Joel Embiid made it clear he is only concerned about winning a championship after dominating in the Philadelphia 76ers' 126-119 victory against reigning back-to-back MVP Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets.

Embiid – who has finished runner-up in each of the past two MVP votes – was spectacular on Saturday, finishing with a game-high 47 points on 18-of-31 shooting, a game-high 18 rebounds and equal game-highs with three steals and two blocks.

He outplayed Jokic, who still posted a terrific stat line of 24 points (eight-of-12 shooting), nine assists and eight rebounds, but his seven turnovers were the third-most he has had in a game this season,

It continued a remarkable campaign for Embiid, improving his league-leading scoring average to a career-high 33.8 per game, while also shooting a career-best 53.2 per cent from the field. He is shooting a career-best 86.1 per cent from the free throw line while leading the league at 10.0 made free throws per game.

When asked after the win if he feels he should be the MVP, Embiid said he is no longer concerned about the award.

"I don't know, that's up to you guys to decide," he said. "Like I told you, I'm done arguing for myself. It's all out there.

"But the focus is on winning. As long as we win, I know everything is going to take care of itself. If we keep winning, and everyone stays healthy, I've got a better chance of going out there and winning a championship."

Embiid also had his streak of five consecutive selections as an All-Star starter snapped this past week as Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kevin Durant and Jayson Tatum claimed the three frontcourt spots in the East.

He said he feels that is an indication that he is "not well-liked", but he is not bothered by it.

"I'm used to it," he said. "It's not the first time. I think it's more of a motivation to go out and win the whole thing – that's the only way I'm probably going to get that respect.

"I was not surprised, I think it's well documented that I'm not well-liked. That's cool. I don't know if it's because I troll a lot or that I guess I'm an a****** – but it's cool. 

"I keep being me, I keep being an a******, and I keep trolling, and if people don't like it, that's their problem. But like I said, it all goes back to winning."

The 28-year-old believes winning would cure everything, and that the current 76ers roster – with a healthy James Harden – has the balance required to go all the way.

"You've got James Harden, obviously he's been playing great basketball," he said. "You've got Tyrese Maxey, Tobias has been great, P.J. Tucker... we've got a group that fits with each other.

"We'll find that out in the postseason. But I think as far as the fit, you've got everything. Everybody fits with each other, we've got shooters, we've got defenders, and we've got James Harden. So I think we've got a good chance."

The 76ers are now 32-16, sitting second in the Eastern Conference while owning the third-best record in the league.

Max Homa produced his best round of the week to erase a five-stroke deficit and win the Farmers Insurance Open with a score of 13 under.

Low scores were hard to come by on the difficult Torrey Pines South Course, with only three players posting final scores of 10 under or better, while Homa's 13 under was the worst winning score of the season so far.

Coming into Saturday's final round at seven under, Homa posted seven birdies and one bogey to shoot 66, tying the round of the day and finishing with a birdie on the last to win by two strokes.

It is the sixth PGA Tour win of Homa's career, and he now has back-to-back multi-win seasons after also collecting the opening event of the campaign at September's Fortinet Championship.

The only other player to shoot a six-under 66 in the final round was Keegan Bradley, flying up the leaderboard into outright second place at 11 under, while world number eight Collin Morikawa finished alone in third at 10 under. 

Sam Ryder was the outright leader after the second and third rounds, but he ended up in a tie for fourth at nine under due to a 75 in his final trip around the course that twice hosted the U.S. Open.

Coming into the event with four wins from his previous six starts, and starting Saturday at 10 under, Jon Rahm had to settle for seventh after a two-over 74, tying with former world number one Jason Day.

Myles Turner has decided against becoming an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season after signing a two-year, $58million extension with the Indiana Pacers on Saturday.

Turner, 26, was playing in the final year of his four-year, $80m rookie extension, and he will now add two more years at essentially the same salary ($20.9m next season, $19.9m in 2024-25).

The Pacers were able to secure Turner on two more relatively affordable seasons after deciding to capitalise on their extra cap space this campaign. His new deal includes a $17.1m increase on his salary for the current season – increasing it from $18m to $35.1m – which is the largest re-negotiation bump in league history.

It indicates a surprising change of heart for Turner, who had been open about his desire to leave via trade or free agency, but has instead found himself flourishing with a career-best season on a Pacers team seemingly already finished with their rebuild.

Turner previously shared how he was unhappy with his role as a supporting piece while All-Star Domantas Sabonis patrolled the interior – often spending entire offensive possessions standing in the corner spacing the floor.

However, with Sabonis being shipped to the Sacramento Kings this past season in exchange for point guard and rising star Tyrese Haliburton, Turner has found himself in a featured role, and he has taken full advantage.

The six-foot-11 defensive anchor has always been an elite shot-blocker, sitting top-five in blocks per game (2.4) for the seventh consecutive campaign after leading the league in the 2018-19, 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons.

But it is his offense that has taken the biggest leap with Sabonis out of the picture, posting career-highs across the board.

Turner is averaging career-highs in field goal makes (6.3) and attempts (11.6), three-point makes (1.6), three-point percentage (39.1), free throw makes (3.3) and attempts (4.3), rebounds (7.9) and points (17.5).

He has played in 42 of a possible 51 games this season, and is looking like he has turned the corner physically after only managing 42 appearances in the entirety of this past season and 47 games in 2020-21.

The Pacers are 24-27, sitting ninth in the Eastern Conference, although they are only 1-9 since Haliburton suffered an injury against the New York Knicks on January 11, having not played since.

Novak Djokovic was sitting at home at this time last year, tapping out messages of congratulations to the Australian Open champions, no doubt sick to the stomach.

On Sunday in Melbourne, he can complete the journey from outcast to conquering hero, as he faces Stefanos Tsitsipas for the men's singles title at his favourite grand slam.

There are no bankers in tennis – aside from those in the posh seats – but Djokovic has won nine out of nine previous Australian Open finals, and his last nine matches against Tsitsipas.

He is in scintillating form and the hamstring pull that was seemingly troubling him earlier in the fortnight no longer seems a factor, so a Djokovic triumph seems at the very least a probable outcome.

On the line for the Serbian will be a 10th Australian Open title, a record-tying 22nd men's singles grand slam, and the not-so-small matter of the world number one ranking.

Across the net, Tsitsipas is seeking a first major, but he can also vault to number one should he lift the trophy. Tsitsipas and Djokovic have met in a slam final before, but both men have bizarrely claimed to have forgotten all about it.

Djokovic has played so many major finals that perhaps he might have briefly put the 2021 French Open title match out of his mind. For Tsitsipas, however, the message is hard to believe. He lost from two sets up that day, in what was his only final at any of the four majors up to now.

Of course Tsitsipas has no interest in talking about such a personally dark day, and instead his message is that he feels "very optimistic" about this latest opportunity.

Yet Djokovic has been steamrollering opponents, and his latest mission is almost complete. At the age of 35, this would go down as one of his finest grand slam triumphs.

But has this been a revenge mission? Does Djokovic still feel slighted for what happened last year, when the Australian government, led by then Prime Minister Scott Morrison, had him deported amid an almighty vaccination hullabaloo.

Morrison is no longer in that top office, and the Park Hotel immigration detention facility where Djokovic was kept 12 months ago released its last refugees in April.

Those visiting Australia do not have to provide proof of vaccination any more, or a medical exemption. This is a strikingly different Australia to last year, and Djokovic might cut loose with thoughts about his previous treatment after Sunday's final. He said earlier this month he felt he had been turned into a "villain of the world", but his message has been a calmer one in recent days.

For now, he is not getting into how being kicked around like a political football truly felt.

"Honestly, I'm over it," Djokovic said on Friday. "Once I came into Australia, my intentions were always very positive to come back. Of course, the feelings of coming back to Australia this year were different than any other year because of the events of last year.

"I said many times that I don't hold any grudges, that I just love playing in Australia, love being here. That kind of emotion helped me to feel comfortable and to play well. I won Adelaide, now I'm in the finals of the Australian Open. I haven't lost a match in last five weeks in Australia."

He also has bad news for those rivals hoping he joins Roger Federer in retirement soon.

Rafael Nadal, last year's Australian Open champion, is another who might be nearing the end, and it is his record of 22 slams that Djokovic is targeting on Sunday. But Djokovic is playing the tennis of a much younger man, and he is determined to not only break the men's slam record but obliterate it, while wrestling with the emotions that tennis brings out of him.

Djokovic said: "When we're on the tennis court in the midst of a battle, some of the things surface, and I have to deal with it. So it's a great school of life for me.

"Then at the same time I have professional goals and ambitions. Those are grand slams and being number one in the world. Those two probably pinnacles of the professional tennis world have always been there as goals for me. So I do want to make more history of this sport, no doubt.

"I feel game-wise physically I still can sustain and maintain the top level. So as long as that's the case, why not keep going?

"I don't know when the end is going to happen in terms of my professional career. Right now I have the motivation, I have the support of my close ones, which is also something that is probably underestimated and not maybe talked about a lot, but it's a key, especially as a father."

Overall, Djokovic holds a 10-2 record against Tsitsipas, having lost two of their first three meetings. The 10 defeats are the most Tsitsipas has suffered against any player, and this final will mark his 350th career match against a top-10 players.

That is a record in itself, and Djokovic holds a 69.3 per cent win rate in such matches, whereas Tsitsipas has only a 44.3 per cent winning record against players with a top-10 ranking.

Tsitsipas, at 24, is the youngest men's singles Australian Open finalist since Djokovic and Andy Murray, both 23 at the time, contested the 2011 final, and he could become the fifth to take the title before turning 25 in the 21st century, after Federer, Marat Safin, Djokovic and Nadal.

However, Tsitsipas has lost his last three ATP-level finals, and his last six on hard courts, so that does not bode well at all.

Not that the Greek will let such numbers worry him, and perhaps he has forgotten those defeats too.

"I'm playing great tennis. I'm enjoying myself," said Tsitsipas. "I just see no downside or negativity in what I'm trying to do out there. Even if it doesn't work, I'm very optimistic and positive about any outcome, any opponent that I have to face.

"This is something that has been sort of lacking in my game. I genuinely believe in what I'm able to produce. That is more than enough. I go about this way. I strive for it every single day. It might not go the way I want it to, but I put 110 per cent out there."

World number one Rory McIlroy expressed frustration with his performance at the Dubai Desert Classic, where Thomas Pieters, Michael Thorbjornsen and Richard Bland shared the halfway lead.

The tournament will spill into Monday after adverse weather on the first two days, with Belgian Pieters, Englishman Bland and American amateur Thorbjornsen sharing the lead on 10 under heading into the final two rounds.

McIlroy is tied for seventh place – along with Patrick Reed, after their spat earlier in the week – on eight under.

The Northern Irishman was unhappy with his second round, however, after carding a 70 following his first-round 66.

McIlroy birdied the third and made an eagle putt from 33 feet on the 13th, yet he bogeyed the 10th and could not beat par on any other hole.

"More of the same really," said McIlroy when asked for his thoughts on Saturday's round.

"I think I only hit two fairways. Once you can't hit fairways and the rough is quite thick, it's hard to get any control on your ball, get close to par fours. A little rusty, I need to do a bit of work on it.

"I've chipped and putted it well and got myself around the course okay, been able to post a couple of decent scores and at least have a chance going into the last few days. But definitely more negatives than positives – I need to go and figure it out on the range."

McIlroy was, however, pleased the tournament organisers extended the event through to Monday.

He said: "I'm glad that they've gone to Monday and all the field have the opportunity to play 72 holes. It's such a big event, I think the discrepancy between these big events and the lesser ones, that fourth day could mean a lot to someone for changing the course of their year or their career.

"We can still get to our destinations on Monday night. Thankfully for me, there's two more rounds."

Reed also went round in 70 on Saturday, while Spain's Adri Arnaus, Sweden's Marcus Kinhult and Connor Syme of Scotland stood tied for fourth on nine under par.

Pieters, meanwhile, recovered from a sloppy front nine by having seven birdies after the turn.

American Thorbjornsen carded an eagle and seven birdies as he went round in 64, while Englishman Dan Bradbury registered the best score of the round, a 63, to join McIlroy and Reed on eight under, with Ian Poulter also in the eight-man group on that score.

"It feels good," Thorbjornsen said. "I didn't have the best round yesterday and the day before, felt like I missed a lot of putts out there. I thought I had a pretty good game plan but just stuck to it today. I actually made some putts.

"I enjoy playing professional golf a lot and I'm still an amateur, but just the golf courses that we play, the crowd out there, it's what I'm dreaming of ever since I was five or six years old. It just feels good to be out there."

Aryna Sabalenka's comeback in the Australian Open final sent her into the grand slam record books. 

Sabalenka beat last year's Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina 4-6 6-3 6-4 in Melbourne on Saturday.

That saw the fifth seed clinch her maiden grand slam title, and become the fifth woman in the Open Era to achieve the feat via a comeback in the final.

Sabalenka joined Nancy Richy, Jelena Ostapenko, Sofia Kenin and, ironically, Rybakina on that list.

The Belarusian hit 17 aces against Rybakina, trailing only Serena Williams (18 against Maria Sharapova in the 2015 final) for the highest amount of aces in a women's singles showpiece match at Melbourne Park.

Sabalenka has now won the title in three of the four tournaments in which she has faced Rybakina (Wuhan 2019, Abu Dhabi 2021 and the Australian Open 2023).

She is the 29th different woman in the Open Era to secure the title at the Australian Open and the 58th women's player in the Open Era to win a major.

Aryna Sabalenka says becoming world number one is the next target on her list after beating Elena Rybakina in Saturday's Australian Open final to win her first grand slam.

The 24-year-old recovered from behind at Rod Laver Arena to beat reigning Wimbledon champion Rybakina 4-6 6-3 6-4 and become the 58th different women's player to win a major in the Open Era. 

Having previously fallen short in three semi-finals, Sabalenka became the fifth female player in the Open Era to win her maiden grand slam final, with Rybakina being another.

After adding her name to an exclusive list, Sabalenka is now targeting the number one spot for the first time, which is held by Iga Swiatek.

"As I've said, we all have the same kind of goals," Sabalenka, set to move up to second in the updated rankings, said at her post-match press conference. "Winning a grand slam is not the last on my list."

Sabalenka, who described her performance as "the best of my life", has now won 23 matches in a row to start the 2023 season.

She made 17 aces against Rybakina, whom she is now 4-0 against in head-to-head encounters, with that bettered only by Serena Williams (18 versus Maria Sharapova in 2015) in the past 20 Australian Open women's finals.

And the Belarusian – competing under a neutral flag in Melbourne – puts her breakthrough grand slam triumph down to changing her mindset and becoming calmer on court.

"I always had this weird feeling that when people would come to me and ask for signature, I would be like, 'why are you asking for signature? I'm nobody. I'm a player. I don't have a grand slam' and all this stuff," she said.

"I just changed how I feel. I started respecting myself more. I started to understand that actually I'm here because I work so hard and I'm actually good player.

"Just having this understanding that I'm a good player, understanding I can handle a lot of emotions, a lot of things on court. Every time I had a tough moment on court, I was just reminding myself that I'm good enough to handle all this."

Rybakina defeated major champions Swiatek, Jelena Ostapenko and Victoria Azarenka en route to the final, though she was unable to add to the Wimbledon crown she won in July.

The 22nd seed took the first set – the first Sabalenka has dropped this year – but her opponent's serve soon clicked into gear and Rybakina had no response.

"She served really well today no matter the double-faults," Rybakina said. "A few second serves she hit probably as a first serve.

"For sure it's not easy mentally. She didn't have great serve last year, but now she's super strong and she served well. I respect that. I know how much work it takes.

"I think Aryna raised her level in the second set. She played really well, aggressive, made fewer mistakes. I should have been more aggressive also in some moments.

"I had some chances to turn it around. But she played really well today. She was strong mentally and physically. Overall it was a good two weeks for me here."

Memphis Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins said his team have been deeply affected following the death of fan Tyre Nichols.

Nichols, 29, died on January 10, three days after he was beaten by five police officers after a traffic stop in Memphis, Tennessee.

The five officers have been sacked and charged with second-degree murder, assault, kidnapping, official misconduct and official oppression. 

Police have released bodycam and CCTV footage of the incident, in which Nichols can be heard protesting his innocence and calling for his mother.

The footage was released just prior to the Grizzlies' meeting with the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday.

Before the game, Jenkins told Bally Sports: "It's been tough being on the road, not being home.

"I wish I could extend my arms through this camera right now to the family. They're going through a lot.

"The senseless loss of life for Tyre Nichols has really hit us hard."

Nichols' mother, RowVaughn Wells, said in an interview that she felt "sorry" for the officers who killed her son.

"People don’t know what those five police officers did to our family. And they really don’t know what they did to their own families. They have put their own families in harm's way," she said.

"They have brought shame to their own families. They brought shame to the Black community. I just feel sorry for them. I really do. Because they didn't have to do this.

"They had beat him to a pulp. He had bruises all over. His head was swollen like a watermelon. His neck was busting because of the swelling. They broke his neck. His nose was like an S.

"They actually just beat the crap out of him, so when I saw him, I knew my son was gone. Even if he did live he would have been a vegetable."

Wells said he cried after seeing the interview, though disclosed after Friday's 111-100 defeat that he had not watched the disturbing footage of the arrest and subsequent beating.

"There's way harder things on in the city versus what's going on with our basketball right now," Jenkins told reporters.

"I'm proud of our guys going out there. We're playing with heavy hearts, but we're also playing for our city that's going through a lot right now.

"My words will only mean so much. I want to continue to encourage people to put their arms around each other.

"To put their arms around the Nichols family, the Wells family to remember a beautiful life in Tyre Nichols – who I did not know, but I'm learning about.

"Our guys are still grappling with everything going on. We have been just getting all the updates over the last couple of days on this road trip.

"No one's been able to see the video but we do know of a tragedy that's taking place and just trying to grapple with that so there's still ongoing dialogues; everything's on the table to how we want to support our city, support the Nichols family."

Nichols' death has echoes of the murder of George Floyd, who died in police custody in Minneapolis in 2020, sparking civil rights protests and riots in the United States and many other nations.

The Grizzlies were among several NBA teams to release statements, with Memphis saying they were "distraught to find ourselves dealing with a needless loss of life due to police brutality". 

An NBA statement read: "The images of Tyre Nichols' life needlessly cut short are horrifying.

"While there have been steps toward accountability in this instance, the NBA family remains committed to partnering with advocates, policymakers and law enforcement to work toward solutions to the issues we continue to face."

Memphis police chief Cerelyn Davis said there was a "disregard of basic human rights" and called the officers' actions "heinous, reckless and inhumane".

As Saturday's Australian Open final pitted two of the most powerful players on the WTA Tour against one another, of course Russell Crowe was in Rod Laver Arena to see these modern gladiators do battle.

Much like Crowe's Hollywood epic, this encounter took two and a half hours to reach its conclusion. When it did, it was the brute strength and bravery of Aryna Sabalenka that made her a first-time grand slam champion.

Sabalenka, having so often fallen frustratingly short on the biggest stage, stuck to the principles that had carried her this far and was rewarded with a 4-6 6-3 6-4 defeat of Elena Rybakina.

A change has been noted in Sabalenka's manner in Melbourne, a calmer approach in difficult moments – and there were plenty against Rybakina.

Sabalenka had previously spoken of the need to be "boring" to win a major, but she argued ahead of this final: "I don't think it's that boring to watch me. I hope [not]. Just less negative emotions."

Are you not entertained? Crowe and the rest of the crowd watching this back-and-forth certainly were, chiefly due to Sabalenka's unrelenting aggression.

It was most evident on the second serve as Sabalenka repeatedly went after her opponent. Perhaps she felt she had no choice.

Rybakina had won a tournament-leading 73 points against the second serve prior to the final; easing up would have invited her own immense power into the equation.

Instead, Sabalenka's second serve averaged 149km/h. The result was only a 47 per cent success rate and seven double faults – but also the title.

Rybakina went in the opposite direction and, after a strong start, paid the price.

Her second serve was down at 136km/h and led to only a single double fault, yet Sabalenka, initially understandably nervous, grew into the match and won 23 return points against the second serve. She met Rybakina's uncharacteristically delicate touch with a hammer.

Rybakina's thinking had been set forth after her first night match of the tournament against Victoria Azarenka in the semi-finals.

"Maybe I will not have to serve that big, that fast, so it doesn't really matter the speed," she explained. "It's important to have a good placement on the serve.

"In these conditions, to serve full, full power, it's not easy. The ball is not really going."

It still went at times in the final – a 195km/h serve matched any previously seen in Melbourne this year – but that placement was not there; landing only 59 per cent of her first serves in, Melbourne's ace queen allowed Sabalenka to become a little too familiar with this change of tack on second serve.

Having eliminated three major champions, including world number one Iga Swiatek, and last year's finalist en route to the showpiece match, it was undoubtedly a risk for Rybakina to alter her game with the title in sight.

She may well have thought it had paid off after taking the first set; although her three previous matches against Sabalenka had all gone to three sets, all had been lost after Rybakina dropped the opener.

But Sabalenka roared back, recovering from 15-40 in the opening game of the second and building from there.

Once the tide turned, it became increasingly unclear whether Rybakina was steadfastly sticking to her slower, supposedly more accurate method or had simply been sapped of her energy by the sublime force of Sabalenka, who racked up 51 winners.

It was ultimately the Belarusian – a first neutral champion – who succeeded in showing something different, her 11th win in succession to start the season seeing her drop a set for the first time yet still triumph.

As emotion overcame Sabalenka before she promised "even better tennis" in Australia next year, Rybakina was left with much to ponder.

Both women outlined their desire for "many more battles", and the Wimbledon champion might hope the conditions next time tee her up to take Sabalenka on at her own game.

Sabalenka is the opponent Rybakina has faced most often without winning; if this is to develop into the sort of rivalry women's tennis has not seen for some time, that is going to need to change.

Aryna Sabalenka vowed to have many more battles with the impressive Elena Rybakina after securing her first grand slam title at the Australian Open.

Belarusian Sabalenka was far from her best in the first set on Rod Laver Arena but made amends for her errant serving with a heavy-hitting showing to down Rybakina 4-6 6-3 6-4 on Saturday.

Victory over the 23-year-old marked Sabalenka's 11th straight win to start the 2023 season, dropping to her knees to celebrate after falling just short in previously reaching three major semi-finals.

World number five Sabalenka heaped praise on Rybakina, who had looked on course to back up her 2022 Wimbledon triumph, as she reflected on a maiden grand slam success.

"First of all, I want to say sorry for my English as I am still shaking and am super nervous," she said on court after her triumph.

"Secondly, it's such an inspiration to receive this trophy from you [Billie Jean King]. Thank you so much for everything you've done for our sport. I couldn't be more thankful.

"I want to congratulate Elena for an incredible two weeks. You are such a great player.

"I hope we have many more battles and hopefully [they will be] in the finals of grand slams.

"Congratulations to your team. You guys are amazing and have done such a good job.

"It was an amazing atmosphere. I hope next year I come back even stronger and I will show you all [the Australian fans] even better tennis."

Addressing her own team, Sabalenka added: "We've been through a lot of downs last year.

"We worked so hard and you guys deserve this trophy. This is more about you than about me. Thank you so much for everything you do for me. I love you guys."

Rybakina, the 22nd seed in Melbourne, defeated major champions Iga Swiatek, Jelena Ostapenko and Victoria Azarenka en route to the final amid a scintillating run in Australia.

But she slipped to a fourth straight defeat in head-to-head clashes with Sabalenka.

"I would like to congratulate Aryna on the title and a great start to the season. I know how hard you and your team have worked for that," Rybakina said.

"Good luck for the rest of the season and hopefully we are going to have many more battles.

"I want to say a big thank you to my team for the great job we have done; to my family, coach and president of the Kazakhstan Federation, thank you so much for the support.

"I had goosebumps with this atmosphere and I am looking forward to coming back next year. Next year I hope to go one better."

This year's NFL conference championships have provided a fascinating line-up of potential Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks.

In the AFC Championship Game, Patrick Mahomes is hosting Joe Burrow in a repeat of last year's matchup, with both men having already been to the big game.

Meanwhile, in the NFC, Jalen Hurts and Brock Purdy have each played just two postseason games, green enough both to provoke excitement and concern in equal measure.

Three of these QBs were confirmed as MVP candidates this week, with Purdy the obvious exception as 'Mr Irrelevant', enjoying a fairytale story that would surpass just about any other.

So, which of the four is best placed heading into this weekend, and who can expect to be playing in Arizona in two weeks' time?

Brock Purdy, 49ers @ Eagles

It is safe to say Purdy did not expect to be playing in this game when he was selected with the final pick of the 2022 draft.

Injuries to Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo have catapulted the rookie into the spotlight, and he has not disappointed, winning his first seven starts to extend the 49ers' streak to 12 straight victories – a team's longest sequence entering a conference championship since the undefeated New England Patriots in 2007.

Purdy, at 22, will become the youngest QB to start a game at this stage of the season since Ben Roethlisberger in 2004, while he is only the fourth to do so having started five or fewer regular season games.

But given this inexperience, Purdy is the one remaining QB who likely will not be handed complete control of the offense, instead asked simply to consistently put the ball in the hands of the 49ers' outstanding skill players.

Christian McCaffrey, like Purdy, has won every start since joining the 49ers in a mid-season trade from the Carolina Panthers, scoring an offensive touchdown in each of his past eight – one shy of both Ezekiel Elliott's 2022-best streak of nine.

Since his first start, McCaffrey ranks third in the NFL for offensive touches (234); since Purdy's first start, he ranks first (136).

Even with McCaffrey and Deebo Samuel each highly effective targets through the air, the 49ers have shifted their focus to the run game with Purdy under center.

They have run the ball on 50.1 per cent of plays since Purdy's first start, the fifth-highest rate in the NFL and the highest of any team who made the playoffs. Prior to Week 14, that figure was 43.2 per cent.

It is unlikely the 49ers move away from that now against an elite defense that leads the league by a considerable margin in sacks (75), sack yards (517) and sack rate (10.7 per cent).

Purdy may need McCaffrey and Co. to carry him through this round, but a Super Bowl appearance would only encourage those Tom Brady 2001 comparisons.

Jalen Hurts, Eagles vs 49ers

Hurts' appearance on this stage is clearly not as surprising as Purdy's, but few could have foreseen the Eagles QB as the Goliath to his opponent's David back when the season began.

The third-year star has delivered on his potential in 2022.

Hurts' ability to run with the ball was never in question, and this year his 14 rushing TDs rank third among all players, with Josh Allen his nearest rival at QB on a comparatively meagre eight.

But there has crucially been progress in the passing game as Hurts posted career-best marks by just about every metric in the regular season – 66.5 completion percentage, 3,701 passing yards, 22 passing TDs, 1.3 interception percentage and a passer rating of 101.5.

Last week, in the Eagles' playoff opener against the New York Giants, he threw two TD passes and zero picks for a rating of 112.2.

Having missed two games and two Eagles defeats, Hurts heads into the NFC Championship Game with a 15-1 record as a starter this year, no doubt confident of improving that mark further against the 49ers.

In an intriguing battle that pits the league's best run offense (47.0 per cent success rate) versus its second-best run defense (32.1 per cent), Hurts can provide the X-factor.

The 49ers have shown few signs of weakness this year but did so against Marcus Mariota, another running QB, whose Atlanta Falcons ran the ball on 69.6 per cent of plays in Week 6 and were successful 43.6 per cent of the time.

The Eagles will have been watching the tape from that matchup to give Hurts the best possible chance to find joy against an otherwise fearsome defense.

Joe Burrow, Bengals @ Chiefs

Bengals cornerback Mike Hilton dubbed the Chiefs' home stadium, so terrifying for so many visiting teams, "Burrowhead" as Cincinnati prepared for their return in the AFC Championship Game.

Burrow went into Arrowhead last year and got the better of Mahomes, leading the Bengals to a third conference championship win in three attempts all-time.

Although the Los Angeles Rams then defeated the Bengals in the Super Bowl, Burrow has continued to show himself to be the man for the big occasion, taking down the much-fancied Buffalo Bills last week.

He has won five of his first six playoff starts, with only Brady (7-0), Russell Wilson (6-1) and Mahomes (6-1) winning six of their first seven since 1995.

So calm and composed, Burrow is an outstanding passer, ranking second in the league with his 68.2 completion percentage this year and third with his 85.9 well-thrown percentage.

His problem has long been a lack of protection from the Bengals' offensive line, with Burrow taking a league-leading 148 sacks since his debut season in 2020 – a campaign that was cut short by ACL and MCL tears sustained in one hit.

But Burrow took just one sack against the Bills, and the Bengals are consistently doing a better job in giving their QB time to make the pass – albeit with his help.

The Bengals have allowed a pressure rate of just 32.4 per cent this year, the fourth-best in the NFL, as Burrow has taken just 2.46 seconds to release the ball, the fifth-fastest average among QBs with 100 attempts.

It is Burrow's ability to work this quickly while maintaining a league-low pickable pass percentage of 1.53 that cuts him out as a star capable of again going to Kansas City and withstanding all they throw at him.

Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs vs Bengals

Mahomes is the one man who cannot be planned for. If he is on his game, there is surely no stopping the Chiefs superstar.

Happily for the Bengals, he was a long way from the Mahomes everyone knows in the second half of last year's AFC Championship Game, and his hopes of performing at peak level will be limited by injury this week.

A high ankle sprain would rule out just about any other QB, but Mahomes, no doubt determined to put right what went so wrong last year, is set to play.

Mahomes completed only eight of 18 passes after halftime in the Chiefs' 2021 defeat, throwing two interceptions for a remarkable passer rating of 12.3.

That was the sixth-lowest rating in the second half of a playoff game this century – not the sort of company the best QB in football is used to keeping.

But that passer rating in the second half against the Jacksonville Jaguars last week, when Mahomes was playing with an injury, was up at 110.7.

Even as he hobbled around the field, Mahomes was able to finish a fourth postseason game with a completion percentage above 70.0 (72.3) and multiple TD passes.

Only four players – Brady (six), Drew Brees (six), Troy Aikman (five) and Joe Montana (five) – have had more such performances. Mahomes has played just 12 playoff games in his career.

If that is the sort of form the Bengals can expect to find Mahomes in this week, with revenge on his mind, all the focus on that ankle might count for very little.