Good morning, Chicago.

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle’s security costs continue to rise, as she’s set to add a new vehicle this year for her seven-member team.

Preckwinkle’s executive protection detail is budgeted to cost up to $1.5 million in 2026 for the “salaries, benefits, duty-related personnel expenses and other necessary non-personnel expenses of seven members,” according to Forest Preserves of Cook County documents. The district has handled her detail since 2019.

That’s up from $1.3 million in 2025. The 2026 budget included up to $130,000 to buy a new Ford Expedition to replace a 2019 model SUV in her seven-vehicle security fleet.

Read the full story from the Tribune’s A.D. Quig.

Here are the top stories you need to know to start your day, including the Cook County state’s attorney’s office reviewing the legality of Mayor Brandon Johnson’s immigration executive order, this week’s Chicago basketball report and our theater critic reviews “Così fan tutte” by Lyric Opera.

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Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during a news conference at Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters, Jan. 24, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Every Homeland Security officer in Minneapolis is now being issued a body-worn camera, Kristi Noem says

Every Homeland Security officer on the ground in Minneapolis, including those from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, will be immediately issued body-worn cameras, Secretary Kristi Noem said yesterday, in the latest fallout after the shooting deaths of two U.S. citizens at the hands of federal agents.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson holds a news conference at City Hall on Jan. 27, 2026. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)

Cook County state’s attorney’s office reviewing legality of mayor’s immigration executive order

The Cook County state’s attorney’s office said “a thorough analysis is being conducted” to assess the legality of a mayoral executive order that directs Chicago police to investigate potential wrongdoing by immigration agents, after the weekend signing was overshadowed by a political brouhaha due to social media pushback from the county’s top prosecutor.

Dr. Sameer Vohra, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, speaks during an event in Chicago on Jan. 28, 2026. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)

Illinois joins World Health Organization network, after Trump administration withdraws from group

Illinois is joining a network of the World Health Organization in hopes of better positioning the state to handle potential health threats, following the U.S. withdrawal from the group last month.

It’s the state’s latest move into an area that was previously the domain of the federal government, before the administration of President Donald Trump began remaking public health policies and guidance.

A Waymo vehicle sits near a curb, Dec. 27, 2025, in San Francisco. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)

Waymo-backed bill could make self-driving cars legal in Illinois in three years

Self-driving cars such as Waymos could soon roam the streets of Chicago under new legislation proposed in Springfield.

A bill filed last week would authorize autonomous vehicle pilot programs in a handful of Illinois counties, including Cook, before opening the door to statewide legalization of self-driving cars in three years.

Architectural elements on the building at Metropolitan Capital Bank, 9 E. Ontario St., as seen in 2015. (Phil Velasquez/Chicago Tribune)

Chicago’s Metropolitan Capital Bank becomes first US bank failure of 2026

For the second year in a row, a Chicago bank became the first in the nation to fail.

Students from four high schools rally at River Park against recent immigration enforcement actions under the administration of President Donald Trump, on Feb. 2, 2026, on Chicago’s North Side. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)

Hundreds of students walk out from class across Chicago’s North Side to protest against ICE

Hundreds of students across Chicago’s North Side walked out of their classrooms yesterday in protest of the Trump administration’s continued mass deportation campaign.

U. of I. Republicans club faces backlash for post supporting ICE: ‘Only traitors help invaders’
Indiana committee OKs police cooperation with ICE bill amid criticism

Illinois Fighting Illini forward Berry Wallace shoots against the UCLA Bruins at State Farm Center on Jan. 28, 2026, in Champaign. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)

Chicago basketball report: No Bulls All-Stars for 3rd straight year — and a viral play from Illinois’ last win

The Chicago Bulls will go another season without an All-Star. And the Illinois men and women have another big week after ranked road wins.

The United States’ Mallory Swanson, left, reacts after teammate Trinity Rodman, right, scored a goal during an Olympic group match against Zambia on July 25, 2024, in Nice, France. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Mallory Swanson says there’s ‘not an exact date yet’ for her return to Chicago Stars or the USWNT

Mallory Swanson welcomed daughter Josie with Chicago Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson in November and is still in her “newborn bubble” but is working her way back to join the Chicago Stars at some point this season. U.S. coach Emma Hayes also said there’s no timeline yet for Swanson’s return to the national team.

“We don’t have an exact date,” Swanson said. “I think it’s more about completing phases and just kind of taking it week by week, day by day. Not an exact date yet, but I’m hoping soon.”

CBS News anchor Tony Dokoupil interviews people near the site where Renee Nicole Good was shot and killed by ICE, Jan. 8, 2026 in Minneapolis. (Stephen Maturen/Getty)

Column: Who’s that new anchorman? He’s no Walter Cronkite.

Rick Kogan asks: How many of you are watching Tony Dokoupil?

He is, if you haven’t heard, the new anchorman of “CBS Evening News,” having spent six years at “CBS Mornings” alongside Gayle King and Nate Burleson. He said in interviews that this new job was “a little bit terrifying,” adding that “people really care about this show, and justifiably.”

A bronze sculpture of President John F. Kennedy is displayed in the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center For The Performing Arts, Feb. 2, 2026 in Washington. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

Trump says he won’t tear down the Kennedy Center arts venue but it needs to be closed for repairs

President Donald Trump said that he won’t tear down the Kennedy Center but said it needs to be closed for about two years for work that cannot be done with patrons coming and going for shows and other performances.

Trump’s comments, though, suggested that the interior of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts will be gutted as part of the process.

Anthony León, Ian Rucker and the company of “Così fan tutte” by Lyric Opera of Chicago. (Cory Weaver)

Review: ‘Così fan tutte’ by Lyric Opera is all comic love games until Mozart surprises us

If whimsy is your bag, the very lively staging at Lyric Opera, originally directed by Michael Cavanagh for the San Fransisco Opera in 2021, has it aplenty, writes Chris Jones.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/03/daywatch-cook-county-board-presidents-security-costs-rise/ 

The Niles Teen Center will be moving out of its leased home at Golf Mill Shopping Center and into a new, expanded, multi-million dollar permanent space the village owns, village officials stated in a news release where they also announced funding for creating the new location.

Mayor George Alpogianis stated in the Jan. 28 release that the village secured $1.2 million in state and federal grants that will be used to build out space for the Teen Center on the second floor of the village’s human services building at Waukegan Road and Oakton Street.

The new Civic Center Plaza location is expected to be a “more modern facility” that is more than 4,000 square feet large.

The Teen Center is a village-owned program and space for youth in grades 6 to 12. During the academic year, it serves as an after school hub, and in the summer a go-to for youth. The center is open four hours on days it operates. Youth are offered homework help, arts and crafts, board games and other activities, as well as access to a cafe/lounge and computer lab. The center holds such community events as dances and fundraisers, according to the village website.

Village leaders say the new center, in the village-owned property, is expected to save Niles taxpayers more than $1 million. Also, the new space will be more than double the size of what the center has at the shopping center. The extra room will allow for expanded programming and services to accommodate the increasing number of participating teens, according to the release.

“By investing in a permanent, Village-owned space, we are creating a stable, accessible home for our Teen Center and positioning it for long-term success,” Alpogianis stated in the release. “This new facility allows us to expand programs, better serve our youth, and responsibly use public funding to benefit our growing community.”

The village had initially signed a five-year agreement to move the Teen Center to 8922 N. Greenwood Ave. – with a two-year termination option. But that changed after the village secured the grant money. The terms of the state and federal grant funding requires that the center be located in a village-owned facility because the money can only be used for improvements to property Niles owns.

“Following a reassessment of community needs, we determined that a centrally located, village-owned site best serves families and teens while strengthening connections to other municipal services,” the mayor stated in the release.

When the center would move and open at the new location was not immediately clear.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/03/niles-teen-center-to-move-from-golf-mill-to-civic-plaza/ 

Chinese Oil Firms Turn To Iran To Replace Venezuelan Crude

Tyler Durden
Tue, 02/03/2026 – 07:20

https://www.zerohedge.com/energy/chinese-oil-firms-turn-iran-replace-venezuelan-crude 

SAN FRANCISCO — Anyone watching Caleb Williams’ desperation fourth-down touchdown pass in the Chicago Bears’ divisional-round loss to the Los Angeles Rams knew how improbable a play it was.

Quantifying that was a different story. That’s when the NFL’s Next Gen Stats stepped in.

Within minutes after what officially went down as a 14-yard touchdown landed in Cole Kmet’s hands, the answer was all over social media.

The pass traveled 51.2 air yards for the longest throw in the red zone on record.
Williams retreated so far back that he launched the pass from 26.5 yards behind the line of scrimmage, 4 yards farther back than any other pass on record.
The completion probability was a mere 17.8% from the time Williams threw the pass.

Bears quarterback Caleb Williams scrambles away from Rams linebacker Jared Verse (8) before throwing the game-tying pass to Cole Kmet in the final seconds of the fourth quarter Jan. 18, 2026, in an NFC divisional playoff game at Soldier Field. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)

A sport whose statistics used to be mostly simple ones — like yards gained, passes attempted, passes completed and touchdowns — now has numbers based on all sorts of advanced statistics thanks to radio-frequency identification chips the NFL has placed in the ball and players’ shoulder pads and the power of AWS computers to sift through and analyze them.

The NFL on Sunday will complete the 10th season of the Next Gen Stats era that has transformed the way fans consume the game, how teams make decisions and how the league makes its rules.

“Next Gen Stats is the hub of a bicycle wheel that powers all of these new spokes,” said Mike Band, the NFL’s senior manager of Next Gen Stats research and analytics. “So the more spokes and the longer that these spokes can be created, the bigger our wheel gets and the more we power.

“As we go on, player health and safety, schedule creation, rule changes, team decision-making, coaching, scouting, strength and conditioning, maximizing player output — those are all just the objectives of the NFL front office. This is a tool to help them do that.”

Josh Helmrich, the NFL’s senior director of media strategy, business development and Next Gen Stats, said more data gets collected in one game with the tracking chips than in the history of football before the chips were used.

The data the NFL collects through the chips provides simple answers, like how fast players run and how far a pass is thrown, to more complex ones thanks to the machine-learning technology and artificial intelligence through AWS that has helped the NFL’s research team create models for things like completion probability, yards gained over expected on runs or catches and deciphering defensive coverages.

Teams use the technology to monitor the speed and freshness of their players, affecting when to have strenuous practices and when to back off and helping reduce injuries by being able to better monitor a player’s condition throughout the week.

“Some use it more than others,” Helmrich said. “But that’s sort of their secret sauce. They don’t share a ton of the nitty-gritty with us.

“We know all those people. They ask us questions, ask us to make improvements on the data set, add this field, add that field. So we have a pretty good sense of what they do. … But they keep that a secret because they think it differentiates them from other teams.”

The technology has played a key part in rule changes like figuring out the best method for the so-called “dynamic” kickoff first put in place in 2024 and tweaked again this season. It also has been used by the NFL’s scheduling team to help determine the impact of short rest or multiple road games in a row on the speed of players.

It even has brought more specificity to spotting punts, with the chips in the ball being used about five times alone in the AFC championship game to determine where punts crossed out of bounds on a snowy day with little visibility. That helped turn the guesswork of an official sometimes 40 or 50 yards away from the ball into a precise measurement.

The technology also has led to the virtual measurement system for first downs this season but still can’t be used to spot the ball after scrimmage plays.

“Ultimately, I think we’d like to help all ways of spotting the ball, but it’s a very complicated, hard problem,” Helmrich said.

But its most public use remains in the statistics that have become part of the sport’s fabric thanks to their presence throughout broadcasts, on the NFL Pro website and on social media.

The NFL research staff works closely with each broadcast partner throughout the week and has one person dedicated to each game every Sunday who communicates directly with the broadcasters. There will be a researcher embedded in NBC’s production truck for the Super Bowl ready to detail any memorable play from the game.

“Next Gen Stats can be like the Kleenex of football in that, something crazy happens, what does next-generation stats have to say about a play,” Band said. “That’s where we’ve built all of this brand equity to get to where we are now, where it’s becoming part of the vernacular of the game.”

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/03/nfl-next-gen-stats-10th-season/ 

LOS ANGELES — Trinity Rodman spotted Mallory Swanson across a crowded hotel conference room and took off running, bounding into her U.S. teammate with a hug and a delighted laugh.

A few moments later, Sophia Wilson appeared in the room where the National Women’s Soccer League was holding a preseason event, bringing together the trio nicknamed “Triple Espresso” for the first time since the 2024 Olympics.

So much has changed in the lives of all three since winning the gold medal in Paris.

Swanson and Wilson took time away from soccer to start families. Rodman spent much of last season dealing with injuries before high-profile contract negotiations with the NWSL’s Washington Spirit.

It’s likely the trio also will reunite on the field this year for the national team as the United States prepares for World Cup qualifying in November. It’s also expected that at some point this season all three will be back playing for their NWSL teams.

“Obviously them coming back from pregnancy is amazing in itself, and how good Soph is looking already on the field after having her baby is — I don’t know, I’m in awe. I’m in awe of all of the moms,” Rodman said of her teammates at the recent event in Los Angeles. “I’m so excited for them to be back. Obviously they’re on different timelines, but I can’t wait for the next camp when we’re all together.”

Wilson said she plans to play in the Portland Thorns opener in mid-March and also hopes for minutes with the national team in the SheBelieves Cup tournament earlier that month.

Wilson took last year off from both teams for the birth of her daughter with husband Michael Wilson, a wide receiver for the Arizona Cardinals. Gianna was born in September.

“I mean, those are my girls. Even off the field those are my sisters, and just being close is important for us,” Wilson said. “I know Mal and I went through a similar journey last year, and going through that with someone you’re so close with is so special because it’s such a unique experience and there’s few people in our world that know what we do that also have gone through that at the same time.”

Swanson welcomed daughter Josie with Chicago Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson in November and is still in her “newborn bubble” but is working her way back to join the Chicago Stars at some point this season. U.S. coach Emma Hayes also said there’s no timeline yet for Swanson’s return to the national team.

“We don’t have an exact date,” Swanson said. “I think it’s more about completing phases and just kind of taking it week by week, day by day. Not an exact date yet, but I’m hoping soon.”

Rodman took time away from the game last summer to heal from a nagging back issue, then dealt with other minor injuries to close out the Spirit’s season. She played in just one national team match last year.

Rodman became a free agent at the end of the NWSL season, and there was speculation about whether the Spirit could keep her given the league’s salary cap. She and the Spirit initially agreed to a contract that both sides maintained had complied with the cap, but the NWSL scuttled it.

In response, the league introduced the “High Impact Player” mechanism, which allows clubs to go up to $1 million over the cap for players who meet certain criteria. The NWSL Players Association has challenged the rule, claiming it wasn’t negotiated. The criteria also have been questioned as inequitable for some players.

The fact that all three players remain in the NWSL is key, as there were concerns the league was losing its big stars to Europe, mostly because of the salary restrictions.

Wilson will remain with the Thorns this year after exercising a player option in her contract. Swanson’s contract with the Stars runs through 2028. And Rodman’s new deal with the Spirit, signed earlier this month after the league’s adoption of the HIP rule, is for three years.

Wilson and Swanson watched the national team from afar as Hayes evaluated younger players to solidify the lineup for next year’s Women’s World Cup in Brazil, as well as the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. Rodman returned to the team for its recent January camp and captained a young squad to victory against Paraguay.

“It has been fun to see all these new faces on the national team get opportunities, score goals, get first caps. That’s so important to create depth in the system,” Wilson said. “And it’s exciting just to see how everything’s coming together. I’m honestly just so excited to be back playing with Trin and Mal because that’s my favorite two people to play with.”

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/03/mallory-swanson-chicago-stars-return/ 

The Chicago Bulls will go another season without an All-Star. And the Illinois men and women have another big week after ranked road wins.

Every Tuesday, Tribune writers will provide an update on what happened — and what’s ahead — for the Bulls, Sky and local college basketball teams. Want more? Sign up for our Tribune sports newsletter.

Josh Giddey misses All-Star selection

Chicago Bulls guard Josh Giddey drives the lane in the second quarter during a game against the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday, Dec. 26, 2025, at the United Center in Chicago. (Dominic Di Palermo/Chicago Tribune)

Despite raising hopes for a first-time selection with his early-season performance, Josh Giddey was not selected for this year’s All-Star game.

The NBA announced reserves for the All-Star rosters Sunday night, a group that included Eastern Conference stars like Donovan Mitchell and Karl-Anthony Towns. Giddey did not make the cut despite averaging the fifth-most assists per game while averaging 18.6 points, 8.8 assists and 8.6 rebounds per game. The guard has the second-most triple-doubles this season behind only Nikola Jokić.

Despite this prolific output, Giddey was already an outlier in the All-Star race before suffering a hamstring strain on Dec. 29. He missed 11 consecutive games and was still sidelined when the initial round of fan and media voting for All-Star closed on Jan. 14. The guard returned on Jan. 22, but has been sidelined again with hamstring tightness for the last three games.

The Australian is unlikely to be selected as an injury replacement due to the new format for the All-Star game, which will feature two eight-player teams of American players and one eight-player team of international players. The uncertainty of his current injury status will only add to the stacked odds against his potential All-Star bid.

This is the third consecutive season without an All-Star on the Bulls roster. This is the longest stretch without a Bull selected to the All-Star game since 2017-21, which spanned Jimmy Butler’s final selection with Chicago to Zach LaVine’s first All-Star nod.

Second-year forward Matas Buzelis will be the lone representative for Chicago as a participant in the Rising Stars challenge.

WNBA owners, players’ union meet in NYC

Seattle Storm forward Nneka Ogwumike shoots against Golden State Valkyries center Temi Fagbenle on Wednesday, July 16, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

The WNBA and representatives from the players’ union met for a few hours Monday in New York City for a crucial meeting after a weeks-long impasse in negotiating a new collective bargaining agreement. The two sides have been operating in status quo since the prior CBA expired in early January after several extensions.

WNBPA President Nneka Ogwumike and executive committee members Brianna Turner and Alysha Clark attended the meeting in person while Kelsey Plum, Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart participated via video conference. WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert and New York Liberty owners Clara Wu Tsai and Joe Tsai were among those reported in attendance for the league’s side of negotiations.

The union previously said that scant progress has been made since the players sent the league their most recent proposal, which included a 30% gross revenue share. The league previously extended an offer that included raising the base salary of a maximum deal to $1 million, per a report from the Associated Press.

Despite initial messaging, the players have been less willing to invoke a work stoppage after authorizing a strike through a vote back in December. However, the season — which is scheduled to start on May 8 — is drawing closer.

The WNBA still has not announced a timeline for its expansion draft, amateur draft or mandatory report dates for compliance with the league’s prioritization rules. Lack of progress in negotiations could ultimately trigger a work stoppage or delay the start of the season.

‘Money’ play

Tomislav Ivišić of the Illinois Fighting Illini dribbles against Rienk Mast of the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the first half at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Feb. 1, 2026, in Lincoln, Nebraska. (Steven Branscombe/Getty Images)

Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg said it was the play of the game in Illinois’ 78-69 win over Nebraska on Sunday.

But when Illini freshman Keaton Wagler saw it unfolding, he briefly thought to himself, “What is he doing?”

The Cornhuskers had cut Illinois’ lead to one point midway through the second half, and the shot clock was winding down late on an Illini possession.

Illinois center Tomislav Ivišić ran into the paint to take a pass from David Mirković but realized he didn’t have time to maneuver his way to a good shot around several defenders. So he swatted the ball to his left over a defender — right into the hands of 3-point shooter Jake Davis.

“I was hoping Jake was going to be there, and he was there,” Ivišić said.

Illinois jumps to No. 5 in the new AP Top 25, as the Big Ten has 4 of the top 10 spots

Davis, who finished with 13 points and three 3-pointers, nailed the shot to spark a 10-0 Illinois run, and Ivišić went viral on social media for the unorthodox spike pass.

Wagler saw the play unfold from the top of the key.

“Tomi just hits it. I’m like, ‘What is he doing?’” Wagler said. “It goes straight to Jake. I’m like, ‘Oh yeah, this is money.’

“It just shows how smart he is and how unselfish he is. A lot of people would just try to catch that and force up a shot. But he knew he had Jake in the corner and if he could get it to him, that he was going to knock it down.”

Super Bowl Sunday push

Illinois head coach Shauna Green reacts to play against UCLA, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, in Champaign, Ill. (AP Photo/Craig Pessman)

Before Shauna Green went to the locker room with her team Wednesday night following a loss to No. 2 UCLA, the Illinois coach took the microphone at State Farm Center and addressed the fans as she usually does.

She thanked them for attending and then made a pitch. The Illinois women want to sell out State Farm Center on Sunday for their game against USC. It is, of course, Super Bowl Sunday, but the tipoff is at noon. Illinois is offering discounts, including $5 tickets, $1 wings and $7 domestic beers, to try to entice fans.

“If we can get this done, it would be monumental for this program,” Green said at her postgame news conference. “It would be great for recruiting. It would be great for our players in a big game with USC coming in. This place gets loud. I’ve been at men’s games here. If we can get that for that game, it would be unbelievable.

“It’s a tall task, but I truly believe we can get it done.”

The Illini (16-6, 6-5) hope to have some momentum heading into the game. They knocked off No. 24 Washington 75-66 on the road Sunday behind 23 points, 10 rebounds and four steals from freshman Cearah Parchment. They continue their West Coast trip at Oregon on Wednesday.

Number of the week: 6-0

The Illinois men’s basketball record in Big Ten road games this season.

Illinois guard Andrej Stojakovic goes up to shoot against Nebraska guard Sam Hoiberg and forward Berke Büyüktuncel on Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026, in Lincoln, Neb. (AP Photo/Bonnie Ryan)

Illinois athletic director Josh Whitman posted a photo after Illinois’ win at Nebraska that showed coach Brad Underwood talking to his players in the locker room. He stood in front of a whiteboard that had scrawled in capital letters, “ROB THE (expletive) BANK.”

The Illini stole the win at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Sunday, eight days after winning at Purdue’s Mackey Arena, to stay undefeated in conference road play this season. But they have one more truly big road test ahead — at Michigan State’s Breslin Center on Saturday.

“We’ve got some toughness,” Underwood said of why his team has been successful on the road. “We’ve got some connectivity. … This team has tremendous problem-solving ability. I think our basketball IQ is pretty high, and I think our toughness is growing.”

Week ahead: Bulls

Chicago Bulls guard Coby White drives to the basket as Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo defends during the second half on Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Tuesday: @ Bucks, 7 p.m., CHSN
Thursday: @ Raptors, 6:30 p.m., Prime Video
Saturday: Nuggets, 7 p.m., CHSN
Monday: @ Nets, 6:30 p.m., CHSN

The Bulls survived their four-in-five sprint in Miami this weekend. Now, they face a handful of games that will decide their postseason standings after the All-Star break. Tuesday’s game in Milwaukee is their penultimate matchup against the Bucks, who are tumbling toward draft lottery status without Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Week ahead: Best college basketball games

DePaul Blue guard CJ Gunn is guarded by UConn guard Silas Demary Jr. in the second half on Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Hartford, Conn. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill)

Tuesday: No. 22 St. John’s men at DePaul, 7 p.m., Peacock
Wednesday: Northwestern men at No. 5 Illinois, 8 p.m., Big Ten Network
Wednesday: No. 1 Connecticut women at DePaul, 7 p.m., TruTV
Saturday: No. 5 Illinois men at No. 10 Michigan State, 7 p.m., Fox
Sunday: USC women at Illinois, 12 p.m., Big Ten Plus
Sunday: Northwestern men at Iowa, 2 p.m., FS1

The DePaul men and women welcome ranked teams to Wintrust Arena on back-to-back nights.

The Northwestern men head to Champaign for a rematch with Illinois on Wednesday. The Illini, who won the first meeting 79-68, have an 11-game winning streak on the line. Their trip to play at Michigan State on Saturday will mark their third straight weekend playing in a top-10 matchup.

What we’re reading this morning

NBA trade deadline: Tracking the latest Bulls moves and rumors
Chicago Sky owner Michael Alter sued by minority partner for allegedly ‘self-dealing’ to devalue other shares
No. 9 Illinois beats No. 5 Nebraska 78-69 for its 2nd win over a top-5 team in 9 days
How coach Chris Holtmann is attacking the challenge of ‘overcoming the perception’ at DePaul
Is Coby White the Bulls’ highest-value asset? ‘It’s good to be wanted.’
While the Bulls remain focused on the future, is their patience wearing thin?
After a terrifying fall, Red Panda retraces what went wrong — and the support that carried her back

Quote of the week

“I’m so happy. It was the first jump ball for me since I started basketball.” — 5-foot-7 guard Yuki Kawamura after winning a jump ball over 6-foot-5 guard Kasparas Jakučionis in Saturday’s win over the Miami Heat

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/03/chicago-basketball-report-josh-giddey-viral-illini-play/ 

Former UK Cabinet Minister Accused Of Leaking Bombshell Financial Data To Epstein

Tyler Durden
Tue, 02/03/2026 – 06:55

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/former-uk-cabinet-minister-accused-leaking-bombshell-financial-data-epstein 

Europe’s Russian Gas Ban Is Set To Trigger New Wave Of LNG Tanker Demand

Tyler Durden
Tue, 02/03/2026 – 06:30

https://www.zerohedge.com/energy/europes-russian-gas-ban-set-trigger-new-wave-lng-tanker-demand 

Por ROD McGUIRK

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Un niño de 13 años fue elogiado por salvar las vidas de su madre y dos hermanos menores tras nadar durante horas después de que la familia se viera arrastrada en el mar frente a la costa australiana.

Austin Appelbee nadó cuatro kilómetros (2,5 millas) hasta la orilla para dar la alarma después de que él, su madre Joanne Appelbee, de 47 años, su hermano Beau, de 12, y su hermana Grace, de ocho, se encontraran en dificultades el viernes, según informó la policía.

Austin dijo que inicialmente partió en busca de ayuda en un kayak inflable que hacía aguas. Abandonó el kayak y luego se quitó el chaleco salvavidas porque le impedía nadar.

Comentó que intentó concentrarse en pensamientos positivos mientras nadaba durante unas cuatro horas a través de mares agitados hacia la orilla, dando la alarma a las 6 de la tarde

“Las olas son enormes y no tengo chaleco salvavidas… Solo seguía pensando ‘sigue nadando, sigue nadando’”, dijo Austin el martes. “Y finalmente llegué a la orilla, toqué el fondo de la playa y simplemente me desplomé”.

La familia, de la capital del estado, Perth, estaba de vacaciones y usaba kayaks y tablas de remo alquiladas en su hotel alrededor del mediodía cuando las condiciones del océano y el viento comenzaron a arrastrarlos al mar.

Un helicóptero de búsqueda encontró a la madre y a los dos niños con chalecos salvavidas y aferrados a una tabla de remo a las 8:30 de la tarde, según la policía. Se había alejado a la deriva 14 kilómetros (nueve millas) desde Quindalup en el estado de Australia Occidental, después de pasar hasta 10 horas en el agua.

“No se pueden elogiar lo suficiente las acciones del niño de 13 años: su determinación y coraje finalmente salvaron las vidas de su madre y hermanos”, afirmó el inspector de policía James Bradley.

Joanne Appelbee dijo a los periodistas el martes que envió a su hijo mayor en busca de ayuda porque no podía dejar a los tres niños.

“Una de las decisiones más difíciles que tuve que tomar fue decirle a Austin: ‘Intenta llegar a la orilla y busca ayuda. Esto podría volverse muy serio muy rápido’”, comentó a la Australian Broadcasting Corp.

Dijo que confiaba en que él llegaría a la orilla, pero estaba llena de dudas cuando el sol se puso y la ayuda no había llegado.

“Mantuvimos una actitud positiva, estábamos cantando y bromeando y… lo tratábamos como un juego hasta que el sol comenzó a ponerse y fue entonces cuando se puso muy agitado. Olas muy grandes”, dijo.

Los tres estaban temblando y Beau había perdido la sensibilidad en las piernas debido al frío cuando fueron rescatados, dijo la madre.

“Tengo tres bebés. Los tres lo lograron. Eso era lo único que importaba”, expresó.

Los cuatro miembros de la familia pasaron revisiones médicas, pero ninguno requirió hospitalización.

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Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con la ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/03/un-nio-de-13-aos-nada-durante-horas-para-salvar-a-su-familia-a-la-deriva-en-el-mar/ 

After the dreadful year 2025, I’ve decided to parse my anger. It’s a good time to specialize so as not to wear out one’s psyche.

There are so many reasons to be mad; the mostly baseless and endless attacks on higher education, the dismantling of life-saving research, ICE, the subverting of policy that redresses shameful social harms. But the main focus of my anger, at least right now, is because my discipline is taking it on the chin. And I’ve decided to take it personally.

My field is being portrayed as one of the more “woke” — read ideological — disciplines. We sociologists infamously inculcate our innocent students with communistic ideals. As Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ commissioner of higher education, Manny Díaz, posted in 2023, sociology “has been hijacked by left-wing activists and no longer serves its intended purpose as a general knowledge course for students.” This, to justify excluding sociology classes as meeting core requirements, now the status quo for all state universities in Florida. For now, Oklahoma’s efforts to impose new standards on social science curriculum in K-12 courses to make it more Donald Trump-friendly has been stopped by its Supreme Court.

Sociology is often framed as disposable in ways that history or English never would be, even as the future of the humanities is being endlessly debated. Sociology departments are among the first to go when budgets are cut, “consolidations” occur, or when faculty are too political, too fractious, or too whatever.

Administrators report that many students are now afraid of having sociology classes on their transcripts, as this may put off potential employers. The reasons sociology is under threat may be due to the distinctive contributions it makes to higher education and more broadly, to society: It teaches better thinking; there is a fundamental focus on inequality; it synthesizes findings from multiple disciplines; and it interrogates values, ideas and power within systems. I’ve spent nearly 40 years teaching sociology at three radically different universities: at Arizona State University, a giant, state school known for its first-gen students and parties; at the University of Chicago, a proudly self-selecting “nerd” school where rigor is sardonically celebrated (a popular T-shirt — “Hell does freeze over”); and at Northwestern University, a private, formerly Methodist, research university that is being extorted, my word, by the Trump administration into paying $75 million for the privilege of continuing to do pioneering, federally funded research.

Some regard sociology as a gut major that caters to lackadaisical students. (But for anyone who took the required, “Mind, Self and Society” aka “Self, Torture and Anxiety” at the University of Chicago, this would be a baffling image). Our majors are told they are unemployable, that what they have learned is irrelevant to good jobs and that if a field isn’t STEM adjacent it’s a waste of time. Yes, the job market is tough, and many parents have asked the timeless question: “What do you do with a degree in sociology?” One answer: Make better sense of your life and times. Shorter answer: Think better.

Like most stereotypes there is a glimmer of something truthful in the depiction of sociology as “woke.” Yes, most sociologists trend liberal. Inequality, in all its iterations, is fundamental to the field and if you study it long enough it’s challenging not to want to intervene. We are home to many activist scholars or policy experts who do not see a contradiction in that term. (Do we consider climate scientists activists when they try to educate the broader public or shape policy? And, if so, is this a bad thing?)

Another contested feature is its breadth. The specialization that cedes politics, economics or communication to separate disciplines is, in sociology, an invitation to synthesize and to consider how these broad social processes engage, reinforce or conflict with one another. Another feature is the importance of thinking across levels of analysis: that is, how do global structures affect nations, organizations, groups and individuals and vice versa? Say, for example, did COVID, a global pandemic, change the delivery of health care, parenting strategies, long-term career goals, how much time teens spend in their bedrooms, or decisions about having children? One criticism of sociology, that it has no single defined methodology, is also a strength. Sociologists routinely use computational methods, statistical analysis, interviews, archives and ethnography in their search for useful data. This methodological eclecticism leads to innovative insights. Moreover, sociology is one of the best empirical fields for interrogating the consequences of different values, for how ideas get built into institutions, for how social networks operate across domains. It is no surprise that it is the field that invented network analysis, an insight and a method that helps us understand how people get jobs, how gang violence spreads and why some teen girls are queen bees while others are fodder.

What to do about the crisis that sociology confronts? If you are a student, go take a sociology class, even if you don’t get core credit. Read some sociology. Chances are, what you learn won’t align with what the demagogues are saying. And if you don’t like our findings, argue with us. With data and logic. More importantly, show up for midterm elections. For most people, action, cultivating a sense of agency, beats seething. This, too, is a fundamental sociological insight. So, stay mad but get going.

Wendy Nelson Espeland is professor emerita of sociology at Northwestern University. She is the co-author, with Michael Sauder, of “Engines of Anxiety: Academic Rankings, Reputations and Accountability.”

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https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/03/opinion-sociology-humanities-war-on-wokeism/