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Connections: Sports Edition is a daily sports-themed puzzle from The New York Times and The Athletic. It presents 16 words to sort into four groups of four. These progressive hints are for the January 1, 2026 puzzle, #465.
Hints for Connections: Sports Edition #465
Try grouping the words yourself before moving on to the next section. Each clue points toward one of the four groups, but avoids naming its category outright.
- Yellow: Defensive move in hoops.
- Green: Alma mater.
- Blue: Go Birds.
- Purple: Not five, not seven.
Spoilers: categories and answers
The category names and complete answer sets are below. Stop here if you still want to solve the puzzle without seeing them.
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- Variety puzzles/game books assorted
| Color | Category | Words |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow | TRY TO STOP A BASKETBALL SHOT | CHALLENGE, CLOSE OUT, CONTEST, DEFEND |
| Green | LOCATIONS OF COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF TEAMS | ATHENS, BLOOMINGTON, EUGENE, OXFORD |
| Blue | FIRST NAMES OF PHILADELPHIA EAGLES | COOPER, DALLAS, JALEN, SAQUON |
| Purple | _____ SIX | KICK, NEW YEAR’S, ORIGINAL, PICK |
How the groups fit together
Yellow: actions used to defend a basketball shot
CHALLENGE, CLOSE OUT, CONTEST, and DEFEND are all ways to try to stop a shot. The shared basketball context helps distinguish this set from the other sports-related groups.
Green: places tied to College Football Playoff teams
ATHENS, BLOOMINGTON, EUGENE, and OXFORD are locations associated with teams in the College Football Playoff.
Rank #2
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Blue: first names of Philadelphia Eagles
COOPER, DALLAS, JALEN, and SAQUON are first names of Philadelphia Eagles players.
Purple: words that go before “six”
KICK, NEW YEAR’S, ORIGINAL, and PICK each complete a phrase ending in “six.”
Quick Recap
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Rank #3
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Tips for solving this puzzle
- Use the hints as prompts for possible shared meanings, not as proof that a word belongs to a group. Look for a complete set of four.
- When several words seem to fit a sports theme, narrow the relationship: a defensive action, a location associated with a college football team, or an Eagles first name are more specific than sports in general.
- For a fill-in-the-blank clue, test each candidate against the same ending. Here the purple group shares “six.”
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