Austin Reaves was lost for words after praise from four-time MVP team-mate LeBron James following his career-best 35 points led the Los Angeles Lakers to a crucial win on Sunday.
Reaves top scored for the Lakers, including scoring their last 10 points, in the 111-105 win over the Orlando Magic, which moved them into a tie for ninth in the Western Conference with a 35-37 record.
The shooting guard made his telling contribution in 30 minutes off the bench. Reaves became the seventh player in franchise history to score 35 points or more off the bench.
The Lakers bench contributed 61 of their 111 points, but Reaves earned special praise from James.
James, who missed his 11th straight game due to a right-foot injury, wrote on social media "You toooooo TOUGH!!" about Reaves after his game-winning display.
"You're talking about arguably one of the greatest players ever," Reaves told reporters. "I mean I don't know what to say.
"For him to accept me the way he accepted me from day one, obviously I felt there was a really good chemistry, IQ-wise, from day one. But not just him, everybody else."
Anthony Davis, who contributed 15 points with 11 rebounds and four blocks, heaped further praise on Reaves.
"He carried us tonight with his play," Davis said. "We know what we have in Austin. He's very confident and he played that way tonight."
The Lakers' Crypto.com Arena crowd went so far as to chant M-V-P towards Reaves for his performance, which he revelled in.
"For them to recognise what I do – obviously not an MVP-calibre player, those guys are really good – but for them to do that for me is special, it means a lot to me," Reaves said.
"Every time I take the court, play with a sense of urgency and leave it all out on the floor, because that's how I feel basketball should be played."
Reaves is averaging 11.6 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game this season, but has managed double-digit scores in the Lakers' past eight games, averaging 15.9 points during March.
Milwaukee Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer simply called Giannis Antetokounmpo "special" after shooting a perfect nine-of-nine 22-point triple-double in Sunday's 118-111 win over the Toronto Raptors.
Antetokounmpo brought up his 33rd career triple-double with 22 points on 100 per cent shooting from the field, with 13 rebounds and 10 assists.
The Greek forward became only the ninth NBA player to achieve a triple-double with perfect shooting from the field. It was only the 13th perfect triple-double in NBA history.
"It was mentioned that he was perfect from the field, it's like a pitcher with a perfect game," Budenholzer told reporters.
"It is fascinating to go nine-of-nine from the field and have a triple-double. I'm a little surprised it's happened 13 times. It seems like a rarity. I'm not a huge stat guy or historian but he's special."
Antetokounmpo was more interested in the Bucks claiming their 51st win of the season, improving their NBA-best record to 51-20, having lost their previous game 139-123 to the Indiana Pacers.
"I'm happy we were able to get a win, get back on track," Antetokounmpo said. "When you're in the moment it moves that fast, you don't slow down and appreciate it.
"Maybe when I'm older and I'm done and gonna look back like, 'Oh, that was cool I was able to do that, now I'm not able to run or jump or chase my kids.' Right now, when you're into it, it moves too fast."
Antetokounmpo is fourth in the NBA for points per game (31.4) and second for rebounds (11.9) this season.
Budenholzer was delighted with Brook Lopez's impact in Sunday's win, leading their 29-16 fourth-quarter charge with the first eight points of the final period.
Lopez scored 17 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter, with the Bucks flipping the game early in the last on a 15-2 run. The Bucks center also had five rebounds and two blocks.
"It changed the game," Budenholzer said. "I think what he did offensively was important, and then the defense always stands out.
"It was a little bit muddy, not a pretty game there, and he stepped up and kind of just changed our feel and changed the momentum for us, particularly offensively, which we needed tonight."
New world number one Carlos Alcaraz says he played "perfect" in Sunday's final demolition of Daniil Medvedev to cap a "perfect tournament" as he lifted the Indian Wells title for the first time.
Despite Medvedev coming into Sunday's decider on a 19-match winning streak, Alcaraz dominated 6-3 6-2 to win in 72 minutes.
Alcaraz's Indian Wells triumph was his third ATP Masters 1000 crown from three finals, not dropping a set in any of those deciders.
The 19-year-old Spaniard went through the Indian Wells Open without dropping a set and reflected that it was a "perfect" fortnight for him.
"It feels amazing to lift the trophy here [and] to recover the number one," Alcaraz told reporters, having reclaimed the top rank from Novak Djokovic due to his victory.
"It has been the perfect tournament. It was a goal for me, this tournament that I really wanted to win. For me, it's amazing."
The lopsided nature of Alcaraz's victory over Medvedev in the final caught many by surprise, hitting 19-4 winners against the in-form fifth seed.
"Honestly I didn’t expect that," Alcaraz said. "I expected a tough match but I played perfect. I said before against Daniil you have to play your best and tactically at your best level as well. I did perfect today. That's why it looks easy but it wasn’t."
Alcaraz added he was delighted to reclaim the number one rank which he had lost after Djokovic won the 2023 Australian Open which he missed due to injury.
Djokovic was unable to participate at Indian Wells due to being unvaccinated for COVID-19, with the pair actually not facing off at any events this year.
Alcaraz returned from abdominal and hamstring injuries last month at the Argentina Open and Rio Open before competing at Indian Wells, while Djokovic was in action at the Dubai Tennis Championships. The next opportunity for the pair to face off as at April's Monte Carlo Masters.
"Novak is one of the best players in the world," Alcaraz said. "That's obvious. I always say, if you want to be the best, you have to beat the best. I really wanted to play against Novak again. We miss him on tour and hopefully to have him back very, very soon."
Alcaraz added: "It feels great to be back on the number one. Of course, every player on the ATP wants to be the number one. For me, it's a dream come true again. Obviously being in front of such great players like Novak, the top player, it's an amazing feeling."
Despite Djokovic being unable to compete at Indian Wells, Medvedev said he felt Alcaraz's return to the top rank was a true number one.
"One hundred per cent," Medvedev said. "It's unfortunate Novak can't play all the tournaments. If you get injured, Rafa is injured for some time, we cannot say if Rafa isn’t injured he would be number one, because we cannot know. Same about Novak.
"For sure if he was able to play last year and this year all the tournaments there is a possibility that the rankings would be different but Carlos is deservedly number one, he won more points than everybody else in the last 52 weeks and he was also year-end number one last year."
New world number one Carlos Alcaraz says he played "perfect" in Sunday's final demolition of Daniil Medvedev to cap a "perfect tournament" as he lifted the Indian Wells title for the first time.
Despite Medvedev coming into Sunday's decider on a 19-match winning streak, Alcaraz dominated 6-3 6-2 to win in 72 minutes.
Alcaraz's Indian Wells triumph was his third ATP Masters 1000 crown from three finals, not dropping a set in any of those deciders.
The 19-year-old Spaniard went through the Indian Wells Open without dropping a set and reflected that it was a "perfect" fortnight for him.
"It feels amazing to lift the trophy here [and] to recover the number one," Alcaraz told reporters, having reclaimed the top rank from Novak Djokovic due to his victory.
"It has been the perfect tournament. It was a goal for me, this tournament that I really wanted to win. For me, it's amazing."
The lopsided nature of Alcaraz's victory over Medvedev in the final caught many by surprise, hitting 19-4 winners against the in-form fifth seed.
"Honestly I didn’t expect that," Alcaraz said. "I expected a tough match but I played perfect. I said before against Daniil you have to play your best and tactically at your best level as well. I did perfect today. That's why it looks easy but it wasn’t."
Alcaraz added he was delighted to reclaim the number one rank which he had lost after Djokovic won the 2023 Australian Open which he missed due to injury.
Djokovic was unable to participate at Indian Wells due to being unvaccinated for COVID-19, with the pair actually not facing off at any events this year.
Alcaraz returned from abdominal and hamstring injuries last month at the Argentina Open and Rio Open before competing at Indian Wells, while Djokovic was in action at the Dubai Tennis Championships. The next opportunity for the pair to face off as at April's Monte Carlo Masters.
"Novak is one of the best players in the world," Alcaraz said. "That's obvious. I always say, if you want to be the best, you have to beat the best. I really wanted to play against Novak again. We miss him on tour and hopefully to have him back very, very soon."
Alcaraz added: "It feels great to be back on the number one. Of course, every player on the ATP wants to be the number one. For me, it's a dream come true again. Obviously being in front of such great players like Novak, the top player, it's an amazing feeling."
Despite Djokovic being unable to compete at Indian Wells, Medvedev said he felt Alcaraz's return to the top rank was a true number one.
"One hundred per cent," Medvedev said. "It's unfortunate Novak can't play all the tournaments. If you get injured, Rafa is injured for some time, we cannot say if Rafa isn’t injured he would be number one, because we cannot know. Same about Novak.
"For sure if he was able to play last year and this year all the tournaments there is a possibility that the rankings would be different but Carlos is deservedly number one, he won more points than everybody else in the last 52 weeks and he was also year-end number one last year."
Hall of Fame Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo earned his 15th trip to the Sweet 16 after eliminating two-seed Marquette 69-60 in Sunday's second round of the NCAA Tournament.
The Spartans rode a 23-point performance from senior point guard Tyson Walker, while Joey Hauser – brother of Boston Celtics wing Sam Hauser – collected 14 points and 10 rebounds.
As well as pulling into a tie for the sixth-most Sweet 16 appearances in head coaching history, Izzo also claimed the record for the most ever NCAA Tournament wins as the lower seed, with this his 16th.
He is one more Sweet 16 trip away from tying Louisville legend Denny Crum for the fifth-most, with only North Carolina's Roy Williams (19), Syracuse's Jim Boeheim (20), Michael Jordan's North Carolina coach Dean Smith (21) and Duke's Mike Krzyzewski (26) having more.
The seven-seed Spartans will next face three-seed Kansas State after they won the battle of the Wildcats 75-69 against six-seed Kentucky.
Reigning National Player of the Year Oscar Tshiebwe was monstrous with 25 points and 18 rebounds, while projected first-round draft pick Cason Wallace impressed with 21 points (nine-of-11 shooting), nine rebounds, four assists and two steals.
But their performances were not enough to lift Kentucky to the victory, as diminutive five-foot-eight point guard Markquis Nowell dropped a game-high 27 points and nine assists to carry Kansas State through.
Following his massive 28-point, 13-rebound showing in his side's opening-round win, Connecticut Huskies center Adama Sonogo starred again with 24 points (11-of-16 shooting) and eight rebounds in a 70-55 win over the Saint Mary's Gaels.
After Marquette, the top seed to fall Sunday was the three-seed Baylor Bears. Despite 30 points from Baylor guard L.J. Cryer, the Creighton Bluejays received a game-winning 30 points from Ryan Nembhard in the 85-76 triumph.
Nembhard is the younger brother of Andrew, who has been a rookie standout for the Indiana Pacers this season.
Following their stunning upset of one-seed Purdue, where they became the second 16-seed to ever advance past the first round, the Fairleigh Dickinson Knights were sent packing 78-70 by the nine-seed Florida Atlantic Owls.
Three-seed Xavier were in control throughout their 84-73 win against Pittsburgh, five-seed Miami prevailed 85-69 over four-seed Indiana, and four-seed Gonzaga sent six-seed TCU home 84-81.
LeBron James' regular season is not over, according to Los Angeles Lakers head coach Darvin Ham.
James has been absent since suffering a tendon injury in his foot during a February 26 victory over the Dallas Mavericks, with the franchise initially saying he will be re-evaluated in three weeks.
Three weeks have now passed, and while there was no concrete update in his timetable, Ham made it clear there is no thought of shutting down the rest of James' regular season.
The reality is that the Lakers do not have the luxury of holding James out for the playoffs, as they currently sit barely inside the Western Conference play-in tournament placings.
When asked for an update ahead of the Lakers' crucial win over the Orlando Magic on Sunday, Ham said: "We anticipate him coming back at some point [this season]."
Ham also pointed to how James' time away may have benefited his team, by being forced to field other players in expanded roles.
"I think Bron, him being out has revealed that we have a lot of different weapons that are very capable players on both sides of the ball that can help us achieve the goal that we're trying to achieve," he said. "And when he comes back, he's just going to add to it."
If James is not able to get back on the floor this season it will not be due to a lack of effort, according to Lakers point guard Dennis Schroder, highlighting the work the four-time Finals MVP is putting in to return to full strength.
"He works three times a day on his body to get back," he said. "I think we got a real chance here [once James returns]."
Nikola Jokic recorded his 28th triple-double of the season as the Western Conference-leading Denver Nuggets rediscovered some form with a 108-102 road victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday.
The Nuggets had lost five of their past six games, but improved to 48-24 with the triumph, maintaining a sizeable buffer at the top of the West from the second-placed Sacramento Kings (43-27).
Serbian center Jokic starred with 22 points on nine-of-12 shooting with 17 rebounds and 10 assists, while Michael Porter scored a team-high 28 points with five-of-nine three-point attempts.
Jamal Murray added 25 points, nailing all four of his attempts from beyond the arc, and he posted 20 of his haul in the opening quarter as Denver got a fast start to lead 33-21 at the first break.
The Nuggets were coasting to victory with a 91-71 lead at three-quarter time before the Nets rallied in the fourth, with Porter settling the game with one of his five triples.
The defeat dents Brooklyn's aspirations to claim a top-six seed in the Eastern Conference, falling to 39-32, marginally ahead of the seventh-placed Miami Heat (39-34).
Mikal Bridges top scored for the home side with 23 points on eight-of-18 shooting from the field, while Nic Claxton chipped in 19 points and eight rebounds.
Giannis records triple-double in Bucks win
The Milwaukee Bucks stormed past the Toronto Raptors 118-111 on a 29-16 fourth-quarter charge as Giannis Antetokounmpo brought up his 33d career triple-double.
Antetokounmpo finished with 22 points on 100 per cent shooting from the field with 13 rebounds and 10 assists, while Brook Lopez added a team-high 26 points with Khris Middleton scoring 20.
Lopez scored 17 of his 26 points in the final period, including the first eight of the quarter, with the Bucks going on a game-changing 15-2 run. The NBA-best Bucks are now 51-20.
SGA leads OKC past Suns
Shai Gilgeous-Alezander scored 40 points, came up clutch down the stretch and garnered M-V-P chants as the Oklahoma City Thunder boosted their play-in hopes with a 124-120 win over the Phoenix Suns.
Gilgeous-Thunder hit two free throws with 10 seconds left to hold off the Suns, who had Devin Booker score 46 points, including 30 in the second half, having led 69-57 at half-time. Chris Paul scored 14 points with 13 assists.
OKC (35-36) have four wins from their past five games to stay in the play-in hunt, thanks in large part to Gilgeous-Alexander's perfect 11-of-11 free throws in the second half, while Luguentz Dort added 20 points.
Safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson is leaving the NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles to sign a one-year, $8million contract with the Detroit Lions.
Gardner-Johnson tied for the NFL lead with six interceptions in his lone season with the Eagles, despite missing five games with a lacerated kidney. He returned for the regular-season finale and started each of Philadelphia’s three postseason games to help the franchise to their first Super Bowl appearance since 2017.
The Eagles acquired Gardner-Johnson from New Orleans shortly before the start of the 2022 campaign. The Florida product added 67 tackles, one sack and eight passes defended in 12 regular season games.
A fourth-round pick of the Saints in 2019, Gardner-Johnson made 31 starts in three seasons with New Orleans. He led the Saints with 13 passes defended in 2020 and tied for the team lead with three interceptions in 2021.
Gardner-Johnson is the Lions' second major addition to the secondary this offseason as they attempt to improve the NFL's 32nd-ranked defense in total yards allowed in 2022. Detroit agreed to a three-year, $33m contract with former Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Cameron Sutton last week.
The Eagles, meanwhile, have now lost five defensive starters from their 2022 unit in free agency. Defensive tackle Javon Hargrave signed a four-year, $84m contract with the San Francisco 49ers, linebackers T.J. Edwards and Kyzir White joined the Chicago Bears and Arizona Cardinals, respectively, and safety Marcus Epps agreed to a two-year deal with the Las Vegas Raiders.
Daniil Medvedev joked about a love-hate relationship with the Indian Wells Open court and his failure to create an entertaining final after his heavy defeat to Carlos Alcaraz.
Medvedev's winning streak was halted at 19 matches by the sensational Alcaraz, who claimed his third Masters 1000 title in style on Sunday.
Alcaraz won 6-3 6-2 in just 72 minutes to return to the summit of the ATP rankings, with Novak Djokovic having been unable to feature in the United States due to his COVID-19 vaccination status.
Medvedev had won three titles in a row – at the Rotterdam Open, Qatar Open and Dubai Tennis Championships, where he beat Djokovic – ahead of competing at Indian Wells, yet proved no match for the imperious Alcaraz, who he had beaten in their only previous meeting, at Wimbledon in 2021.
The Russian had to overcome several hurdles to reach the final, having rolled his ankle in his fourth-round win over Alexander Zverev while he also hurt his thumb in a quarter-final defeat of Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.
Yet despite the trials and tribulations, and his humbling loss in the final, Medvedev was in good spirits.
"I had a pretty toxic relationship here with the courts, a love-hate relationship," Medvedev chuckled. "So I'd like to thank the court!
"I only played on this court. I gave it a hard time so it gave me a hard time also. Rolled the ankle, the thumb... but it gave me the chance to finish the tournament.
"Thanks a lot to this court, I'll definitely be back.
"I really love this tournament, I'll be happy to come back many more years to come and hopefully I can start to love this court and Indian Wells together."
Addressing the crowd, Medvedev quipped: "Sorry I didn't make this final entertaining. I tried, I don't like to lose, but today was unfortunately pretty easy. I hope you still enjoyed it."
Alcaraz is one of only three players to hold a 100 per cent record in multiple ATP Masters 1000 finals, having now won in the finals of the Miami Open, Indian Wells Open and Madrid Open without dropping a set.
"I'd like to congratulate Carlos," said Medvedev. "You already have amazing achievements in your career and I'm sure many more to come.
"Today's one more of them, winning Indian Wells. I also dream of it – maybe next time you'll give me the chance!
"Congrats to you and your team. You're probably the most respectful player on Tour, you probably say hi to 300 people a day. I've rarely seen it!"
Alcaraz returned the plaudits, telling Medvedev he serves as an inspiration to be "better on the court and off the court".
"It has been a really amazing run here, such an amazing experience," the 19-year-old added.
When asked if he had played a near perfect match, Alcaraz told Amazon Prime: "Yes, probably. I played really, really well.
"I made no tactical mistakes, which is really important against Daniil. I would say I was perfect in that way.
"I'm really happy with the way I played, the trophy and of course to be world number one."
While Alcaraz will return to the top of the world on Monday, compatriot and idol Rafael Nadal is set to drop out of the top 10 for the first time since April 2005.
Yeremy Pino and Borja Iglesias have been called up to Spain's squad for their upcoming Euro 2024 qualifiers against Norway and Scotland.
Pedri and Gerard Moreno withdrew from the squad over the weekend due to injury.
Barcelona star Pedri missed Sunday's crucial Clasico win over Real Madrid after he failed to recover from a hamstring issue, and he will not feature in Luis de la Fuente's first games as Spain boss.
Moreno, meanwhile, suffered a muscular problem during Villarreal's 3-0 LaLiga win over Osasuna.
Winger Pino teed up Villarreal's final goal in that win, and the 20-year-old – who has netted three times in LaLiga this term and was included in Spain's World Cup squad – has been called in.
He is joined by Real Betis forward Iglesias, who returns to the national team after missing out on Luis Enrique's squad for Qatar.
The 30-year-old has scored 12 league goals this season, trailing only Enes Unal (13) and Robert Lewandowski (15).
Spain must try to stop Erling Haaland when they host Norway on Saturday before facing Scotland three days later.
Carlos Alcaraz reclaimed the world number one ranking after dominating the in-form Daniil Medvedev to lift the Indian Wells Open title for the first time on Sunday.
Medvedev came into the decider with 19 straight ATP Tour wins, but Alcaraz made light work of the Russian, winning 6-3 6-2 in 72 minutes.
Alcaraz's triumph means he has three Masters titles from three finals, not dropping a set in any, while it ensured he returns to the rankings' summit ahead of 2023 Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic, who did not participate at Indian Wells.
The 2022 US Open champion has won two of three events since returning after three months out with abdominal and hamstring injuries that forced him to miss the Australian Open.
Alcaraz had labelled Medvedev the "best player right now" in the lead-up to the match, but was on top immediately, opening up a 3-0 lead as he hit 10 winners to the Russian's two in the first frame.
The Spaniard's dominance continued, winning the first 10 points of the second set, taking a 4-0 lead before prevailing with his second match point.
Alcaraz finished with 19-4 edge in the winner count, while Medvedev did not manage one ace for the match, marking the first time that has occurred since February 2020 against Gilles Simon in Marseille.
Medvedev had won in Rotterdam, Doha and Dubai recently and was gunning to be the first man to win four titles in five weeks since Andy Murray in 2016, but was completely outclassed by the 19-year-old.
New Zealand's Danny Lee won a dramatic four-way playoff at the LIV Golf Tucson as Sergio Garcia's Fireballs GC took out the team event by four strokes on Sunday.
The 32-year-old South Korea-born Lee, who turned professional in 2009 but only won once on the PGA Tour, held his nerve in the playoff to edge out Carlos Ortiz, Louis Oosthuizen and Brendan Steele.
Lee, in his second LIV Golf event, claimed victory in style in the third playoff hole with a putt from off the green on the 18th hole.
"The individual victory means a lot," Lee said. "I haven't won since 2015. I just felt like winning is just not my thing but today just changed that. It’s good to see I’m capable of playing some good golf."
Lee had spurned the chance to clinch victory a hole earlier when he missed a six-foot birdie putt after a brilliant approach.
The New Zealander was part of Kevin Na's Iron Heads GC, who finished third in the team rankings at 19 under, with Garcia's Fireballs winning at 25 under. Dustin Johnson's 4Aces were second at 21 under.
"I wasn’t even looking at the individual score all day," Lee added. "I was only asking about 'how is our team doing?'. That's the reason why Kevin [Na] called and that’s the reason I’m over here."
Oosthuizen had looked the favourite on the players' leaderboard down the bank nine but dropped shots, only to produce an incredible birdie on the final hole to force his way into the playoff.
Steele stayed in the hunt with a fine par save on the 16th after his approach slid off the green and into the rough. Ortiz surged into contention with a final day six-under round.
Marc Leishman came into the final round leading by two strokes, but posted a six-over 77 to tumble down the leaderboard into a tie for 13th.
Simone Inzaghi feels Inter were shown a "lack of respect" after a VAR review decided to allow Filip Kostic's controversial winner in a 1-0 defeat to Juventus on Sunday.
Kostic lashed home the decisive goal after 23 minutes at San Siro, though a lengthy VAR check was needed to judge whether the ball had taken a touch off Adrien Rabiot's arm in the build-up.
The goal stood, and Juve went on to earn victory as the Bianconeri moved within nine points of third-placed Inter and seven points of the Champions League places.
It was Inter's third defeat from their last four Serie A outings, and Inzaghi was left fuming by the decision to allow Juve's winner to stand, though he was also proud of the way his players responded to what he felt was an injustice.
"The boys were good in the second half," Inzaghi told reporters in his post-match news conference. "At the end of the first half they saw what we suffered and it's unacceptable.
"Honestly to talk about football it's difficult for me, it was even difficult for me to talk to the team after the first half. We tried to remedy it, despite an unacceptable goal.
"There shouldn't be nervousness, but as far as the second half is concerned, the boys managed to keep calm to try to draw a match clearly spoiled by what happened.
"What happened is too serious. It's a lack of respect, and when I feel there are no images [of the incident], it's all the more so. It took four minutes.
"It's an irregular goal that penalises us, in a delicate moment, a delicate match. Conceding a goal like this is unacceptable."
When asked if he had spoken to referee Daniele Chiffi in hopes of clarification, Inzaghi replied: "No, it was so clear that it didn't seem right to me. There are such clear and glaring images."
The Nerazzurri have now won just one of their last five in all competitions, scoring just three goals across those games.
This latest blunt attacking display saw them muster just three shots on target despite having 69.4 per cent possession.
With the international break meaning Inter do not play again until April 1, Inzaghi is confident his players can use the league's pause to halt their poor run and enjoy a strong end to the season, explaining: "With all the matches we're going to play, I need everyone.
"You played a match that you shouldn't have played and you lost. The team would have deserved another result but this is football."
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is unsure if Takehiro Tomiyasu will return from injury this season, though he is hopeful the Gunners will receive more positive news on fellow defender William Saliba.
Tomiyasu and Saliba were both forced out of Arsenal's Europa League last-16 second leg against Sporting CP – which Arteta's men eventually lost on penalties – with injuries on Thursday.
Both men were then absent as Arsenal established an eight-point lead at the Premier League summit on Sunday, thrashing managerless Crystal Palace 4-1 on a weekend when title rivals Manchester City were on FA Cup duty.
Asked after that win whether Tomiyasu's knee injury could rule him out for the rest of the campaign, Arteta said: "We don't know, obviously the doctor is assessing him.
"We've had one assessment, they need to have another assessment tomorrow, but it's not looking good, that's for sure.
"Looking at Tomi, he's not someone who exaggerates things. He was really concerned straight away, and we are concerned."
Reports have suggested Saliba may be forced to withdraw from France's squad for their upcoming Euro 2024 qualifiers against the Netherlands and the Republic of Ireland, but Arteta hopes he will not miss a significant portion of Arsenal's run-in.
Rob Holding made his first start of the Premier League season against Palace, and Arteta says more fringe players will need to step up as the Gunners chase their first title since 2004.
"We hope Willy is going to be better news, but again we have to wait until [Monday] to understand a better picture," he said.
"We have lost players – we lost Gabby [Gabriel Jesus] for four months; we lost Thomas [Partey] for one and a half months; we lost Oleksandr Zinchenko for one and a half months.
"We lost [Mohamed] Elneny for six to eight months; we lost Eddie [Nketiah], and now we lost Tomiyasu and Saliba. Everybody has to give more.
"It's not a secret, if we want to maintain that level, everyone has to step in, give more, and Rob is a great example of what we needed today."
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