responded with a loud whistle, stopping play and pointing at Davis. Then, Anderson went over to Izzo to explain what happened, and the 70-year-old coach went ballistic.

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First, he was motioning toward Davis, and it was clear he asked his former center, “What the f— are you doing?”

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Davis was met by someone asking him to leave his seat, and that’s when Izzo went nuts. He shouted “Get out of here!” at Davis, who appeared to gesture toward Izzo, perhaps in apology for disturbing the game.

Izzo was asked about Davis’ ejection after the game.

“What he said, he should never say anywhere in the world,” Izzo responded when asked what happened. “That ticked me off. So, just because it’s 25, 20 years later, I’m going to have to call him tomorrow and tell him what I thought of it. And you know what he’ll say? ‘I screwed up, coach. I’m sorry.’”

Izzo quickly clarified that what Davis said “wasn’t something racial” and “it wasn’t something sexual.”

Michigan State Spartans head coach Tom Izzo protests a call that benefited the Iowa Hawkeyes during the first half at Jack Breslin Student Events Center Dec. 2, 2025. (Dale Young/Imagn Images)

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“It was just the wrong thing to say, and I’ll leave it at that.”

Davis later met with reporters Tuesday, apologizing for his actions.

“I’m not up here to make any excuses. I’m up here to take accountability, to own it,” Davis said. It was a mistake that will never happen again. It was a mistake that’s not me, but, unfortunately, last night it was.”

Izzo said Davis was one of his “favorite guys” during his time playing for the Spartans. He had a breakout sophomore campaign with 15.8 points, 6.2 rebounds and two assists per game in 30 starts for Izzo during the 2003-04 season.

Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans reacts during a game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the second half at Pinnacle Bank Arena Jan. 2, 2026, in Lincoln, Neb.  (Steven Branscombe/Getty Images)

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In his senior year, Davis averaged 17.5 points, a career-high, in 33 games.

He was taken in the second round of the 2006 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Clippers. Davis played just four seasons in the league, his final one with the Washington Wizards.

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