Geno Auriemma becomes D-I basketball’s all-time wins leader; 76ers fall again, lose Paul George to injury

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🐐 Good morning to all, but especially to …

GENO AURIEMMA

You know it’s a special day when we bust out the goat emoji — not to mention an actual goat like they did in Storrs! Coach Geno Auriemma won his 1,217th game Wednesday when UConn thumped Fairleigh Dickinson, 85-41, passing Stanford’s recently retired Tara VanDerveer for most wins in Division I basketball history. More than 60 of Auriemma’s former players, including superstars such as Maya Moore, Diana Taurasi, Sue Bird and Rebecca Lobo, were in attendance.

Auriemma, along with associate head coach Chris Dailey, took over at UConn in 1985 and transformed a struggling program into a powerhouse. The numbers are astounding.

• 11 national titles, most in D-I basketball history.
• 1,217-162 record (.883 win pct), best in D-I basketball history
• 22 Final Fours, including a record 14 straight from 2004-17
• Record 111 straight wins from 2014-17.
• Eight Naismith Coach of the Year awards

There are plenty more wins coming, too. Auriemma, 70, signed a five-year extension over the summer, and with Paige Bueckers leading the way, this season’s squad figures to make a run at more hardware for the storied program. Plus, former top recruit Azzi Fudd made her return from a torn ACL on Wednesday.

Isabel Gonzalez talked with several of Auriemma’s former stars, and they speak glowingly of a legend whose run seems to have no end in sight.

👍 Honorable mentions

🏀 And not such a good morning for …

THE PHILADELPHIA 76ERS

Things have gone from bad to worse — and the worst record in the league — for the 76ers. Just over a half into Philadelphia’s first game with all three of Joel Embiid, Paul George and Tyrese Maxey active, George hyperextend his left knee in an eventual 117-111 loss to the Grizzlies. It’s the same knee George hyperextended in the preseason, which caused him to miss the first two weeks of the regular season.

Philadelphia has lost five straight, falling to 2-12, which officially makes them the worst team in the league. Just a day after Sam Quinn said it’s not time to panic yet, he says this injury takes the sense of worry up a notch, but it’s still not quite horrible — even considering that the team’s big three have shared the floor for only six minutes in 14 games. Here’s why:

• Quinn: “Only three of their next nine games are on the road, and only three of their opponents in that span are currently top-six seeds in their conference. That includes two games against the Magic, still missing Paolo Banchero, while the third is the second night of a road back-to-back for the Rockets. On paper, this is the moment in which they absolutely need to start stacking wins. If George misses time and they can’t do that, their season might be over by Christmas.”

👎 Not so honorable mentions

⚾ Braves’ Chris Sale, Tigers’ Tarik Skubal win NL, AL Cy Young Awards

Two lefties, two first-time winners, two pitching Triple Crown winners (wins, ERA, strikeouts), two winding roads to get here. The Braves‘ Chris Sale and the Tigers‘ Tarik Skubal won the NL and AL Cy Young Awards, respectively, as MLB awards season rolls on.

• Sale, 35, beat out Zack Wheeler and NL Rookie of the Year Paul Skenes for the award. He went 18-3 with a 2.83 ERA. He earned 26 of 30 first-place votes.
• Sale is the first Braves pitcher to win the award since Tom Glavine in 1998.
• Skubal, 28, was one of MLB’s true breakout stars, with an 18-4 record and a 2.39 ERA. He also led all of MLB with 6.3 Wins Above Replacement. He earned all 30 first-place votes — the third straight unanimous AL Cy Young winner — with Seth Lugo finishing second and Emmanuel Clase third.
• Skubal is Detroit’s first Cy Young winner since Max Scherzer in 2013.

Matt Snyder’s look at how both winners got here is fantastic.

🏈 NFL, CFB QB Power Rankings

Welcome to the top five, Justin Herbert! The Chargers star, who’s been on an absolute heater of late, is No. 5 in Cody Benjamin’s NFL QB Power Rankings, behind Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow, Josh Allen and Jared Goff. Jayden Daniels dropped out of the top five, going from fourth to seventh.

It’s been a long time coming for Herbert, who has flourished as the Chargers have opened up the playbook over the course of the season. During the team’s four-game winning streak, Herbert ranks top-six league-wide in yards passing, yards per attempt, touchdown rate and explosive play rate. As I wrote earlier this week …

• Pereles: “The mobility, the arm strength, the accuracy, the perfect trajectory. It’s all *chef’s kiss.* … Herbert is a Bugatti engine who was stuck in a 1990s Honda Civic early this season. Now, he’s being unleashed, and combined with his long-standing penchant for avoiding bad plays (one interception all season), the Chargers are seeing awe-inspiring plays over and over.”

In the college ranks, there’s a new name at No. 1:

1. Shedeur Sanders (previous: 4)
2. Jaxson Dart (1)
3. Jalen Milroe (3)
4. Dillon Gabriel (2)
5. LaNorris Sellers (6)

Tom Fornelli explained the Colorado signal caller’s jump:

• Fornelli: “I’m always talking to scouts and film buffs about [NFL Draft potential], and I can tell you that no QB in the country has done more to improve their draft stock this season than Shedeur. There’s a long time between now and the NFL Draft, but nearly everyone has Sanders atop their board right now. That wasn’t the case three months ago.”

📺 What we’re watching Thursday

🏀 No. 13 Baylor vs. No. 22 St. John’s (M), 7 p.m. on CBS Sports Network
🏀 Pistons at Hornets, 7 p.m. on NBA TV
🏈 NC State at Georgia Tech, 7:30 p.m. on ESPN
🏈 Steelers at Browns, 8:15 p.m. on Prime Video
🏀 Virginia vs. No. 11 Tennessee (M), 9:30 p.m. on CBS Sports Network