WASHINGTON — Cameron Boozer scored 18 points, and No. 3 Duke handed another neutral-site loss to fellow blueblood Michigan, knocking off the top-ranked Wolverines 68-63 on Saturday night in a raucous possible Final Four preview in the nation’s capital.

The Wolverines had won 11 straight games and replaced Arizona atop the AP Top 25 poll this week. The now-fourth-ranked Wildcats won at No. 2 Houston earlier Saturday, making it the first time since Feb. 8, 2025, that the teams ranked Nos. 1 and 2 in the poll lost on the same day.

With his dad, former Duke and NBA star Carlos Boozer, in attendance, Cameron Boozer hit a 3-pointer with 1:55 left to give the Blue Devils a 64-58 lead. Isaiah Evans added 14 points for the Blue Devils (25-2), who could return to Capital One Arena in just over a month for the East Regional of the NCAA tournament.

“That was a game that didn’t feel like it was played in February,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said. “That felt like a March or April game. Obviously, we have a ton of respect for Michigan, the staff, and how good they are. And I thought it just was a big-time game where our guys were ready to compete at a high level.”

In the programs’ first meeting in 12 years, Duke improved to 23-8 against Michigan and 7-0 on neutral courts, a series that includes the 1992 national title game. Michigan hasn’t beaten Duke since Dec. 6, 2009, in Ann Arbor.

Yaxel Lendeborg scored 21 points for the Wolverines (25-2), who had not lost since a home defeat by three points to Wisconsin on Jan. 10.

Though second-year coach Dusty May’s Michigan squad has been hailed for unselfishness, Scheyer’s Blue Devils showed more versatility on offense. Caleb Foster scored 12 points, and Patrick Ngongba II added 11 as Duke found soft spots in the Wolverines’ top-rated defense.

Meanwhile, Duke won the rebounding battle 41-28 as Michigan settled for too many one-and-done perimeter shots, going 6-of-25 from 3-point range.

“When you schedule a game like this, you don’t know what it’s going to look like after the fact, and even the preparation leading up to it. We know more about our team now. We’ll be better because of this game and overall,” May said. “We didn’t rebound the way we needed to, and we made some timely errors, and when you’re playing someone like Duke, they make you pay for every mistake. And they did that tonight.”

Fans traded chants of “Let’s go Duke!” and “Let’s go Blue!” for the rare must-see matchup in a city starved for meaningful basketball. ESPN’s “College GameDay” was broadcast from inside the arena during the teams’ morning shootaround, and tickets for upper-level seats were selling in the $600 range in the hours before the game, with courtside seats upwards of $6,000.

Defense had the upper hand in a spirited, physical first half in which neither team led by more than five points. Ngongba was fouled while fighting for a rebound with 0.8 seconds left and made both free throws to give the Blue Devils a 35-33 lead at the break.

Surprisingly, Duke never trailed again.

“This game helped us understand what a tournament environment is all about,” Scheyer said. “I’m thankful for this, just this whole event, because I think it really simulates what it’s going to be. And whether we have an opportunity to play in Washington or not, this helped us a lot.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Manchester City piled pressure on Premier League leaders Arsenal as Nico O’Reilly’s brace clinched a crucial 2-1 win against Newcastle, while Chelsea’s bid to reach the Champions League was dented by a 1-1 draw against lowly Burnley on Saturday.

O’Reilly put City ahead in the first half at the Etihad Stadium and restored their lead after Lewis Hall had equalised.

Pep Guardiola’s side weren’t at their best but they held on for a victory that moved them within two points of leaders Arsenal.

The Gunners travel to Tottenham on Sunday, but regardless of the result in the north London derby, City control the destiny of the title.

They will have a game in hand on Arsenal after this weekend and host Mikel Arteta’s men in April, with 11 wins from their last 11 matches guaranteed to secure the seventh title of Guardiola’s reign.

While Arsenal have spluttered with two wins from their last seven league games, City are heating up at just the right time.

A fifth successive win in all competitions extended their unbeaten run to eight games.

“We saw today this is how we need to play. It’s coming to the best part of the season. Every single game will be similar to today,” Guardiola said.

“Of course in terms of points it’s important, but we have to improve to have the chance to compete until the end. Now we deserve three more days off. Then another battle in Leeds.”

At Stamford Bridge, Chelsea climbed into the top four only on goal difference after they paid for failing to build on Joao Pedro’s fourth-minute opener.

Chelsea were dominant until Wesley Fofana was sent off with 18 minutes remaining for a second yellow card.

Burnley took full advantage as Zian Flemming headed in from a corner in the 93rd minute to boost their battle to beat the drop.

“It is not enough clean sheets and not enough basic values of defending set-pieces. That is something I have to address,” said Chelsea boss Liam Rosenior.

“There were players on the pitch who were assigned to do their job and who didn’t do their job. That is what cost us the two points.”

The Clarets are still eight points from safety in their daunting fight for survival.

Milner sets appearance record

Villa defied the odds to keep pace with Arsenal and Manchester City in the title race until recent weeks, but a 1-1 draw continued their poor run at Villa Park.

Anton Stach’s spectacular free-kick from fully 40 yards at an angle caught out Emi Martinez at his near post to give Leeds the advantage.

Daniel Farke’s men have lost just twice in their last 14 league games to relieve their fears of being dragged into a battle for safety.

But Tammy Abraham then snatched a point for Villa two minutes from time.

Five Premier League sides are set to qualify for next season’s Champions League thanks to the strong performance of English sides in European competition this season.

Liverpool and Manchester United have the chance to close in when they face Nottingham Forest and Everton in the coming days.

James Milner set a new record of 654 Premier League appearances in Brighton’s 2-0 win at Brentford.

The 40-year-old started for the Seagulls as they secured a first win in seven games to ease the pressure on boss Fabian Hurzeler.

“It’s the drive and hunger. You want to be the best every day whether it’s game or training,” said Milner on the secret to his longevity.

Diego Gomez drilled in the opening goal for the visitors after Ferdi Kadioglu’s stunning strike came back off the bar.

Danny Welbeck then pounced on some slack Brentford defending to double Brighton’s lead just before half-time.

Third-bottom West Ham missed a chance to boost their survival bid after a dour 0-0 draw with Bournemouth at the London Stadium.

The Hammers are two points behind fourth-bottom Forest, who host Liverpool on Sunday.

American-born Team China skier Eileen Gu commented on Team USA figure skater Alysa Liu’s historic gold medal in the women’s free skate final Thursday at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics.

After Liu became the first American women’s figure skater to win an individual Olympic medal in 20 years and first to win a gold in 24 years, she made a celebratory Instagram post. 

“These are for y’all,” Liu wrote in the caption of a photo holding her gold medal and the U.S. team gold. 

ALYSA LIU VS EILEEN GU — HOW TWO CHINESE AMERICAN STARS WOUND UP ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF AN OLYMPIC PROXY WAR

Gu commented on the post, celebrating Liu’s victory.

“YESSSSSS,” Gu wrote in the comment section. 

The two Chinese American stars have been relentlessly compared and contrasted on social media this Olympics. 

Both athletes are the children of immigrants who came to the U.S. from China. But many fans and critics have been quick to point out the contrast between Liu’s story, a tale of American loyalty by an immigrant’s child, and Gu, who chose to compete for Team China when she was 15 years old despite living in California.

Arthur Liu raised Alysa and her siblings in Oakland. Yan Gu raised Eileen just across the bay in San Francisco.

Their paths diverged in 2019.

The Chinese government launched a program to recruit foreign-born athletes, primarily with Chinese heritage, to boost competitiveness, notably for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and soccer, according to The China Project.

Gu and Liu were top recruiting targets.

Gu traded in her red, white and blue for red and gold. Just months after competing in her first Freestyle Ski World Cup for the U.S. in January 2019, she competed for China for the first time in June of that year after requesting a change of nation with the International Ski Federation.

Silver medalist Eileen Gu of China attends the award ceremony for the freestyle skiing women’s freeski big air event at the Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Livigno, Italy, Feb. 16, 2026.  (Hongxiang/Xinhua via Getty Images)

The Lius remained loyal to Team USA.

US OLYMPIAN ALYSA LIU WAS ONCE TARGETED BY CHINESE SPIES – HERE’S WHAT SHE HAS TO SAY ABOUT IT

Arthur was reportedly “not open to persuasion” to having Alysa compete for China, according to The Economist.

Both athletes competed at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, Gu representing China and Liu representing the U.S. 

Gu won two gold medals and one silver in freeskiing and went home to California as a new global household name for her success.

Liu finished in sixth place in women’s singles figure skating, then went into a temporary early retirement, before returning to the sport in 2024. 

But in 2026, Liu is the only one with any gold after helping the U.S. win team gold and her historic individual gold on Thursday. Maybe if Gu represented USA she would have won gold. 

Liu landed all her jumps and smiled during the individual final before erupting in a demonstrative celebration after she finished. 

She yelled, “That’s what I’m f—ing talking about!’ and “Holy s—!” while celebrating with her team. She finished with a 226.79 total score, a 150.20 free skate score and a 76.59 short program score. It was her season-best free skate score.

OLYMPIANS SPEAK OUT IN DEFENSE OF EILEEN GU AMID CRITICISM FOR COMPETING FOR CHINA OVER US

But Gu has only won two silvers so far in Italy. 

An interaction Tuesday with a reporter went viral after Gu responded to a question about her winning two silver medals instead of gold so far this Olympics, suggesting the question came from a “ridiculous perspective.”

“I’m the most decorated female freeskier in history. I think that’s an answer in and of itself,” Gu said when asked if she saw her two medals as “silvers earned” or “golds lost.”

“How do I say this? Winning a medal at the Olympics is a life-changing experience for every athlete. Doing it five times is exponentially harder because every medal is equally hard for me, but everybody else’s expectations rise, right? 

“The two medals lost situation, to be quite frank with you, I think is kind of a ridiculous perspective to take. I’m showcasing my best skiing. I’m doing things that quite literally have never been done before. So, I think that is more than good enough, but thank you.”

Gu will have one last chance to win gold in the women’s halfpipe final, considered her strongest event, Sunday. The event will take place a day after it was originally scheduled due to intense snow in the area.

Gu nearly lost out on any chance at a gold medal after falling in the halfpipe qualifier on Thursday. But she recovered in her second run to earn a spot in the final.

Gu has had to compete under the pressure of immense global scrutiny in response to her decision to compete for China seven years ago.

Gu was asked if she feels “like a bit of a punching bag for a certain strand of American politics” after her competition on Thursday.

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Silver medalist Eileen Gu of China poses for photos after the award ceremony for the freestyle skiing women’s freeski big air event at the Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Livigno, Italy, Feb. 16, 2026.  (Wang Peng/Xinhua via Getty Images)

“I do,” she said, according to USA Today. “So many athletes compete for a different country. … People only have a problem with me doing it because they kind of lump China into this monolithic entity, and they just hate China. So, it’s not really about what they think it’s about.

“And also, because I win. Like, if I wasn’t doing well, I think that they probably wouldn’t care as much, and that’s OK for me. People are entitled to their opinions.”  

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