COLLEGES

UConn’s record streak of top five appearances in The Associated Press women’s basketball poll is over.

The Huskies fell to sixth on Monday, ending a run of 253 consecutive weeks as one of the first five teams in the Top 25. That historic stretch dated back to Feb. 5, 2007. Connecticut’s run dwarfs the No. 2 all-time mark of 96 set by Louisiana Tech in the 1980s.

The longest current streak is now held by No. 1 South Carolina at 11. The Gamecocks had a hand in ending the Huskies’ run by routing UConn last Monday night. The Huskies’ three losses this season have come to the Gamecocks, No. 2 Baylor and third-ranked Oregon. South Carolina earned 27 first-place votes from the national media panel. Baylor received two and Oregon one.

UConn’s streak may have continued had fourth-ranked Stanford not had a miracle finish to beat Colorado on Sunday.

• Freshman Aliyah Boston had 12 points and 14 rebounds and No. 1 South Carolina used its relentless defense for a big run in the first quarter en route to its 19th straight win, 95-44 over visiting Vanderbilt.

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MEN’S BASKETBALL: Baylor and Kansas just keep winning, setting up a monumental showdown Saturday between the top-ranked Bears and No. 3 Jayhawks that could help decide not only the Big 12 title but the No. 1 overall seed for the NCAA tournament.

The two teams were separated once again by Gonzaga in the latest college basketball poll from The Associated Press. The Bears (23-1) had 48 first-place votes from the 63-member media panel, and the Bulldogs (26-1) had 14 first-place nods and the Jayhawks (22-3) had the only remaining first-place vote.

San Diego State (26-0) remained the nation’s last unbeaten team and was No. 4 in the latest poll, and Dayton (23-2) climbed one spot to fifth after wins over Rhode Island and Massachusetts and a rough week for then-No. 5 Louisville.

• UConn forward Akok Akok suffered a complete rupture of his left Achilles tendon during the Huskies’ win over Memphis, the school said.

Akok will undergo surgery later this week and will miss the remainder of the season.

• Matt Hanna scored on a backdoor layup from Will King for the the winning basket in Colby’s 93-91 win over Southern Maine (11-13) at Gorham.

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Hanna’s basket put the Mules (22-2) ahead 92-91 with 27 seconds to play. King was fouled with 2 seconds left while grabbing a defensive rebound. King hit the first free throw and intentionally missed the second to run out the clock.

Noah Tyson led the Mules with 25 points and 10 rebounds. Hanna had 24 points, and Alex Dorion added 13 points, and Wallace Tucker 12 points off the bench. Jaire Roberts scored 28 for the Huskies, Derek Haney 18 points and Cameron Wood 17, with Jacobe Thomas adding 14 points.

HOCKEY

NHL: Antti Raanta stopped 25 shots, Conor Garland scored his team-leading 20th goal and the Arizona Coyotes beat the visiting New York Islanders 2-1.

• Evgenii Dadonov and Mike Hoffman scored, Aaron Ekblad had two assists and the slumping Florida Panthers beat the host San Jose Sharks 5-3.

• Andrew Mangiapane had three goals and an assist, and the Calgary Flames rallied for a 6-4 victory over the visiting Anaheim Ducks.

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• Max Pacioretty scored his team-high 27th goal and the Vegas Golden Knights beat the visiting Washington Capitals 3-2.

Alex Ovechkin remained stuck on 698 career goals after being held without a point for the fifth consecutive game, his longest drought of the season.

• Vancouver acquired Tyler Toffoli from the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for forward Tim Schaller, prospect Tyler Madden, a 2020 second-round pick and a conditional fourth-round selection in 2022.

SOCCER

PREMIER LEAGUE: Manchester United threw open the race for the final Champions League qualification spots in the Premier League by beating fourth-place Chelsea 2-0 thanks to headers by Anthony Martial and Harry Maguire at Lomndon.

With 12 games remaining, seven points separate Chelsea and 11th-place Burnley, with the team finishing fifth also set to earn a place in next season’s Champions League following UEFA’s decision to punish Man City for serious breaches of financial regulations by handing the English champions a two-year European ban.

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MLS: DC United midfielder Paul Arriola has an injury to his right ACL that he says “will take months to recover from.”

The 25-year-old midfielder was hurt during Saturday night’s preseason exhibition against Orlando.

Arriola has been a regular starter for the U.S. national team under Coach Gregg Berhalter. Arriola has five goals in 33 international appearances.

U.S. MEN: Striker Tim Weah faces another spell on the sideline after tearing his right hamstring when making his injury comeback for Lille after a six-month absence, the French club said.

The 19-year-old Weah came on as a second-half substitute in a 2-1 loss to Marseille on Sunday for his first appearance since sustaining another hamstring injury in August, but had an immediate setback.

CORONAVIRUS

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BEACH VOLLEYBALL: A tournament in Yangzhou, China, originally scheduled for April 22-26 has been postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The FIVB said the tournament will be rescheduled after the Tokyo Olympics. That means players hoping to earn points they need to qualify for the Summer Games will have one less opportunity to rise in the rankings.

MARATHON: Tokyo Marathon organizers drastically reduced the number of participants for this year’s race out of fear of the spread of the virus coming from China.

The general public is being barred from the race on March 1. It will now be limited to a few hundred elite participants, organizers said in a brief statement.

TENNIS

DUBAI CHAMPIONSHIPS: Kim Clijsters’ first WTA Tour match since 2012 ended with a 6-2, 7-6 (6) loss to Garbine Muguruza.

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Clijsters, 36, is making a second comeback – this time after more than seven years away from professional tennis – but was broken in the opening game against Muguruza, a fellow former No. 1.

Muguruza broke again for a 5-2 lead and was two breaks up at 3-0 in the second set before Clijsters found her stride. Clijsters leveled the set at 4-4 but Muguruza then converted her second match point in the tiebreaker.

FOOTBALL

NFL: Coach Frank Reich has added Matt Raich and Jerrod Johnson to his coaching staff.

Raich will serve as special defensive assistant-assistant defensive line coach and Johnson becomes the team’s offensive quality control coach.

• New Browns general manager Andrew Berry cleared $13 million in salary-cap space by releasing veteran cornerback T.J. Carrie and three others players signed by former GM John Dorsey.

Along with Carrie, Cleveland terminated the contracts of tight end Demetrius Harris, guard Eric Kush and linebacker Adarius Taylor.

AWARDS

LAUREUS SPORTS AWARDS: Gymnastics star Simone Biles was named the Laureus Sportswoman of the Year for the third time, and Lionel Messi and Lewis Hamilton shared the men’s award.

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