It’s been a long few years for the DePaul faithful. A current senior at the university would have seen the following men’s basketball seasons: 10-23 (3-17 in Big East play) as a freshman. 3-29 (0-20 Big East) as a sophomore. 14-20 (4-16 Big East) as a junior.

But now, second-year head coach Chris Holtmann seems to have the Blue Demons moving in the right direction. And with student support in the stands matching the team finding some momentum on the court, Holtmann took the opportunity to give back to the student section in a manner most undergraduates can appreciate: free drinks.

On Friday night, DePaul topped Marquette 80-75 at Wintrust Arena, the Blue Demons’ third Big East win of the season and third straight Big East home win. The victory, which came in front of a record number of student attendees, makes this season the first since 2014-15 in which DePaul has won three or more conference games by Jan. 16 or earlier — and the first since 2007 in which it has won three straight conference home games in a single season.

At 9:46 p.m. CT, the Blue Demons’ official X page confirmed the victory. About an hour later, presumably just after speaking to the media and the team in the locker room, Holtmann fired up his own X account to repost the team’s post with a message for DePaul students.

“Highest student attendance in the history of Wintrust and one of the largest crowds!!! Thank you!!!” the post started, before getting to the kicker. “First round on me at Kelly’s Pub near campus. See you in 35 min!”

Highest student attendance in the history of Wintrust and one of the largest crowds!!! Thank you!!!

First round on me at Kelly’s Pub near campus. See you in 35 min! https://t.co/L6K4iutecx

— Chris Holtmann (@ChrisHoltmann) January 17, 2026

There was a brief change of plans — the afterparty location was initially shifted to Homeslice, a local pizza and drinks joint, and the photos posted by DePaul indicate Holtmann ended up at Hook and Ladder on North Lincoln Avenue, approximately a 10-minute walk from DePaul’s campus. But good things come to those who wait (and stay abreast of updates on social media), and — regardless of location — see Holtmann in 35 minutes fans did.

Patrons who found Holtmann discovered that, true to his word, he was indeed making the rounds. Then, hoisting himself onto a bar, he reiterated his commitment over the unsurprising cacophony of a crowded post-win venue.

“If you’re a DePaul student, first round’s on me,” Holtmann hollered, before walking back into the crowd to enjoy the rest of the night.

Lisandro Martínez has challenged Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt to repeat their criticism to his face after the pair said Erling Haaland would make the Manchester United defender look like “a little toddler” in the Manchester derby.

Speaking on a podcast ahead of the game, Butt predicted Haaland would “pick Martinez up and run with him” and their battle at Old Trafford would be rememble “a dad after school running down the road with a little toddler.”

Scholes followed up with “he’d score, then throw him in the net.”

But after Martinez kept Haaland quiet during United’s impressive 2-0 win, the Argentinian hit back at the former players — and Scholes, in particular.

“Honestly, he can say whatever he wants,” Martinez said. “I told him already, if he wants to say something to me, he can come to wherever he wants. To my house, wherever. I don’t care.”

United are known to be unhappy at the comments from Scholes and Butt, believing it was an attempt to mock Martinez rather than offer any constructive analysis.

Both Scholes and Butt have been at Old Trafford recently with the pair spotted in the directors’ boss alongside Sir Alex Ferguson for United’s 2-1 defeat to Brighton in the FA Cup the weekend before the derby — a game Martinez played in.

“I think for me, I respect the relations [ex-players] when they want to help the club because everyone can talk on the television but when you see [them] here face to face, no one says anything in your face,” Martinez continued.

“So for me, I don’t really care what they say. I just put the focus on my performance, the performance of the team and I give everything to this club until my last day.”

Martinez’s display against Haaland — who was substituted early by Pep Guardiola — was key for United as Michael Carrick masterminded victory over City in his first game as head coach.

– Michael Carrick wants Man United display vs. Man City to be ‘version of normal’
– Roy Keane gives Michael Carrick ‘credit’ for win after Man United ‘circus’ jibe

The 44-year-old was only appointed on Tuesday and took training for the first time on Wednesday, Still, Martinez said the former United midfielder was able to quickly make an impression on the squad.

“It’s so different, so different,” he said. “Different mentality, different guy. He [Carrick] knows what this club really means. He sent us that message that he played here for a long, long time.

“He won everything. He is a big legend. He wants to help the club and I think we were in a tough situation and it was the best moment to change that.”

The Pakistan Super League (PSL) governing council’s working committee held a late-night meeting to discuss key matters for the upcoming season, including the player auction and retention policies, sources told Geo News on Sunday.

According to insiders, the committee agreed to introduce a player auction for PSL 11 and also finalised the rules for player retention.

The committee’s decisions will be sent to PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi for final approval, with the option of convening a full governing council meeting if required.

Sources revealed that the defending champions Lahore Qalandars, along with Quetta Gladiators, Islamabad United, Karachi Kings and Hyderabad, voted in favour of the player auction model.

Peshawar Zalmi and the Sialkot franchise also voted in favour of the ‘drauction’ system, sources said.

It was also confirmed that the five existing franchises agreed on retaining four players each, one in each category, with one player eligible to be brought into a lower category and designated as a brand ambassador, sources said.

The new franchises, meanwhile, will select their remaining players from the general player pool through the auction system. Two new franchises, however, insisted on zero retention.

“The remaining players will be auctioned, and franchises will pick their players in the auction,” sources said.

The final formula for the PSL 11 auction and retention rules will be submitted to Mohsin Naqvi, with an official announcement expected within the next one or two days.

Sources said there is a possibility that it will not be made mandatory to include a player from the Emerging category in the playing XI.

The PSL auction is likely to be held during the first week of February, sources said.

Earlier, Naqvi advised franchise owners to increase the players’ salary cap as the marquee league enters a new era with the addition of two new teams.

Highlighting the rise in franchise market value, he encouraged teams to adopt the auction model.

“Conduct an auction of players in the PSL 11 draft and select players of your choice — they will benefit from it,” Naqvi told franchise owners during the meeting.

PSL 11 is set to begin on March 26, marking a significant milestone as the league expands from six to eight teams with the inclusion of new franchises from Sialkot and Hyderabad.

The historic PSL 2026 auction, held at the Jinnah Convention Centre on January 8 this year, saw FKS Group and OZ Developers secure ownership of the new franchises for Rs 1.75 billion and Rs 1.85 billion, respectively.