It was a busy week on the NCAA women’s hockey schedule. 

Most of the women’s Beanpot championship took place in Boston, with the home of the Boston Bruins hosting the final two games on Tuesday. Boston College takes on Northeastern in the third-place game at 4:30 p.m. ET, while Harvard and Boston University will battle for the championship at 7:30 p.m. ET.

All of the nation’s top programs were in action this past week as well.

While the WCHA’s top three teams maintained their dominance, Minnesota-Duluth was this week’s biggest dropper in the women’s college hockey power rankings. The Bulldogs have gone winless in six straight games. The Yale Bulldogs, meanwhile, are on the rise.

Here’s a look at the top 10 NCAA women’s hockey programs this week.

Women’s college hockey power rankings

1. University of Wisconsin (WCHA)

This team continues to mow through the competition. Since being left of USA’s Olympic roster, Lacey Eden has been a force to be reckoned with. She scored two goals in each of Wisconsin’s 5-1 wins over St. Thomas this weekend. Every weekend, a new leader steps forward in Wisconsin, which makes them such a difficult team to plan for and beat.

2. Ohio State University (WCHA)

The Buckeyes swept through conference rival Minnesota State with ease. A four-goal performance from Joy Dunne and a four-point night from Jocelyn Amos powered Ohio State’s offense on Friday, while Swedish Olympian Hilda Svensson continued her spectacular rookie season. If there’s one question mark remaining for Ohio State, it’s in net where they’ve played three different goaltenders this season. None has emerged as a clear difference-maker.

3. University of Minnesota (WCHA)

It’s a broken record at this point, but Abbey Murphy has become unstoppable. Murphy recorded her fifth and sixth straight multi-point games this weekend. She notched eight points in two games, boosting her nation-leading totals to 33 goals and 58 points in 24 games. Uniquely, she also leads the nation in penalty minutes. Minnesota showed no mercy to Bemidji State this past weekend, outscoring them 16-4 in a series sweep.

4. Penn State (AHA)

Penn State is a difficult program to judge. They keep winning, but they haven’t looked as dominant lately, and many of their wins continue to come against weaker opponents with thinner margins. They beat Syracuse 3-2 and 4-1, with captain and American national team member Tessa Janecke continuing to lead as Penn State’s top scorer and best player. The question is: where would Penn State rank if it played in the ECAC or the WCHA? 

5. Princeton (ECAC)

Princeton’s best continue to get better as Issy Wunder and Mackenzie Alexander lead the way. The Tigers’ depth, however, also stepped forward in wins over Harvard and Dartmouth. One significant change since last season is the return of Uma Corniea in net. She’s been the consistent and reliable factor Princeton needed, stopping 33 of 34 shots faced over the weekend.

6. Quinnipiac (ECAC)

Felicia Frank has been the busiest goaltender in NCAA women’s hockey this season, and she may be the best as well. She only bettered her numbers this past week, winning both starts while turning aside 37 of 38 shots faced in wins over Dartmouth and Harvard. Kahlen Lamarche continues to add to her career-best season totals, including nearly doubling her goal output from last season as she now sits at 27 in 26 games.

7. Northeastern (Hockey East)

With more midweek action approaching to close out the Beanpot, Northeastern won its only matchup of the weekend, a 2-1 decision over New Hampshire. Eloise Caron scored both for the Huskies, which looked out of sorts after failing to punch their ticket to the Beanpot final. They fell 2-1 in an emotional overtime upset at the hands of Boston University last Tuesday. 

8. Yale (ECAC)

Watch out, top 10, Yale is hot. Yale beat higher-ranked Colgate and Cornell this weekend, with goaltender Samson Frey picking up the Bulldogs’ third shutout in four games and captain Carina DiAntonio continuing to power their offense. Yale even beat Providence College 4-2 on Monday, with Hannah Weyerhaeuser recording a hat trick. It’s not just the results, but how they’re achieving those wins that have them moving up the rankings.

9. Cornell (ECAC)

Cornell fell to Yale but beat a red-hot Brown team. Annelies Bergmann remains their deciding factor in net. When she’s at the top of her game, this team doesn’t lose. But their continued struggles to score put a lot of onus on Bergmann’s play. Sometimes, even making at least 30 saves isn’t enough for a win, which was the case in Cornell’s loss to Yale. 

10. University of Minnesota-Duluth (WCHA)

January hasn’t been kind to Minnesota-Duluth. Since their sluggish start overseas in Northern Ireland, the Bulldogs haven’t been themselves. They tied St. Cloud State in the first game before losing the extra point in a shootout, and they lost to them again in the second game, 5-2. This team is spiraling, having not won a game in its last six.

After the Rose Bowl, it was a movie. But after the national championship, it became real.

Moments after defeating Miami 27-21 in a thrilling national championship that came down to the wire, Indiana coach Curt Cignetti finally allowed himself to believe a Hoosiers football national championship is possible.

Speaking to ESPN’s Molly McGrath on the field after the game, Cignetti broke down how Indiana won its first national title, while also inserting some of his now-customary sentimentalism. The coach, already a legend in his own right, was all smiles following the win, even as he acknowledged some of the struggles Indiana faced over the course of the game.

Celebrate Indiana’s title with books, page prints, more

‘It took a lot to get here, but I’ll tell you what it took to come out ahead in this game was a lot of guts,’ Cignetti said. ‘I give Miami a lot of credit they played really hard. We couldn’t get anything done on offense — couldn’t protect the quarterback at all … Let me tell ya: We won the national championship at Indiana University. It can be done. And I’m so happy for our fans. Words can’t describe it.’

As the interview ended, Cignetti concluded with what seems to be another motif he’s adopting. After McGrath asked him how he was going to celebrates, he said while beaming: ‘I’m gonna have a beer.’

It wasn’t a perfect win for Cignetti and the Hoosiers, but to hear him tell it, that’s what made it special. Even as he listed everything that went wrong in the game, Cignetti had high praise for Fernando Mendoza and his players. After his beer, Cignetti will undoubtedly be back to work preparing for 2026, as Indiana gets ready to defend a title for the first time ever.

The first national title in program history came down to the final minute inside Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. Miami was in Indiana territory, but Hurricane quarterback Carson Beck threw a pass that Indiana defensive back Jamari Sharpe had his eyes on and intercepted at the Hoosiers’ 7-yard line.

Buy IU championship books, newspapers, gear

The win sealed the 27-21 victory and became one of the biggest plays in Indiana football history.

Indiana radio announcer Don Fischer, who has been on the headset for Hoosier football games since 1973, had the call, and had a great reaction to the moment:

‘Looks, throws it down the field and it is intercepted by Indiana! Wow, what a play! And it is Jamari Sharpe, who comes up with a pick, and he runs into the end zone,’ Fischer said, as he and everyone in the booth celebrated.

Fischer has seen plenty of lows in Indiana football history, but he was on the microphone to be on-hand for the national championship.

So, who got snubbed?

That’s always the question to pose once NBA All-Stars – and each conference’s starters – are announced.

On Monday, Jan. 19, the NBA unveiled the East and West starters for the 2026 NBA All-Star Game, which will take place Feb. 15 at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California. The league used a weighted system to select starters, with the fan vote accounting for 50%, and NBA players and media accounting for 25%, respectively. Each player then generated a weighted score, and the Top 5 players from each conference, regardless of position, were named starters.

Here are the winners and losers from the selection of starters for the 2026 NBA All-Star Game:

WINNERS

Jaylen Brown

Though he is a five-time All-Star, Brown had always been overshadowed by fellow Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum. Not this year. With Tatum sidelined with a torn Achilles, Brown has not only emerged as a legitimate No. 1 option and a first-time All-Star starter, but he has also put himself squarely in the conversation for Most Valuable Player. That Brown is also doing this after Boston moved on from established stars Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porziņģis further illustrates his rise. He’s averaging 29.7 points, 6.4 rebounds and 4.8 assists this season.

Jalen Brunson

There’s no question Brunson is one of the elite players in the NBA and one of the steadiest closers. And though Brunson cleared the threshold with ease — his weighted score of 3.25 ranked fourth among East players and was 2.75 points greater than Donovan Mitchell, the No. 6 player on the list — he probably got a boost that New York players often get. The Knicks are a blue-chip franchise with a gargantuan following, so their stars tend to get elevated. Make no mistake: Brunson is a deserving All-Star. But with a roster of talented guards in the East, his case to start was thinner than the end result indicated.

Victor Wembanyama

There’s no denying the impact Wembanyama has on the floor, but the San Antonio Spurs are actually 10-4 in games he didn’t play. That record, though, shouldn’t be skewed; he’s certainly worthy of the starter nod, but he got by on the slimmest of margins, on a fan vote tiebreaker (more on that later). Wembanyama just turned 22 on Jan. 4 and is making his second All-Star appearance. He’s only getting better and is in the MVP conversation. His days of starting in All-Stars are only beginning.

Tyrese Maxey

Another first-time starter, Maxey’s rise this season shows how he’s assuming control of the Philadelphia 76ers franchise. Although Joel Embiid, the 2022-23 Most Valuable Player, is slowly returning to form, this is Maxey’s team, and he’s quickly becoming one of the elite scoring guards in the NBA – one with seemingly limitless shooting range.

LOSERS

LeBron James

Chances are, James will still be an All-Star and will extend his record streak to 22 consecutive nominations. But for the first time in 21 years, James was not named a starter in the All-Star Game. James missed the first 14 games of the season with a right sciatica issue, and the Los Angeles Lakers have managed his playing time in back-to-backs since then. James, who turned 41 in late December, is reimagining the standard for players his age. His points (22.6 per game) and rebounds (5.9) are the lowest they have been since his rookie season (20.9 and 5.5), but James remains a threat for the Lakers. Still, all good things come to an end.

Anthony Edwards

This is the biggest snub of the day. Edwards’ 29.6 points per game rank fifth in the NBA. He’s a dynamic, three-level scorer and is one of the premier walking highlights this league has. His biggest problem here is that the person who took his spot, Spurs phenom Victor Wembanyama, is exactly the same. Edwards and Wembanyama received the same weighted score of 5.75, which triggered a tiebreaker. Edwards lost that because his fan vote (1,960,957) was just 4,505 votes fewer than Wembanyama’s total. Stats don’t paint the entire picture because Wembanyama’s impact as a defender is immense, but, just for comparison’s sake, he’s averaging 24.5 points per game.

Donovan Mitchell

He was the first out in the field for starters in the East and very easily could’ve made a case to start. Entering Monday, Mitchell ranked seventh in the NBA in scoring, dropping 29.2 points per game. Even then, the margin between him and Jaylen Brown, the fourth player on the list, was just 0.5 points per game. His scoring clip is a career high, and his assists numbers (5.7) are just behind his all-time high of 6.1. The Cavaliers, though, started slowly, which almost certainly impacted his voting numbers.

Jalen Johnson

Will Johnson be an All-Star? Almost certainly yes. Did he deserve to start? Perhaps. Johnson is the victim of playing in a smaller market, for a team that has struggled to reach relevance in recent seasons. The Hawks are 20-24 (10th in the East), but Johnson is averaging nearly a triple-double, putting up 22.8 points, 10.1 rebounds and 8.0 assists per game. Johnson is more of an all-around player than Jalen Brunson, though Johnson’s defensive intensity has fallen off in recent seasons.

All eyes were on Fernando Mendoza on Monday as he warmed up on the field and prepared to lead the Indiana Hoosiers into the College Football Playoff national championship game at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami. But there was one group in the building whose stakes in watching Mendoza were a bit higher than most.

Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis and general manager John Spytek were spotted on the sideline by ESPN’s Pete Thamel, presumably to get one more in-game look at the projected No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft (as predicted in USA TODAY’s latest mock draft). The Raiders, who finished the season with the worst record in the league at 4-13, hold that pick.

To remove any ambiguity that might have remained as to why they were there, minority owner Tom Brady was later seen standing alongside Davis and Spytek donning a silver hoodie with ‘Raiders’ printed in bold letters across his chest.

As explained in USA TODAY’s latest mock draft, Mendoza has virtually no competition for the top spot in the draft, even less so now that Oregon quarterback Dante Moore decided to stay in school for another year. The Raiders have been in dire need of a signal caller ever since parting ways with Derek Carr at the end of the 2022 season, so it seems all but inevitable that Mendoza will be getting a call from the Las Vegas brass this spring.

All the NFL news on and off the field. Sign up for USA TODAY’s 4th and Monday newsletter. Check out the latest edition: Best and worst of the divisional playoff round.

Kansas Jayhawks head coach Bill Self was reportedly hospitalized on Monday and did not travel with the team to Colorado ‘out of an abundance of caution,’ according to ESPN.

Per ESPN, the school said Self was feeling ‘under the weather’ and was later taken to LMH Health, where he was reportedly given IV fluids. According to a statement released by the school, Self is ‘feeling better but did not accompany the team to Boulder.’

Self had another health scare last summer, when he was hospitalized in July after experiencing ‘some concerning symptoms,’ wrote Bozello. He was released two days after undergoing a medical procedure in which two stents were placed. He also underwent a similar procedure in 2023 and missed that year’s Big 12 and NCAA tournaments due to chest tightness and balance concerns.

Self has been one of the most decorated coaches in college basketball history since taking the helm at Kansas in 2003, leading the Jayhawks to 14 consecutive Big 12 championships from 2004-2018. He’s coached Kansas to four final four appearances and national titles in 2008 and 2022 — making him the only coach in school history to win multiple national championships. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2017. On Nov. 12, 2024, Self passed Allen Phog as the winningest coach in Kansas history.

Goalie fights are rare in the NHL nowadays because linesmen try to keep combative netminders apart.

But there was one Monday night because Florida Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky charged down the ice and went after the San Jose Sharks’ Alex Nedeljkovic before anyone could react.

The scrap happened during the third period after Florida’s Evan Rodrigues hit Vincent Desharnais, who had tripped the Panthers’ Mackie Samoskevich. Nedeljkovic left the crease to join the scrum, which drew the ire of Bobrovsky.

Bobrovsky had the gloves off and Nedeljkovic dropped his, and both masks came off. Nedeljkovic eventually took Bobrovsky down.

Each goalie got five minutes for fighting and two minutes for leaving the crease.

This was the NHL’s first goalie fight since Mike Smith and Cam Talbot in February 2020.