Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints, Answers for Jan. 26 #490
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Today’s Connections: Sports Edition grid looked like the most random collection of letters and symbols I’ve seen in a while. It was a perplexity, that’s for sure. If you’re having trouble but still want to resolve it, read on for tips and answers.
Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the Times-owned subscription sports journalism site. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it online for free.
Learn more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle exits beta
Tips for Connections Groups: Sports Today’s Edition
Here are four clues for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ordered from the easiest yellow group to the difficult (and sometimes weird) purple group.
Yellow group index: Hoops roles.
Green group index: Baseball vocabulary.
Blue group index: College hoops leaders.
Purple group index: Turn on the TV.
Connections Group Answers: Today’s Sports Edition
Yellow group: Basketball positions, abbreviated.
Green group: Baseball defensive terms.
Blue group: Big Ten men’s basketball coaches.
Purple group:ESPN ____.
Learn more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words
What are the answers from today’s Connections: Sports Edition?
The NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle completed by January 26, 2026.
Yellow words in today’s Connections
The theme is basketball positions, for short. The four answers are C, PF, PG and SG.
Green words in today’s Connections
The theme is baseball defensive terms. The four responses are cutoff, pitchout, relay and shift.
Blue words in today’s Connections
The theme is Big Ten men’s basketball coaches. The four answers are Gard, Izzo, May and Painter.
Purple words in today’s Connections
The theme is ESPN ____. The four answers are +, 2, ews and U.
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