BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — Former U.S. Open champion Dominic Thiem had a brush with one of Australia’s most venomous snakes during a qualifying match at the Brisbane International on Saturday.

The former world No. 3 was a set down to 20-year-old Australian James McCabe in a first round qualifying match when fans courtside spotted the snake.

Security personnel quickly arrived, but the umpire had to stop play as the snake slithered on to the court to the shock of the players and fans.

“I really love animals, especially exotic ones,” Thiem said. “But they said it was a really poisonous snake and it was close to the ballkids, so it was a really dangerous situation.

“It’s something that has never happened to me and is something I’ll definitely never forget.”

The snake — identified as a 50 centimeter eastern brown snake and one of Australia’s most deadly reptiles — was soon safely removed allowing play to resume.

But Thiem was not yet out of danger as he had to save three match points before leveling the match by winning the second set tiebreak. The 30-year-old then went on to clinch the deciding set for a 2-6. 7-6 (4), 6-4 win.

The Austrian, currently ranked No.98 after several years with a troublesome wrist injury, will face either Italian Giulio Zeppieri or another Australian, Omar Jasika, in the final qualifying round tomorrow.

Thiem reached the final of the Australian Open in 2020 when he pushed champion Novak Djokovic to five sets, and won the US Open later that year.

The New York Knicks have reached a deal to acquire forward OG Anunoby, guard Malachi Flynn and forward Precious Achiuwa from the Toronto Raptors for guard-forward RJ Barrett, guard Immanuel Quickley and a 2024 second-round pick, a person with direct knowledge of the deal told USA TODAY Sports.

The person requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly until the trade is official.

The Raptors are a team that is looking to reshape its roster with key players nearing the end of their contracts. Anunoby, 26, is in the third year of a four-year, $72 million contract but can exercise a player option and become a free agent after this season.

Anunoby is a two-way player who earned All-Defense honors and led the NBA in steals (1.9 per game) in 2022-23. This season, Anunoby is averaging 15.1 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.0 steals on 48.9% from the field and 37.4% on 3-pointers.

The 17-14 Knicks are No. 15 defensively, and Anunoby should give them a boost on that end.

However, the Knicks lose some scoring with Barrett and Quickley going to Toronto. For Barrett, it’s a homecoming. Born in Toronto, Barrett, the No. 3 pick in the 2019 draft, averages 18.2 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists. Quickley averages 15 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.5 assists and shoots 39.5% on 3s.

Barrett’s four-year, $107 million deal expires after the 2026-27 season, and Quickley is a restricted free agent after this season.

This deal officially kicks off the NBA’s trade deadline season – the deadline is Feb. 8. And the Raptors may not be done making trades as teams monitor the availability of forward Pascal Siakam who is the final year of his four-year, $136.9 million contract.

Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin’s goals have been less frequent this season as he chases all-time leader Wayne Gretzky and tries to break a record once thought unbreakable.

He ended a mini-drought Saturday night with a tying goal against the Nashville Predators, then wristed in a go-ahead goal with less than a minute left in regulation. But the situation room in Toronto took away the goal, saying Washington’s Nic Dowd impaired Predators goalie Yaroslav Askarov’s ability to play his position in the crease.

‘My personal take is there’s not enough there to overturn – especially to overturn because that’s where it gets tricky because when it’s called a goal on the ice, it has to be very, very evident to overturn,’ Capitals coach Spencer Carbery told reporters. ‘That’s the way it’s been described to us from the league. Given that, is there enough there? It’s tight. For me, that goal should stand.’

It didn’t and a potential 3-2 win eventually turned into a 3-2 shootout loss.

Gretzky, who played from 1979-99, leads the way with 894 regular-season NHL goals. Ovechkin, 38, who passed Gordie Howe last season to move into second place, now has 829 goals and needs 66 more for the record. He’s behind the pace but has two years left on his contract after this season

Here’s where he stands in his chase of Gretzky’s goal record:

How many goals does Alex Ovechkin have this season?

Ovechkin needs to average 24 goals a season to tie Gretzky’s record. With seven goals in his first 34 games, he is on pace for around 17.

What did Alex Ovechkin do in his last game?

Dec. 30: After his second goal was overturned, he finished the night with one goal on two shots. That goal was on his signature move: a one-timer from the left faceoff circle. It occurred just after a Capitals power play had expired, so it was at even strength.

Askarov is the 171st different goaltender Ovechkin has scored on in his career.

Here’s the potential winner that was overturned.

How is Alex Ovechkin’s season going?

Ovechkin had no shots on goal in consecutive games for the first time in his career and only two goals in his first 12 games. He scored three goals over his next three games before going through a 14-game drought, a career worst. He went another three games without a goal before scoring on Saturday.

The Capitals’ power play, which is missing injured Nicklas Backstrom and struggled early, has been better in December but ranks 30th in the league. Ovechkin, the all-time leader in power-play goals, has two this season.

When do Alex Ovechkin and the Capitals play next?

Jan. 2 at the Pittsburgh Penguins. He has 39 goals in 73 career games against the Penguins.

Who are the NHL’s top all-time goal scorers?

The top 20 NHL all-time goal scorers have all topped 600 goals. All are in the Hockey Hall of Fame, except Ovechkin and Jaromir Jagr, who has suited up this season in the Czech Republic.

1. Wayne Gretzky,  894 goals in 1,487 games

2. Alex Ovechkin, 829 goals in 1,381 games

3. Gordie Howe, 801 goals in 1,767 games

4. Jaromir Jagr, 766 goals in 1,733 games

5. Brett Hull, 741 goals in 1,269 games

6. Marcel Dionne, 731 in 1,348 games

7. Phil Esposito, 717 goals in 1,282 games

8. Mike Gartner, 708 goals in 1,432 games

9. Mark Messier, 694 goals in 1,756 games

10. Steve Yzerman, 692 goals in 1,514 games

11. Mario Lemieux, 690 goals in 915 games

12. Teemu Selanne, 684 goals in 1,451 games

13. Luc Robitaille, 668 goals in 1,431 games

14. Brendan Shanahan, 656 goals in 1,524 games

15. Dave Andreychuk, 640 goals in 1,639 games

16. Jarome Iginla, 625 goals in 1,554 games

17. Joe Sakic, 625 goals in 1,378 games

18. Bobby Hull, 610 goals in 1,063 games

19. Dino Ciccarelli, 608 goals in 1,232 games

20. Jari Kurri, 601 goals in 1,251 games

The Atlanta Braves acquired pitcher Chris Sale in a trade with the Boston Red Sox, both teams announced on Saturday.

The Red Sox will receive infield prospect Vaughn Grissom and cash considerations.

Sale, a seven-time All-Star, had to waive his no-trade clause to join the Braves and is scheduled to be paid $27.5 million next season. He has a club option for $20 million for the 2025 season, part of a five-year, $145 million extension he signed at the beginning of the 2019 campaign.

The 34-year-old Sale went 6-5 with a 4.30 ERA, with 125 strikeouts last year with the Red Sox, where he spent the last six seasons.

Sale spent his first seven MLB seasons with the Chicago White Sox and led the American League in strikeouts twice.

HOT STOVE UPDATES: MLB free agency: Ranking and tracking the top players available.

The Braves, who have won the National League East each of the last six seasons, continue to add to their strong pitching rotation, which already has Charlie Morton, Max Fried, and Spencer Strider, who finished fourth in the NL Cy Young Award balloting.

Sale is the second big-name pitcher to get traded this offseason. The Los Angeles Dodgers acquired standout starter Tyler Glasnow from Tampa Bay Rays earlier this month.

CORALVILLE, Iowa — Failing to mention slavery as the cause of the Civil War was not the only mistake Republican presidential hopeful Nikki Haley made this week. On Saturday morning, at the Iowa Athletic Club in Coralville, Haley misspoke and misnamed Iowa Hawkeyes superstar Caitlin Clark, calling her by the wrong surname.

The former United Nations ambassador and South Carolina governor flubbed Clark’s last name while speaking to a crowd that gathered at a local restaurant for a tailgate-style event ahead of the Hawkeyes women’s basketball game.

‘We’re excited to see the Lady Hawkeyes team. What a great coach they have. Caitlin Collins is phenomenal,’ said Haley, in an apparent reference to CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins.

Collins responded to a tweet about Haley’s misstep that has since gone viral, saying: ‘I can assure you her free-throw percentage is better than mine.’

CAITLIN CLARK: Can she break the NCAA scoring record?

Haley’s stop in Coralville — which included catching the Hawkeyes game with her son, Nalin Haley — was among a string of events the Haley campaign team held over two days. Haley hosted town halls Friday in Dubuque and Cedar Falls. Her trip concluded Saturday night with an event in Cedar Rapids.

Haley received backlash this week from her Republican and Democratic rivals after failing to mention slavery as the cause of the Civil War while answering a voter’s question. On Wednesday, at a Berlin, New Hampshire town hall, a voter asked the presidential hopeful what sparked the Civil War.

“Well, don’t come with an easy question or anything,’ Haley responded. ‘I mean, I think the cause of the Civil War was basically how the government was going to run. The freedoms and what people could and couldn’t do.”

Haley has since walked back her comments and said ‘of course the Civil War was about slavery.’ She also has suggested that the questioner may have been a Democratic plant in the audience.

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Georgia football dropped a boulder on the remnants of Florida State’s team in Hard Rock Stadium Saturday.

The Seminoles did not at all resemble the bunch that went 13-0 and were left out of the College Football Playoff. Its roster was decimated by players that pulled out of playing after being crushed to not be able to play for a national title.

Georgia took advantage in a 63-3 shellacking of the No. 5 Seminoles in the Orange Bowl.

Coming off an SEC championship game loss to Alabama that knocked it out of the playoff, the Bulldogs rolled to a 42-3 halftime lead behind 383 yards of total offense and finished the season 13-1.

Here are three things we learned about the Bulldogs after their second win in this bowl game in the last three seasons:

NFL STATS CENTRAL: The latest NFL scores, schedules, odds, stats and more.

Georgia football shows no mercy in the Orange Bowl

Georgia’s offense played without two projected NFL first-round draft picks in tight end Brock Bowers and offensive tackle Amarius Mims.

The Bulldogs still had way too much firepower for a Florida State missing eight defensive starters to opt outs and injuries. That included three new names that came to light on game day: defensive linemen Joshua Farmer and Braden Fiske and linebacker Tatum Bethune. The Seminoles had 14 starters out in all.

Georgia set a program record for most points in half in a bowl game with 42 and the 39-point first halftime lead was its largest ever in a bowl.

Kendall Milton rushed for 104 yards and two touchdowns on 9 carries, all in a first half as Georgia rolled up 180 rushing yards on 16 carries. Milton went left then cut back and went right and into the end zone for a 15-yard touchdown run and later added a 5-yard score. Daijun Edwards 15-yard  touchdown run made it 21-7.

Georgia scored touchdowns on nine consecutive possessions after turning it over on downs on the first time it had the ball. That includes with Gunner Stockton at quarterback for the last three of those.

Carson Beck was 13 of 19 for 203 yards and touchdowns of 12 yards to Arian Smith on a screen and 2 to Dominic Lovett. Beck was lifted at halftime.

Dillon Bell laid out to make a diving catch for 35 yards and then made another spectacular catch for 40 yards later in the half.

Georgia football defense clamps down on Seminoles

Jordan Travis, Florida State’s star quarterback who was lost for the season and missed the final two games before the Orange Bowl, went to the locker room using crutches and in a walking boot with the Seminoles managing just a field goal in the first half.

Brock Glenn, the true freshman third stringer, was 7 of 22 for 122 yards and an interception. He got the start when backup Tate Rodemaker opted out before Christmas.

Georgia was missing starting inside linebacker Smael Mondon who was held out due to nagging injuries.

Cornerback Daniel Harris, who posted on social media he was going in transfer portal but hasn’t, got in the game on the second defensive series.

He was in coverage on a well-placed deep ball to Kentron Poitier for a 55-yard gain early in the second quarter. That was two yards shy of the longest pass play given up by Georgia this season.

Mykel Willaims and CJ Allen combined for a 1-yard loss on a Glenn run and the Seminoles settled for a short field goal.

Allen, a freshman linebacker, had a team-high 6 tackles. Williams forced a fumble and recovered late in the second quarter.

Playmaker Ladd McConkey scores on ‘touchdown run’

Running back Kenny McIntosh threw a touchdown pass in the 2021 Orange Bowl and Ladd McConkey looked like he would throw on a throw behind the line of scrimmage.

Instead the wide receiver weaved his way from in front of the Florida State sideline all the way on the other side down the Georgia sideline for what went as a  27-yard touchdown run. He broke a tackle at the 20-yard line.

McConkey put his arms across his chest and broke out a big smile in the end zone.

Coach Kirby Smart was smiling broadly on the sideline as well.

It was the fourth rushing touchdown of McConkey’s career.

The redshirt junior had two touches in the game. His other was a 22-yard catch.

LOS ANGELES — In the middle of September, being a member of Alabama’s football team didn’t seem like a lot of fun. The Crimson Tide had just lost decisively to Texas. Several former players were complaining on social media, questioning the toughness of this group and whether this generation understood what it meant to play for Alabama. The fan base was apoplectic, wondering whether Nick Saban’s decline had finally arrived. 

And then, somehow, things got even worse. The next week, Alabama struggled through an ugly 17-3 win at South Florida with quarterback Jalen Milroe benched and no obvious answers to its sputtering offense. It was arguably the worst Alabama had looked since Saban’s first year in 2007.

But when Saban came in for his postgame press conference, he set a surprising tone. He didn’t rant. He didn’t get impatient. He didn’t threaten to take away anyone’s starting jobs or run his team into the ground the next week as punishment for another sub-standard performance. 

Instead, he kept coming back time and again to one theme: How proud he was that they won the game. 

“A lot of guys played really well,” he said. “I want our players to be happy about the fact they won.”

Sorry, but was this the same guy who spent his entire career demanding perfection — or close to it — from everyone around him? The same guy who won six national titles in his first 14 years at Alabama because he held his organization to its own standard that often had nothing to do with the scoreboard? 

Was Saban getting soft in his 70s? Was he losing his fastball? Or did he know something that nobody else could see?

“He’s got an uncanny ability to know what each team needs, each group of guys needs, each side of the ball needs,” said Alabama defensive coordinator Kevin Steele. “He’s just got a gift there.”

Steele said this Friday, with the Crimson Tide about 77 hours away from playing No. 1 Michigan in the College Football Playoff semifinals, and if it were anyone but Bama, it would seem completely surreal.

This is the team that got wrecked by Texas, that barely hung on against Texas A&M and Arkansas, that needed a miracle fourth-and-31 touchdown just to survive against an Auburn team that had lost to New Mexico State one week earlier. We have seen lots of Alabama football under Saban, and this wasn’t it — until it was in the SEC championship game with a brilliant 27-24 victory over Georgia that catapulted this team into the CFP, albeit controversially, over 13-0 Florida State. 

“I think I couldn’t be prouder of a bunch of guys on a team that has come so far from where we were,” Saban said after that game. “I think this is a great example for a lot of people who want to be successful in terms of the perseverance these guys showed, the character they had to overcome adversity and the resilience they played with.”

A large segment of college football fans will hear those words and roll their eyes. Alabama? Adversity? This isn’t East Podunk State.

Even at its worst, Alabama is still among the three most talented teams in the country every year, deploying more resources and brainpower than anyone in pursuit of national championships. If something is wrong at Alabama, it’s either because Saban didn’t recruit the right players or didn’t hire the right assistants. There’s never a reason to break out the violins for these guys. 

But whether the expectations are being met or not, there’s always a process — and, more importantly, a reason why Saban does what he does and says what he says.

Saban stood up for his players amid criticism

Over the course of his career, he’s been a master at using the media to send messages to his team. When he starts moving his hands like a symphony conductor or erupts at a reporter or chastises fans for not taking the Charleston Southern game seriously enough, what he’s really doing is making a coaching point that he hopes will be implanted in the minds of all his players. 

And as Alabama stands on the precipice of arguably the greatest in-season turnaround in Saban’s career, the message he’s been sending for months has been notable.

After hearing all season from fans, former players and pundits that this team wasn’t good enough to win a national championship, Saban was steadfast in making sure they heard something different from him: Yes, you are. 

“Just being on a team and hearing how the head coach — especially a head coach like Nick Saban — is still talking good and still having faith and still having confidence within us as a team is very important,” said cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry. “I feel like that did play a big role into why we’re here today.”

Emotional intelligence is one of Saban’s best qualities

Alabama’s ugly September wasn’t the first time panic has bubbled up around Tuscaloosa, but this one felt different.

Maybe it was Saban’s age and the fear that builds with each birthday that his time at the top of the sport is coming to an end. Maybe it was the stark difference between what Alabama had looked like with Bryce Young, Mac Jones and Tua Tagovailoa at quarterback the last several years and the offensive disaster that they seemed to have on their hands with Milroe at quarterback. Or perhaps the inertia of name, image and likeness, the transfer portal and all the other big changes in college football had exposed some underlying weaknesses in how Saban was building his roster. 

Whatever the reason, this one seemed like a five-alarm fire. The only thing that’s supposed to be burning at Alabama are victory cigars. 

“I mean, it was different, obviously,” said offensive tackle JC Latham. “We knew we would face (criticism) if we weren’t playing up to the standard. I mean, Alabama has a standard — national championship or bust. At that time, people couldn’t see us making it to this point right now. So that was a pretty big deal, but it was all of us together. It was a community of us who rallied together and told each other what we needed to do better.”

Among his many coaching gifts, Saban’s emotional intelligence — his understanding of the mental push and pull on players to extract their best performance — may be his most underrated. And that’s not easy to maintain year after year when the sport changes, when generations change and when there are different external factors each team has to deal with. 

“Coach Saban likes to say, ‘They don’t make ‘em like they used to,’ ‘ linebacker Dallas Turner said. “That might be true.” 

But what Saban understands now, perhaps more than ever, is that the difficulty of being an Alabama extends far beyond the sprints and the drills and the butt-chewings he is famous for. He has built a machine that is expected to operate at peak performance at all times. When it doesn’t, the scorn is going to fall mostly on the players who come in and out every few years, and not as much on the coach who has delivered far more than anyone could have dreamed when he came back to college football almost 17 years ago. 

“It’s so expected to win every game at Alabama, and so when you have a game where you don’t win, then all the focus is, ‘Well, the mystique is gone,’ ‘ Steele said. “He has an uncanny ability to manage that (noise), whatever it is.”

Steele has known Saban for nearly 40 years now, and there’s no difference in the day-to-day process, no difference in how demanding Saban can be behind the scenes, no difference in his drive to win titles. 

But on his radio show a few days after the Texas game, Saban went out of his way to remind Alabama fans that “it means more to (the players) to win or lose a game than anybody else, and I think sometimes people lose sight of that.” 

It was his way of telling millions of people to back off and let him coach this team in his way, spinning the positive, forward-looking narrative he felt his players needed to hear. 

Now they’re in the College Football Playoff and may be 10 days from celebrating another national title. Saban has long since set a new bar as the greatest college football coach ever, but if he pulls this one off, his words and tone may be as much of a factor as his X’s and O’s.

NEW ORLEANS — For almost the entire 45-minute session with the media covering Monday’s Sugar Bowl, the star of the moment held court on Saturday before a rapt audience. Arch Manning dazzled with his polish and poise as well as his deadpan sense of humor.

While seven featured teammates did interviews from risers and another 19 had separate tables — even punter Ryan Sanborn and three running backs — upward of 25 or more reporters at a time crowded around the Longhorns’ boyish-looking quarterback sitting on a bench along the sideline, picking his brain.