The Arizona Wildcats had a few surprises in the starting lineup for the first game of the rivalry series against Arizona State. They didn’t pay off.

Arizona fell to its in-state rival by the score of 16-5. The game ended after five innings.

The loss was the third straight run-rule loss by Arizona after losing a doubleheader at Texas Tech, both by the run rule. That streak follows a nine-game stretch of run-rule wins that concluded with a 9-0 victory in five innings over NiJaree Canady and the Red Raiders.

Freshman righthander Rylie Holder got the Friday night start. With Anyssa Wild out for the foreseeable future with a broken bone, junior Tele Jennings started at designated player, although Emma Kavanagh was substituted into the lineup later in the game. Freshman infielder Kez Lucas was back at first base after getting just one plate appearance in last week’s series at Texas Tech.

“Anyssa broke her hand, so that mixed up the DP situation a little bit,” Arizona head coach Caitlin Lowe said. “We thought Tele was going to be a good matchup. Kez, we wanted to get back in there. We’re having people compete against their best matchup at first base right now. Honestly, I thought Kez did a really good job today, so excited to see that. Yeah, just playing with different stuff.”

Lowe even took over the first base coaching duties that are usually handled by pitching coach Christian Conrad.

Arizona pitching gave up crooked numbers in every inning, including six home runs. Lowe used Holder, Jenae Berry, and Sarah Wright over that time but none were effective. The group of three allowed 15 hits, 2 walks, and 3 hit batters. Jalen Adams, who had the best ERA on the team heading into the game, did not appear.

Lowe said that watching film on ASU made them believe that Holder was the best answer for Friday in a three-game series. She mentioned that Holder didn’t execute, but “she’s gonna be better tomorrow.”

“We really like Rylie against this team,” Lowe said. “I still really like Riley—if she throws her stuff—against this team.”

Things got off to a bad start immediately when Kaylee Pond hit the first pitch out to straight away centerfield. She went 2 for 2 and walked twice in the game. In fact, six ASU hitters had at least two hits and former Wildcat Emily Schepp went 4 for 4 with two home runs.

On the other side, Arizona didn’t get a hit until the third inning. The Wildcats ended with four hits and three walks but struck out 10 times.

The strikeouts hurt most when they came after the walks. ASU pitcher Kenzie Brown came in averaging 2.6 walks per game with a 3.10 ERA. Arizona drew more walks than her average, but they couldn’t turn them into runs at a reliable enough clip. Only three of the five runs scored by the Wildcats were earned.

Sydney Stewart walked to lead off the second, but the next three batters went down on strikes.

The Wildcats had a little more luck in the third. Lucas drew a leadoff walk. Addison Duke reached on an error, which also got pinch runner Kiki Escobar to third with no outs. Regan Shockey had one of her two strikeouts for the first out. Sereniti Trice got one run in with a fielder’s choice, but that’s all Arizona could get.

As happened repeatedly, a step forward by the Wildcat offense meant two steps back when the defense returned to the field. Arizona gave up two runs in the top of the fourth to put themselves in a bigger hole than before.

Up Next for Arizona Softball

Who: ASU Sun Devils (22-7, 2-4) @ No. 13 Arizona Wildcats (21-7, 4-2)

When: Saturday Mar. 21 @ 6 p.m. MST; Sunday, Mar. 22 @ 12 p.m. MST

Where: Rita Hillenbrand Memorial Stadium in Tucson, Ariz.

Streaming: ESPN+ (Saturday, Sunday)

Radio: 1400 AM (KTUC)

Stats: Arizona Live Stats (Saturday, Sunday)

The Wildcats headed into the bottom of the fourth trailing 13-1. Stewart started things off with single, and Grace Jenkins gave Arizona two baserunners when Brown hit her with a pitch. A strikeout kept both in place, but Sniffen used a single to load the bases with one out.

ASU’s second error of the game allowed Lucas to reach and two to score. Arizona had two in scoring position and still just one out. Duke’s double brought two more across, cutting the ASU lead to eight.

“It’s just getting the right pitch and putting a good swing on it, keeping it simple, and not making the moment too big,” Duke said. “And just doing what you can for the team.”

If Arizona could keep the lead at eight in the top of the fifth and cut into it in the bottom, the game would continue. The pitching had to step up and put an end to the endless parade of ASU baserunners, though.

That didn’t happen. Arizona gave up three home runs in the top of the fifth, including the second of the game by Schepp.

It was now 16-5 and the Wildcats would have to score four runs for the second straight inning just to extend the game. While they have done that several times this year, including against some of the best teams in the game, they couldn’t replicate the feat.

Stewart walked to lead off the inning yet again. She moved to second on a throwing error and third on a wild pitch, but her teammates couldn’t get her in. Two strikeouts ended the game with the Arizona catcher still standing on third base.

Stewart and Duke had the most offensive success. Stewart went 1 for 1 with 2 walks. She also scored a run. Duke was 1 for 2 with 2 RBI. She had the only extra-base hit of the game for Arizona.

On Tuesday, Lowe said that Wild’s injury is much like the one suffered by Carlie Scupin in 2023. She acknowledged that people heal differently from the same injuries, but said Scupin’s absence was a general guideline for how long Wild would be out.

Scupin was hurt on Mar. 15, 2023 and returned on Apr. 28. Wild’s injury occurred on Mar. 14. A similar absence would likely have her back for the final regular season series of the season which will be played May 1-3 at Utah.

Ansan's new faces have brought a mix of international flair and optimism to Ansan following the club's dismal 2025 campaign. It has been a mixed start so far for the Greeners with a first opening win for over half a decade, but poor home form has continued. Nevertheless, Lee Moon-sik's attacking style has brought with it a lot of optimism for the season ahead. So, how have two of those new faces settled to life so far in the K League?

Tim Hartzell

Hartzell arrives in Ansan off the back of winning the Superettan (Swedish second division) title with Västerås SK. Making 20 appearances, the towering the centre back also showed his goal threat by pitching in some match winning assists as his side clinched the title by a single point.

Joining Ansan off the back of such a poor season last year, Hartzell reflects that he saw the results but there have been a lot of changes. In fact it was discussions with coach Choi Moon-sik that set the tone for that was to be expected, with a focussed and exciting plan for the season. Indeed the whole mood around the Wa Stadium seems different this season, with Tim stating there is "a very good mood in the team."

Of course arriving in a new country is always a challenge, in particular as Hartzell's career has been spent in Scandinavia. However, the support has been great, especially from Felipe de Paula who works as the team translator at Ansan. Felipe himself has K League 2 experience, scoring 5 times in a stint at Goyang Zaicro in 2017. Tim also notes the role of his agents, as well as the wider Ansan staff in ensuring that the transition to Korea was a smooth one.

In addition, Hartzell could also call upon friends in the league itself. Of note, he played with Bucheon midfielder Kazuki Takahashi at Swedish side AFC Eskilstuna. Kazuki assured Tim that he would have a good experience in Korea, offering positive advice with it being “a very good league.” This is echoed by other players and Tim’s own experiences with the K2 so far, noting that it is different from playing in Sweden and Denmark but it is “a high-quality league.”

One of the big differences with Scandinavia is the Korean summer, and Hartzell notes that he has heard a lot about it, but he is prepared and even looking forward to it! Of course, the challenge for Ansan in the K2 is a difficult one and Tim reflects pragmatically that the goal is to: “Stay humble and keep working hard.”

Tim Hartzell clears the lines against Busan I'Park

Machop Chol

Born in Khartoum but raised in the US, Machop has played at Wake Forest academy, as did former Greener Burno Lapa, and was picked up for Atlanta United, scoring in the MLS against Toronto and New England. His football journey has also taken him to Lithuania with Zalgiris, and he has been called up 4 times by the South Sudanese team.

Machop managed his first goal in front of the home fans against Busan, reflecting that it “It felt good.” Indeed, the humble and pragmatic approach espoused by Hartzell is reflected in Machop who analysed his performance: “[I] Had some opportunities I wish I could have capitalised on but overall, a good feeling, but I just wish we’d have got a result today." His target for the season is to just focus on "helping the team and getting positive results."

Following defeat to Busan Machop noted that of course the team is down but “there’s many points to be happy about we played well in certain moments and also got some things that we can learn from as well.” Can Ansan push on this season? Machop thinks so, the team does not like to lose and “there’s a lot of hunger in this group.”

The opening day of the women’s NCAA tournament went pretty much like they were supposed to.

Not a single upset occurred on Friday to kick off this year’s NCAA tournament, though Colorado State came within three points of knocking off Michigan State. Otherwise, it was a very straightforward day.

Top-ranked Texas, the only No. 1 seed in action, had no issue getting into the second round. No. 2 seeds Michigan and LSU followed suit, too. Olivia Miles had a historic triple-double to kick off the day for No. 3 TCU, too. It marked her sixth of the season, and she’s now just the third player to have an NCAA tournament triple-double for two different teams.

Saturday’s slate will feature the other three top-ranked teams, and the rest of the second round will start to take shape.

But for now, here’s everything you need to keep up with Sunday’s second-round NCAA tournament action.

NCAA tournament Saturday second round schedule, how to watch

All times ET

No. 5 Maryland vs. No. 4 North Carolina
When: 12 p.m.
Where: Chapel Hill, NC
TV: ESPN

No. 7 NC State vs. No. 2 Michigan
When: 1 p.m.
Where: Ann Arbor, MI
TV: ABC

No. 5 Ole Miss vs. No. 4 Minnesota
When: 2 p.m.
Where: Minneapolis, MN
TV: ESPN

No. 7 Texas Tech vs. No. 2 LSU
When: 3 p.m.
Where: Baton Rogue, LA
TV: ABC

No. 6 Baylor vs. No. 3 Duke
When: 4 p.m.
Where: Durham, NC
TV: ESPN

No. 8 Oregon vs. No. 1 Texas
When: 6 p.m.
Where: Austin, TX
TV: ESPN

No. 5 Michigan State vs. No. 4 Oklahoma
When: 8 p.m.
Where: Norman, OK
TV: ESPN

No. 6 Washington vs. No. 3 TCU
When: 10 p.m.
Where: Fort Worth, TX
TV: ESPN

Welcome to Wrestling Inc.'s weekly review of "WWE SmackDown," the show where announced matches between Jacob Fatu and Drew McIntyre can just be entirely scrapped because they won't stop fighting around the building! The WINC staff has some thoughts on that, along with the crowning of new tag team champions, an unexpected heel turn for Michin and B-Fab, and more! There are also things we don't have thoughts on, like the women's tag title match (which was fine) and the men's US title match (which ruled so hard we don't have anything to say about it beyond the fact that it ruled hard).

If you missed the show and need to catch up, as always, you can do so via our "SmackDown" results page. If you want to know what we thought about the parts of the program that stood out to us the most (for better or worse), here are three things we hated and three things we loved about the 3/20/26 episode of "WWE SmackDown!" 

Read more: WWE SmackDown Stars: Meet Their Wives & Girlfriends

Hated: Damian Priest & R-Truth as tag champs in 2026

Damian Priest and R-Truth would have been a great choice for WWE tag team champions. In like, 2024. You know, back when Truth thought he was in Judgment Day and Priest was kind of into it. That would have been the time to get me invested in a Priest/Truth tag team. Now? In the year of somebody's lord, 2026? All I can do is throw up my hands and ask if we're really doing this.

I'm not even upset that the MFTs lost the titles. The MFTs were terrible tag team champions. But there are so many better options in the "SmackDown" tag division, from the Motor City Machine Guns to Fraxiom to (assuming they get un-vanished from the Phantom Zone someday) the Street Profits. Hell, even Los Garza could benefit from a run with the titles. But no, WWE wants to stick the belts on a 54-year-old R-Truth — and not even the interesting version of himself he tried to be after getting fired, but the straight-up Ron Cena version of R-Truth? Nah, man. Priest honestly deserves better, but so does the entire rest of the division, and so does anyone still regularly watching "SmackDown."

Loved: MCMG has a storyline

If you're a regular reader of this column, you know that I regularly hate the booking of the men's tag team division and wasting talented teams so they can stand around backstage for dumb segments. Two of those teams, Motor City Machine Guns and Fraxiom, have broken free from the backstage area into the ring. Twice, in fact. A few weeks ago, Alex Shelley didn't get Chris Sabin's foot on the rope in time and they lost their match against Fraxiom. Since then, things have been tense between MCMG.

Last week, Shelley was talking to Candice LeRae to check up on Johnny Gargano. Sabin didn't understand why Shelley cares considering Gargano cost them the tag titles. Tonight, Shelley stopped briefly to check on them when Sabin ordered him to focus and head to the ring. During the closing moments of their rematch, Sabin shoved Nathan Frazier forward into the ropes. LeRae hit Frazer in the face, unbeknownst to Sabin. Sabin got the win and celebrated in the ring. Judging by the look on Shelley's face, he saw what happened and knows his partner is in the dark. Will Shelley tell his partner what happened?

It seemed that they were planting seeds of a split of the Guns, but perhaps it's something else. What if they are turning heel with LeRae managing them while her husband is struggling with his mental health? Or what if aligning with MCMG with The Wrestlings makes Gargano snap out of his funk? I wasn't into a split of Shelley and Sabin, mostly because WWE has sucked at booking them since they dropped the titles. But a heel MCMG is something I can get behind. They've had heel runs before in TNA and it was great. Do I trust WWE with a heel MCMG? No, but at least these two options are more entertaining than anything they've done in months. Now, just leave Axiom's mask out of it.

Written by Samantha Schipman

Hated: What's going on with Randy Orton?

Considering that I have just over a decade under my belt of watching professional wrestling, I can almost always decipher what the point of any given promo is or at least what it was supposed to be. I was completely lost when it came to what the point of Randy Orton's promo was supposed to be on this episode of "SmackDown".

I know that Orton talked about how much he loves sharing his love for the fans, but how he wants his legacy to be capturing 15 World Championships. I know that Orton talked about listening to the voices in his head last Friday. I know Orton talked about Cody Rhodes, the Undisputed Championship, and WrestleMania 42. However, when I put all of that together, I still have no idea what Orton or WWE was trying to get at. It didn't make any sense at all for me, and felt like Orton was rambling for the sake of rambling as a means of giving him more television time ahead of WrestleMania 42. This entire segment could've easily been more focused on Orton's reason for betraying Rhodes last week other than the "voices in his head", with years or months of pent up aggression being a far better reason for him turning on Rhodes in my opinion.

I also found that this segment muddied the waters a bit for me as to whether or not Orton was fully a heel character now. The sentiment of Orton wanting his legacy to be about gold screamed heel to me, but it was also offset by him talking about his love for the fans and his non-chalant demeanour throughout the entire promo. Overall, Orton's promo accomplished absolutely nothing at all and was very confusing to watch as a fan who had no idea what she was supposed to gain from any of this. And that's not even considering what happened between Orton and Matt Cardona at the end of the show!

Written by Olivia Quinlan

Loved: Some development within the MFTs

This week saw the MFTs lose the Tag Team titles to the pairing of R-Truth and Damian Priest, with the group having been attacked by the Wyatt Sicks as part of their wider feud, thus allowing Truth to hit the Attitude Adjustment and get the pinfall on JC Mateo. That is a little bit questionable, but seeing Truth win a title after all he went through last year is somewhat exciting.

The Wyatt Sicks and MFTs feud has been nothing short of coma-inducing boring, but Solo Sikoa insists on keeping the Wyatts' lantern, made out to be the one held by the late Bray Wyatt, so thus we continue on Road Ad Nauseam.

However, through that fog of question came a small glimmer of development for the faction once called the Bloodline. Tama Tonga, having been teased for an eventual pursuit of the United States Championship, was getting grilled by Sikoa for losing the titles alongside Mateo. Tonga told Sikoa he thought they should give back the lantern, given that it is a continued distraction and the Wyatts will never leave them alone without it.

Sikoa exploded, and prompted Tonga to continue questioning his leadership. He said that Sikoa was sounding more like Roman Reigns, which drew a hurtful shock from Sikoa as a result. But it is also interesting that the entire segment was shot with the group stood behind Tonga, and opposite Sikoa. They have more in common with Tonga when all is said and done, and with him getting an extended yet restrained presence in the United States picture, there feels like a plan to give him something, however that may come.

Given that the MFTs are always on TV and constantly marred by the Wyatts, it's good to see them given something else to handle. And it seems like there is going to be some form of internal conflict, which only really feels like a positive for Sikoa as well. The group is undoubtedly on the cusp of being stale, while almost always retaining some form of curiosity, and will take something to produce something great. But this is a start, at least.

Written by Max Everett

Hated: Michin alliance with Jade Cargill doesn't work, neither does promo

It really feels like WWE is throwing things at the wall to see what sticks ahead of WrestleMania 42, and tonight's heel turn of Michin and B-Fab felt like one of those things, albeit, what felt like a pretty minor thing in the grand scale of 'Mana excitement. Sure, we saw B-Fab talking to WWE Women's Champion Jade Cargill in the background of another backstage segment last week, but I was sure that meant that she was going to turn heel and betray Michin.

I certainly didn't expect both of them to turn heel and align themselves with a woman they've been feuding with for months against her WrestleMania opponent, Rhea Ripley. Michin and Cargill just faced off in a match last week on "SmackDown." That's why, when we saw B-Fab speaking to the champion, just her heel turn to become the mouthpiece for Cargill made sense. Bringing Michin along with her lessens any possible future storylines.

But, perhaps "feud" is a strong word here. They've been catty to each other in plenty of backstage segments over recent months, but last Friday's match was actually the only one that Michin and Cargill have had against one another, officially. That feels really strange after how many weeks they've been at one another's throats backstage. But, I guess that's the story of Cargill's title reign: a whole lot of nothing.

In addition to this terrible heel turn, which seemed just like a turn for the sake of a turn, when it comes to Michin, at least, I also really disliked Cargill and Ripley's promo. I haven't thought any of their face-offs have been strong, and Cargill literally saying that she didn't need not just the championship, but didn't need professional wrestling to still be "that b****" was a bit too off course for me. I just don't think that's something you should be saying going in to a fight on "The Grandest Stage of Them All," especially ahead of one that's failing to garner much excitement. It may have been their best segment so far, but that doesn't mean it was any good.

None of this really worked for me tonight, and I can't say I'm excited at all to see Cargill vs. Ripley. With the way things went tonight, I'm nervous that Ripley won't actually win at 'Mania, now that Cargill has Michin and B-Fab alongside her to interfere, but, I guess only time will tell.

Written by Daisy Ruth

Loved: No official match for McIntyre & Fatu, but endless brawl brings the heat

It was reported ahead of "SmackDown" tonight that at least one previously advertised match wouldn't be going ahead, and when I read that, I automatically figured it would be Jacob Fatu and Drew McIntyre's one-on-one that was previously announced by General Manager Nick Aldis last week. And, while false advertising, for lack of a better term, isn't always my thing when it comes to wrestling shows, the all-out brawl between the two to get some heat leading into their reported (and obviously highly likely) WrestleMania match was fine by me. I was not a fan of many things tonight, but this was certainly one of them.

I like a good fight that continues on–and-off throughout the show. It means the brawlers really hate each other enough to continuously escape officials and security, and it's almost always extremely entertaining. WWE also didn't overdo the brawls tonight, surprisingly, and we got three good moments where McIntyre and Fatu were throwing hands.

The show started out with a car crash, quite literally, with McIntyre seemingly punching out Fatu's windshield before dragging him through it. It was a hot start that had Fatu bleeding, and McIntyre came out to air his grievances in the ring. Fatu put a stop to that, however, and hit a big splash to the former Undisputed WWE Champion through the announce desk. It was an exciting way to start out of the show, and I really enjoyed it.

Later on, you had them interrupted a tense moment between Solo Sikoa and Tama Tonga, which worked, and the show was then bookended by another brawl segment, one where Nick Aldis and officials had to run back to the parking lot to catch them after dealing with Randy Orton in the ring. The urgency of the rush from that chaotic scene to another was exciting and actually felt meaningful. While Fatu and McIntyre falling off the transformer area, scaffolding... thing, was a little cheesy with the camera angle, it was a fun way to end the show.

Fatu and McIntyre's WrestleMania match has yet to officially be announced, but I like it. I've already basically forgotten about the pivot from McIntyre as champion back to Rhodes, and the fact that I really thought we'd be getting a triple threat match between these two and Rhodes for the gold at 'Mania, and I'm sure that's what WWE is going for at this point. Maybe I've just accepted what WWE has given me, but I want to see a McIntyre vs. Fatu stipulation match, probably a street fight, at WrestleMania. They work well together, and if tonight was any indication, that's going to be one hell of a match.

Written by Daisy Ruth

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It was a roller coaster of emotions for the BBN on Friday afternoon as the Kentucky Wildcats pulled off the improbable win over the Santa Clara Broncos in the Round of 64. Now, their focus shifts to the Iowa State Cyclones with a Sweet 16 berth on the line.

A 2-seed in the year’s tournament, the Cyclones had an impressive season in Ames. Finishing the year at 27-7 and 12-6 in the Big XII, they entered into postseason play with title aspirations, especially with Joshua Jefferson on the court.

That all changed in today’s win over Tennessee State.

With Jefferson leaving the game and not returning against the Tigers, now all the question marks are starting to fly around his availability for the game on Sunday in St. Louis. The Cyclones will certainly be hoping he can take the floor, as the drop-off in efficiency without him on the court this season is steep.

For Kentucky, they will need to step back and take a breath after the close call against the Broncos. The story of the season has been a struggle in games they should easily win but shine in games they have no business being in.

Will that trend continue on Sunday? That is the hope, at least.

How will an upset happen for Kentucky? It will once again take a big game from Otega Oweh. After shining in Game 1 while making an all-time NCAA Tournament moment, Oweh has cemented himself as a March Madness star this year. However, it will take other big games outside of Oweh to take down Iowa State.

Mo Dioubate will also need to match the physicality of the Iowa State forwards, especially if Jefferson can give it a go. Collin Chandler will need to see more shots fall, and one of Malachi Moreno or Brandon Garrison will need to dominate the paint once again.

There are a lot of factors playing against the Cats in this one, but at this point, they are playing with house money. Can they pull off the upset and get to a second straight Sweet 16? It’s a tall task, but one that seems somewhat feasible with the momentum from the win over Santa Clara.

Players to watch

Milan Momcilovic: 17.1 PPG on 51% shooting from the field and 50% from three

Joshua Jefferson (if he plays): 16.9 PPG, 7.6 RPG, and 4.9 APG

Tamin Lipsey: 13.3 PPG, 5.0 APG, and 4.0 RPG.

Kentucky Basketball vs. Iowa State Cyclones

Game Time: Sunday, March 22, 2026, at 2:45 PM ET

Location: Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Missouri

TV Channel: CBS

Online Stream: NCAA March Madness Live and the NCAA March Madness Live app

Radio: Tom Leach and Jack Givens on the UK Sports Radio Network. You can listen on mobile devices with the Varsity Network app.

Replay: Check local listings on CBS Sports Network and March Madness Live

Rosters: UK | Iowa State

Stats to Know: UK | Iowa State

KenPom: UK | Iowa State

Team Sheets: UK | Iowa State

Odds: FanDuel Sportsbook has Iowa State favored by 4.5 points with an over/under of 145.5 points. EvanMiya gives UK a 18.9% chance of winning. KenPom (25%), BartTorvik (22%), and DRatings (29.9%) also don’t favor the Cats to win.

Predictions: ESPN (79-69), DRatings (81-75), EvanMiya (79-70), and KenPom (77-70) all have the Cyclones winning.

While Kentucky is playing with house money against a 2-seed while Jefferson’s injury lingers, Iowa State is still a very dangerous team that’s capable of making a Final Four run. The Cats make a push, but the Cyclones come away with an 81-74 win.

Now, send us your score predictions in the comments section!

And Go CATS!!

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Tarris Reed Jr. had 31 points and 27 rebounds in a dominant NCAA Tournament performance, leading second-seeded UConn to an 82-71 victory over Furman team on Friday night in the first round.

Alex Karaban added 22 points for UConn (30-5), which advanced to play UCLA in the second round of the East Region on Sunday.

For about 36 minutes in Philadelphia, it sure looked like coach Dan Hurley and the Huskies had a chance of heading back home instead.

But Reed wouldn't let them, the All-Big East center becoming the first player with 30-plus points and 25-plus rebounds in an NCAA Tournament game since Elvin Hayes did it twice in 1968.

The Huskies were 20 1/2-point favorites to thump a school most basketball fans couldn't even find on a map. The real line that mattered was the final stat line: The Huskies missed 20 of 25 3-pointers with each clang off the rim seemingly sounding the dinner bell for the No. 15-seeded Paladins to come on in and pull off the seismic shocker.

With UConn up 61-52, Furman cheerleaders hit the court to lead fans in their wildly popular school chant.

“FU one time, FU two times, FU three times, FU all the time!"

When Alex Wilkins hit a 3 to make it 69-64 and the Paladins (22-13) still stayed within five with 5:49 left, it seemed Furman was ready to kick up some dust on a tournament Friday filled with mostly chalk results.

But led by Reed, the Huskies had enough in a 12-4 run down the stretch to survive the first round.

UConn played without first team All-Big East selection Silas Demary Jr. after he suffered an ankle injury in the Big East Tournament; and Jaylin Stewart again sat out with a knee injury that’s sidelined him since late February.

They were missed against a Furman team that beat top-seeded East Tennessee State to secure the Southern Conference Tournament and a NCAA Tournament bid.

The Huskies displayed cracks throughout the season — including a loss to St. John's in the Big East Tournament title game — that threatened to prevent another long March Madness run for a program that expects it.

The injuries didn't help. Neither did a determined Furman team under coach Bob Richey.

Furman came poised to inject Friday's slate of tournament games with a needed dose of madness and had UConn on its heels early.

The basketball fans inside the home of the 76ers absolutely erupted — who doesn't love a March underdog story? — when Furman grabbed a 19-18 lead midway through the first half.

Furman, a Greenville, South Carolina university named after a Baptist pastor, needed more than a prayer to try and upset UConn.

It needed 3s.

The Paladins sank ‘em — six, alone in the first half, none more emotionally-charged than Charles Johnston’s first-half buzzer-beater that sliced UConn's lead to 40-36.

Johnston thew his arms up in celebration and ran to halfcourt for a violent chest-bump with a teammate as the Paladins scurried off the court into the locker room.

Hurley couldn't believe it while UConn fan Bill Murray — the actor's son is an assistant on the Huskies' staff — could only laugh at the absurdity of the situation.

Furman shot 48% overall from the floor in the half and had some big help in making this one a game from UConn's dreadful 1-of-14 shooting from 3-point range.

It was nearly a legendary Knight — that is, in fact a Paladin — in Johnston that kept the crowing roaring and an upset brewing.

The 6-foot-11 Australian threw down a monster dunk early in the second half that kept Furman within striking distance at 54-47. After he took one to the house, Tom House, who scored 21 points, buried a 3 that cut the lead to 56-50.

Furman knew how to pull off a March surprise. Furman has made just two NCAA Tournaments since 1980 but used a buzzer-beater to top No. 4 Virginia in 2023.

Furman just couldn't finish off another March win against basketball's big dogs.

___

AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness

NC State’s NCAA tournament started about as well as possible, with the Pack making its first eight shots from the floor on the way to taking a 19-4 lead. Zoe Brooks and Zam Jones had the offense rolling in those first five minutes—Zam played with her hair on fire from the start and ended up with one of the best performances of her career.

The Wolfpack needed it, too. The Volunteers responded well after their rough start and kept within striking distance but still found themselves down 11 at halftime. Tennessee created a lot of second-chance opportunities for itself throughout, and State ended up very fortunate that the Vols didn’t shoot better.

Things got tenuous very quickly in the third quarter, as the Pack started cold from the field and lost Brooks to a foot injury midway through the period. Wes Moore didn’t have any details to share after the game, but Brooks was obviously in a lot of pain. It’s more than a little worrying that the injury didn’t appear to have anything to do with contact, and she didn’t roll an ankle, either. But it’s not a knee injury, at least.

After Brooks departed, Tennessee pulled to within 48-46, and the game appeared to be turning in a bad way. Zam Jones had the answers, however, knocking down a critical three to calm the team down and making four free throws in the final minute to extend her team’s lead back to nine heading into the fourth. Tennessee would get no closer.

Zam was a menace throughout—en route to 30 points, she drew 12 fouls and shot 13 free throws. Led by those efforts, NC State went to the free throw line 20 times in the second half, which helped the Pack continue to put points on the board even when the shots weren’t falling, especially in the third.

That was a big difference in the final result—NC State leaned heavily on opportunities it created off the bounce, which led to 25 free throw attempts (and 21 makes). Tennessee’s M.O. is threes by the bushel and it ended up with 36 three-point tries in this one—but the Vols made just seven of them, and shot just six free throws.

While the Vols were dominant on the glass, State was just a lot more effective in the paint: the Pack made 57.5% of its twos, while the Vols made just 45.9%. So, in the end, State was able to weather its worst defensive rebounding effort of the season without all that much trouble.

It’s an excellent win and it would be really encouraging if it didn’t have Zoe’s injury hanging over it. NC State’s task now is beating No. 2 Michigan on its home floor Sunday, and maybe having to do it shorthanded.

SAN DIEGO—Arizona will be getting a little extra rest before its next NCAA Tournament game.

The top-seeded Wildcats’ matchup with No. 9 Utah State is set for a 4:50 p.m. PT tip on Sunday night, with the game airing on TruTV. Arizona’s first round game against Long Island tipped off in the morning.

Arizona, fresh off a 92-58 win over No. 16 Long Island, has opened as an 11.5-point favorite against the ninth-seeded Aggies, per FanDuel Sportsbook. The over/under is 155.5.

Utah State (29-6) knocked off No. 8 Villanova in the first round Friday, advancing to a second NCAA game for just the third time in school history. The Aggies are underdogs for just the third time this season, winning at New Mexico in February and losing at South Florida in December.

The 11.5-point spread is the largest for Arizona for a second-round NCAA game since 1998 when it was favored by 15.5 against Illinois State and won by 33.

The Arizona/Utah State winner moves on to the West Region semifinals Thursday in San Jose, Calif., against the winner of Saturday night’s game between No. 4 Arkansas and No. 12 High Point

SEC gymnastics championship 2026 schedule, TV channel, live stream to watch Oklahoma, LSU, Florida and more originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The SEC gymnastics championships just may be a preview of the NCAA championship. But for now, nine teams will compete across two sessions for the crown.

Seeds 1-4, which features Oklahoma, LSU, Florida and Alabama, will compete in the evening session on Saturday while the afternoon session will see seeds 5-9 take the floor. Winner will be determined from the highest overall score.

What makes this the hardest championship in gymnastics? The top-four SEC teams are also the top-four teams in the nation, meaning the evening quad will be the toughest meet in the nation.

The Sooners won the regular season this year but are still looking for their first SEC gymnastics title. Can they prove their dominance when it matters?

Here's how to watch with TV and schedule information for the SEC gymnastics championships.

SEC gymnastics championships 2026 schedule

• Date: Saturday, March 21
• Time: 2 p.m. ET | 7 p.m. ET

The SEC gymnastics championships will take place on Saturday, March 21 at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The afternoon session at 2 p.m. ET will feature Arkansas, Georgia, Missouri, Auburn and Kentucky. The evening session, set for a 7 p.m. ET start, will see LSU, Oklahoma, Florida and Alabama.

How to watch SEC gymnastics championships 2026: TV channel, live stream

• TV channel: SEC Network
• Live stream: Fubo

The SEC gymnastics championship will be broadcast on the SEC Network. Viewers can live stream the meets on Fubo.

Fubo offers a free trial for new subscribers, so you can try the service before you buy. Stream ESPN, ABC, CBS, Fox and 100+ top channels of live TV and sports without cable. (Participating plans only. Taxes and fees may apply.)

SEC gymnastics championships 2026 teams, seeding

1. Oklahoma (Session II)
2. LSU (Session II)
3. Florida (Session II)
4. Alabama (Session II)
5. Georgia (Session I)
6. Arkansas (Session I)
7. Missouri (Session I)
8. Auburn (Session I)
9. Kentucky (Session I)

SEC gymnastics championships 2026 scores

Session 1

Session II

List of SEC gymnastics champions by year

NCAA gymnastics rankings, Week 11

Team NQS

1. Oklahoma (197.963
2. LSU (197.917)
3. Florida (197.700)
4. Alabama (197.500)
5. UCLA (197.478)
6. Georgia (197.385)
7. Stanford (197.267)
8. Arkansas (197.192)
9. Missouri (197.191)
10. Michigan (197.150)
11. Michigan State (197.056)
12. Utah (197.008)
13. Minnesota (196.834)
14. California (196.834)
15. Clemson (196.644)
16. Auburn (196.547)
17. Penn State (196.522)
18. Ohio State (196.522)
19. Kentucky (196.503)
20. NC State (196.448)
21. Iowa (196.447)
22. North Carolina (196.433)
23. Denver (196.361)
24. BYU (196.233)
25. Oregon State (196.106)

Andrew Smithson says…

People might assume that they’re rare, but there’s quite a few that deserve name checks or to be classed as a favourite.

Gordon Armstrong and Gary Owers were both massive parts of the team when I first started going and in more recent times you’ve had the likes of George Honeyman, Anthony Patterson, Dan Neil and Chris Rigg — all lads from various parts of Tyneside that were committed to Sunderland.

The definition of the word ‘Geordie’ is vague these days and different people have contrasting ideas about whether they wish to be considered as one or not, but if we look purely at figures born in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne, you realise that they’re represented at nearly every major success in Sunderland history.

Tom Porteous became the club’s first England international, for instance, and was part of Tom Watson’s glorious title-winning run in the 1890s, whereas David Young and Dennis Tueart both featured in our 1973 cup glory.

I think my personal standout is Len Duns. Born in Newcastle during World War I, he was a very pacy and very creative winger that went on to serve the club for many years and was a star of the team either side of World War II.

A league and FA Cup winner on Wearside in the 1930s, he was a one-club man in terms of senior football, staying at Roker Park until his retirement in the 1950s.

Although he guested for several clubs during the war, doing so alongside duties for the Royal Artillery, he was red and white through and through, and remained faithful to the town after hanging up his boots through his business interests.

John Wilson says…

For personal reasons as well as footballing ones, I’m choosing Michael Bridges.

Bridges was chosen by myself to play for North Tyneside U11 County when I ran the area team. He was selected for trials from his middle school — Marden Bridge — and was easily picked out as a fast, talented lad.

Like several North Tyneside players I had, it was a proud moment to see him develop and go on to represent Sunderland.

For the bulk of his time at Sunderland, he was behind Niall Quinn and Kevin Phillips, so perhaps he didn’t get as much game time as his talents warranted. We also had the option of Danny Dichio on the bench, so it was a competitive squad assembled by Peter Reid, and nobody could complain when he left for Leeds United for a £5 million fee.

I loved watching a galloping Bridges, with his deer-like sprinting style. I’m sure he’d say he had a successful career and is happy with his lot as he now presents TeamTalk on BBC Look North, but I often thought he was in the right place at the wrong time, and never quite got the springboard his talents deserved.

Jon Guy says…

I would say Barry Venison.

Great player for Lads; a really classy player and deserved to captain the team at such a young age.

I would say he came through the youth set up and highlighted what was possible from the academy. For me, it was also a real betrayal that he would move to the dark side, but we’ll never know what goes on behind the scenes.

Class player, without a doubt.

Phil West says…

At the risk of pouring a bucket full of gasoline on an already-simmering pre-derby fire, I’m opting for Lee Clark.

Why? Because despite his black and white roots, his prominent role in the Mags’ teams of the mid 1990s and the t-shirt he opted to wear when attending the 1999 FA Cup final, the former Kevin Keegan foot soldier was one of the shrewder and more impactful Sunderland signings as a new era dawned under Peter Reid.

However, on a brief side note, I’d like to back up John’s point about Michael Bridges, because he was blessed with sublime skill and the kind of finishing ability that stood out even at a time when prolific red and white forwards were plentiful.

Anyway, back to Clark — dynamic, good on the ball, intelligent, and a genuine grafter in the Sunderland engine room following his switch from Newcastle in the summer of 1997.

For evidence of this, seek out the 1997/1998 Sunderland season review on YouTube.

Through the grainy collection of pixels, you’ll often see Clark getting on the ball before either playing it into his teammates’ feet and embarking on driving runs into the box or running with the ball at pace himself — something that often ended in goals and was a skill that he boxed off to superb effect as we fell just short of promotion during our maiden campaign at the Stadium of Light.

1998/1999 saw the Lads go one better and despite an early-season ankle break, Clark returned with aplomb and played a huge role as we blasted our way to the Division One title. If Kevin Ball provided the thunder and Alex Rae the nous and class on the ball, Clark was somewhere in the middle; never shy of getting stuck in but a real thinking-man’s midfielder and a key provider of depth during a marathon campaign.

Sadly — and despite giving off the impression that he genuinely enjoyed playing for Sunderland — it all turned sour once the campaign was over and the planning for the Premier League began, but during two seasons in red and white, the recently-appointed Rotherham boss made a huge impression on me and I still remember his time here very fondly.

During the week leading up to a big Sunderland game, I seem to feel the same emotions every time.

On Monday and Tuesday, it’s more the excitement of how brilliant winning would be. By Wednesday and Thursday, the nerves start to kick in and by the time weekend comes, it settles into an overwhelming sense of readiness, as though I’m prepared for what’s to come.

This week, however, I seemed to skip over the ‘nervous’ stage and strange as that seems, I think I know why.

For me, there’s no need to be nervous and we have no reason to approach this game with fear or worry.

Throughout the whole course of the season — and in the reverse fixture — we’ve proven ourselves as a dangerous and unrelenting Premier League side — one which is fully capable of winning this game on Sunday.

Regardless of the ‘no panic’ facade that they hold unconvincingly in front of their faces, we all know that they’re terrified, and the last thing they want to see whilst nursing their Barcelona-shaped bruises are the red and white wizards.

Yes, we’ve been in better form at times this season and yes, we do have an injury list as long as my arm, but derbies are anything but predictable.

There’s no doubt in my mind that each and every member of our squad understands the importance of this game and that every player will give their all on Sunday. That’s what they did last time and that’s what I hope they’ll do again. Regardless of who’s in the starting eleven this weekend, we need to give them our full and best support — as I’m sure you would.

The Lads have provided us with some joyous and timeless memories this year, and Sunday provides an opportunity to create more.

They saw the reaction of the fans after our victory in the reverse fixture and I’m sure that the idea of seeing those celebrations again is a big motivator for them. We need to be confident and brave during this game, and that can only come with the support of us fans.

These games are the first thing you look for when the fixtures come out, and there’s a reason for it: it’s where Sunderland heroes are born, legends are created and players can weave their names into the club’s history.

So let’s get at them and give them hell…‘til the end.

The first round of the NCAA tournament is now behind us.

Another 16 teams punched their tickets into the next round on Friday, and both No. 1 teams who played didn’t have any issue whatsoever. Both Florida and Michigan cruised into the second round with blowout wins, unlike the scare that Duke had the day before.

There weren’t really any major upsets early on, either, other than No. 9 Utah State and No. 9 Iowa both advancing. In fact, betting favorites went a perfect 16-0 on Friday in something that the NCAA tournament hasn’t seen since 1992.

Darryn Peterson and No. 4 Kansas survived a late push to put Cal Baptist away late on Friday night and reach the second round. UConn finally pulled away from Furman in the last game of the day, too, thanks to a monster outing from Tarris Reed Jr. He had 31 points and 27 rebounds in the 11-point win.

We did get our first true buzzer-beater of the tournament early on, though, after Otega Oweh banked one in to force overtime and eventually lift Kentucky past Santa Clara.

Here’s everything you need to know to keep up with Sunday’s second-round action.

NCAA tournament Sunday second round schedule, how to watch

All times ET

No. 7 Miami vs. No. 2 Purdue
When: 12:10 p.m.
Where: St. Louis, MO
TV: CBS

No. 7 Kentucky vs. No. 2 Iowa State
When: 2:45 p.m.
Where: St. Louis, MO
TV: CBS

No. 5 St. John’s vs. No. 4 Kansas
When: 5:15 p.m.
Where: San Diego, CA
TV: CBS

No. 6 Tennessee vs. No. 3 Virginia
When: 6:10 p.m.
Where: Philadelphia, PA
TV: TNT

No. 9 Iowa vs. No. 1 Florida
When: 7:10 p.m.
Where: Tampa, FL
TV: TBS

No. 9 Utah State vs. No. 1 Arizona
When: 7:50 p.m.
Where: San Diego, CA
TV: TRUTV

No. 7 UCLA vs. No. 2 UConn
When: 8:45 p.m.
Where: Philadelphia, PA
TV: TNT

No. 5 Texas Tech vs. No. 4 Alabama
When: 9:45 p.m.
Where: Tampa, FL
TV: TBS

There aren’t many seasons in Sunderland AFC’s history that don’t involve some sort of drama towards the end of a campaign, whether that be at the top end of whatever league we happen to be competing in, or at the ‘wrong’ end of the table.

The 1980–81 season was no different, and it took a fantastic last-day win away to Liverpool with a Stan Cummins strike to give us last-day survival at Anfield. Before that nail-biting result, we had only won 3 of our last 10 games, with no draws, to put us in that precarious position. One of those 3 wins came on 21 March 1981 at home to our good friends Coventry City, all of 45 years ago.

As with this current season, it was our first one back in the top flight, and it had started in a positive fashion. We were 8th in mid-October, after being in the top 5 until the end of September, but the slide continued, and by the middle of November had slipped into the bottom half of the table.

When tension rears its ugly head, clashes ensue, and manager Ken Knighton was shown the door in the new year by the then chairman Tom Cowie. Mick Docherty was put in caretaker charge.

The Lads found some of their early season form at just the right time, with back-to-back wins. Firstly beating Crystal Palace away, then a welcome 3–0 win over Coventry.

Big defender Joe Hinnigan was certainly enjoying himself in this period; he scored 2 against the Sky Blues, making it 4 goals in 3 games, when he had previously not scored in more than a year since he’d signed for the club. It was a hard-fought first half, where the lads had to fight for every ball – but Hinnigan settled some nerves not long before half-time, with his first strike. But there were several tense moments to see out the half, with some brave stops by keeper Barry Siddall and the defence.

On 52 minutes, Palace’s Thomas obviously pulled down Buckley in the area, and referee Alan Banks awarded a spot kick. Stan Cummins stepped up to score his 9th goal of the season. This saw Coventry crumble, and Sunderland could have scored a hatful more, but for some poor finishing. In fact Coventry’s best chance in the second half came when their winger Blair put in a cross, and in endeavouring to clear it, that man Hinnigan again only succeeded in volleying it towards his own goal. A quick reflex save from Siddall spared his blushes.

On 85 minutes, their keeper Sealey was left stranded again, as Hinnigan blasted home from 12 yards after a partially cleared Kevin Arnott corner. Any threat Coventry carried was totally squashed after Little Stan’s penalty, and their goal was peppered for much of the second half. Coventry looked a desperate side, and would eventually only finish 1 point and one place ahead of us at the end of the season. Despite Big Joe’s goals, it was Mick Buckley who received a lot of plaudits, with his tireless running and energy. Siddall and Cummins were also praised for their input.

Sunderland 3–0 Coventry City | Hinnigan 2, Cummins (pen) | Att: 20,622

Sunderland: Barry Siddall; Joe Hinnigan, Joe Bolton, Sean Elliott; Rob Hindmarch, Mick Buckley, Kevin Arnott, Gordon Chisholm, Tom Ritchie, John Cooke, Stan Cummins. Sub: Gary Rowell.

That particular season as a whole wasn’t actually dire by any means. They scored more goals than 8th-placed Manchester United, whilst only two teams outside the top five conceded fewer goals at home. On the road, only one side outside the top nine had a better defence.

The 1980/81 season has one or two personal stand-out memories for me. Apart from the last-gasp win at Anfield, where I remember being glued to my radio listening for the latest updates, there was that absolutely wonder goal by John Hawley from 40 yards against Arsenal to win 2–0 just before Christmas. I was in the Fulwell End, and was right behind his never-to-be-forgotten strike – in my top 3 Sunderland goals of all time. The other memorable thing about that season was the signing of a certain Mr Sam Allardyce for £150,000 from Bolton. He doesn’t get many mentions for his Sunderland playing career, but as a young lad just starting his first proper job, I remember visiting my dad and telling him all about this barn door of a defender that wouldn’t let anything pass. Our paths would cross again with Mr Allardyce in a different guise.

45 years ago… we still have our heroes, we are still fighting to re-establish ourselves in the top division, and we still like to put one over Coventry!

Newcastle were knocked out of the Champions League, conceding seven to Barcelona in midweek. Do you think this has increased the pressure massively to win the derby?

I wouldn’t say it has increased the pressure as the pressure on Newcastle to win this game would have been huge regardless.

Eddie Howe admitted their performance let the fans down in the reverse fixture at the Stadium of Light and the importance of responding to that in the right way on Sunday has not been lost on him or the Newcastle players.

In the Premier League, Newcastle have beaten both Chelsea and Man United of late. Does it feel like you can now focus on finishing 7th and achieving European football again?

Newcastle are out of the FA Cup and the Champions League so after relentlessly having a game every three or four days for the past seven months, they can now purely focus on the Premier League.

Qualifying for Europe was the minimum aim this season and it is still firmly in Newcastle’s grasp. There are three weeks between the derby and Newcastle’s game against Crystal Palace and that will give Eddie Howe what he has craved all season.

Time on the training ground to work with and improve his players. That should see Newcastle end what has been a difficult season in a positive manner and reeling in Brentford for a place in next season’s Europa League will be their immediate aim.

Things have continued to be up and down surrounding Eddie Howe’s popularity amongst the fanbase this season. Although Newcastle are favourites to win, do you think another loss to Sunderland could be the final straw for many fans?

I always say the best gauge for a manager’s popularity is in a stadium rather than on social media and the fan on terraces continue to chant Eddie Howe’s name game after game. A second defeat to Sunderland in a season would be hard to swallow and maybe that is when that popularity starts to wane.

But the overriding feeling remains that while he is not beyond criticism this season, he remains the best manager for the job and the manager who finally delivered a trophy after 70 years of hurt. For that reason, regardless of how the season ends, he will almost certainly be given a summer to work with new CEO David Hopkinson and sporting director Ross Wilson to plot a route forward.

Against Barcelona, Newcastle opted against playing summer signings Nick Woltemade and Yoane Wissa. What is not working for the pair of them of late?

Wissa just hasn’t been fully fit and Newcastle haven’t seen the best of him yet. There’s a feeling we may have to wait until he has had a proper pre-season to see that but that is disappointing for a £55million signing who was expected to hit the ground running. He has been Newcastle’s most underwhelming signing of the summer by a distance.

Woltemade started well but the goals dried up at the turn of the year and he has been used in midfield in recent weeks – an experiment that just hasn’t worked. The feeling is he is a very good player who doesn’t fit Newcastle’s style. How he ends the season will be telling as to whether he must adapt to Newcastle’s way of playing or whether Newcastle try and adapt to him.

Now we’re well into the season, who would you say have been Newcastle’s most standout players this season?

Malick Thiaw has been outstanding at the back but he has played a lot of football and looks like he is running on empty a little bit. Anthony Gordon and Harvey Barnes’ goalscoring records across all competitions, not necessarily the Premier League, have been impressive, too, but there are two Newcastle players who stand out above the rest.

Bruno Guimaraes has put the club on his back at times this season and without his contribution in the first half of the campaign, I dread to think where they would be in the Premier League table.

Lewis Hall has been outstanding, too. He got huge plaudits for the way he dealt with Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal in the first leg at St James’ Park but that is something we have become accustomed to seeing week in, week out. His close control is phenomenal and his one-v-one defending has improved immeasurably.

I think he is one of the best left-backs in world football and could be England’s first choice there for the next decade. He is that good.

Last time against Sunderland, Newcastle sat deep and were very passive. Are you expecting Howe to set up with more intensity and pressing this time around?

100%. I don’t think Howe grasped the enormity of the defeat in the first game until his next pre-match press conference ahead of the Carabao Cup quarter-final against Fulham two days later turned into a bit of a post-mortem. In today’s press conference, he hit the right tone and you could tell the fallout from that defeat still weighs heavy on him and the players. 

I think you will see a much more aggressive approach and I think the home crowd will feed into that too. At the very least, there will be no accusations of Newcastle players not grasping the magnitude of the game this time around.

If you were Regis Le Bris, how would you set up to try and beat Newcastle?

I would set up with a low block to try and frustrate Newcastle and I suspect that is what he will do. Newcastle are at their best when the game is stretched and they can kill you in transition.

If Sunderland restrict the space to do that and make it ugly, Newcastle have historically struggled against that sort of style. Wolves and Manchester United did that very successfully against Newcastle away from home earlier this season. 

This will be the first derby at St. James’ Park since 2016 – what is your score prediction?

2-0 Newcastle. If Newcastle start well and get an early goal I think it will be a fairly comfortable afternoon given Sunderland’s lack of goal threat.

The longer the game stays 0-0 suits Sunderland as I expect them to set up in a low block and try and frustrate Newcastle. Newcastle have struggled to break down teams who set up that way and that is why the first goal, and the timing of it, feels key.

Only one person, Matt Wallace says, saw him accidentally move his golf ball. 

Or so he thought. 

The golf gods, remember, see all. 

The divine sequence played out Friday during the Valspar Championship’s second round, where Wallace shoved his tee ball right and into the pine straw on the Copperhead Course’s par-5 11th hole. Delicacy was needed. Wallace said his caddie, Jamie Lane, warned him, too. But a wayward twig forced Wallace to hover his club at address, he said, and as he waggled it, his ball relocated.  

Uh-oh. 

Wallace called for an official. He also said he’d never made his ball before in such a way. 

“Didn’t know whether it was in the action of my swing or anything,” he said afterward, “but I definitely touched it, and then the ball moved from that.”

Still, Wallace said no one else saw the violation. At the time, he was also two-over for the tournament and fighting to make the cut. You know the options in front of him. An ethical dilemma played out, at least in a golf sense. 

But so be it, Wallace said. And he took his one-stroke penalty. 

“You’d hope that everyone’s like that,” Wallace said. 

“Yeah. You kind of — you’re not just doing it for yourself though, even though it’s such an individual sport. You’re doing it to protect the rest of the field. You’re doing it for your caddie, your team, your family. I would rather miss the cut doing something like that by one shot, and then giving it my all for the rest, than making it and knowing something’s happened. So I called it on myself.

“And then I made a few birdies.”

Yeah, so about that golf gods thing.

After the penalty, Wallace hit his third shot to the left of the green, chipped on and made a par. “Obviously very much needed at the time,” Wallace said. Then he birdied 14, a par-4, on a 22-foot putt. Then he birdied 15, a par-3, after hitting his tee shot to 6 feet. Then he birdied 17, also a par-3, after rolling in a 27-footer. 

And a par on 18, a par-4, gave him a round of three-under 68 and a two-round total of one-under, which was good enough for the weekend. 

“Yeah,” Wallace said, “maybe a bit of good karma coming my way.”

You never know who’s watching, after all. 

The post Tour pro blows rules whistle on himself. Then ‘a bit of good karma' came appeared first on Golf.

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Game times and TV assignments for Sunday's second round were announced late Friday night. Here is the schedule for the second day of the second round, as well as what network it will air on.

March Madness bracket update: Second round game times, full schedule

Saturday, March 21

All times Eastern

• 12:10 p.m.: No. 1 Michigan vs. No. 9 Saint Louis, CBS
• 2:45 p.m.: No. 3 Michigan State vs. No. 6 Louisville, CBS (prediction)
• 5:15 p.m.: No. 1 Duke vs. No. 9 TCU, CBS (prediction)
• 6:10 p.m.: No. 2 Houston vs. No. 10 Texas A&M, TNT (prediction)
• 7:10 p.m.: No. 3 Gonzaga vs. No. 11 Texas, TBS/truTV (prediction)
• 7:50 p.m.: No. 3 Illinois vs. No. 11 VCU, CBS (prediction)
• 8:45 p.m.: No. 4 Nebraska vs. No. 5 Vanderbilt, TNT (prediction)
• 9:45 p.m.: No. 4 Arkansas vs. No. 12 High Point, TBS/truTV (prediction)

Sunday, March 22

All times Eastern

• 12:10 p.m.: No. 2 Purdue vs No. 7 Florida, CBS
• 2:45 p.m.: No. 2 Iowa State vs No. 7 Kentucky, CBS
• 5:15 p.m.: No. 4 Kansas vs No. 5 St. John's, CBS
• 6:10 p.m.: No. 3 Virginia vs No. 6 Tennessee, TNT
• 7:10 p.m.: No. 1 Florida vs No. 9 Iowa, TBS
• 8:45 p.m.: No. 2 UConn vs No. 7 UCLA, TNT
• 9:45 p.m.: No. 4 Alabama vs No. 5 Texas Tech, TBS

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: March Madness game times: Second round TV schedule update

Toyota has announced that Kalle Rovanpera's plans to compete in this year’s Super Formula Championship have been paused following advice and medical evaluations. 

Last year, Rovanpera announced bold plans to leave the World Rally Championship to pursue a career in single seaters, with the ultimate goal to compete at the highest level.

In a programme backed by Toyota, Rovanpera’s single seater journey was set to begin with a season in Japan’s Super Formula, driving for the KCMG team. After completing last month’s pre-season Super Formula test at Suzuka, and following advice and medical evaluations, a mutual decision between Toyota and Rovanpera has been made to halt the programme for now.  

Rovanpera endured a challenging start to his switch to single-seater racing having had to pull out of December’s post-season Super Formula test after suffering from Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo, which affects balance and vision through [the] inner ear.

However, in January, the 25-year-old stepped up his preparations for the new Super Formula season by competing in New Zealand’s Formula Regional Oceania Trophy with Hitech. The Finn scored five top 10 results, including an impressive first podium at Teretonga Park in race nine, on his way to 16th in the championship, before illness forced the two-time WRC champion to sit out the final meeting at Highlands Motorsport Park.

Kalle Rovanpera, Kids com Team KCMG

Rovanpera was back behind the wheel in Super Formula’s pre-season test at Suzuka last month, finishing 24th fastest. The Finn did improve his time by over a second through the test.   

Toyota has confirmed that Rovanpera maintains a desire to come back stronger and continue competing in circuit racing, challenging himself at the highest level, but only when he is ready to do so. Toyota will offer its full support in helping Rovanpera return to the track in the future. 

“I would like to share some difficult news: Kalle Rovanperä will be stepping back from the upcoming races,” read a statement from Toyota chairman Akio Toyoda (Morizo).

“He has poured his heart into challenging himself in formula cars, driven by a deep and unwavering desire to grow. Every time he got on track in private tests, his speed was clear to see. I watched him push harder, find something new within himself, and trim his lap times again and again.

“Yet despite that passion and progress, his body was struggling to keep up. After receiving a medical evaluation, we reached the painful conclusion that continuing to compete would not be the right choice for him.

“As Morizo, this decision weighed heavily on me. I asked myself what it truly means to let him chase speed, and what it means to protect someone you believe in. In the end, balancing those responsibilities led me to pause his participation in this year’s Super Formula season.

“To everyone involved, and to all the fans who have supported him with such warmth, I am truly sorry that we could not meet your hopes.

“But please believe this: his circuit racing challenge is far from over. His love for cars and his drive to become faster will not fade.

“As Morizo, I will continue to stay by his side — not only as a fellow driver, but as a team-mate who believes in him with all my heart. Thank you for your continued and heartfelt support."

KCMG’s reserve driver Seita Nonaka will take over the seat vacated by Rovanpera for the opening two races at Motegi from 4-5 April. 

To read more Motorsport.com articles visit our website.

NASCAR, like every organization in the world of sports, adapts to the changing environment around them and with the term “artificial intelligence” being of particular importance in this day and age, comes the need for teams in the sport to embrace it, or eventually die out. Tyler Reddick, who drives for 23XI Racing, a modern ambitious outfit, knows all about that.

The team may not be bonafide championship favorites, but is in the hunt with resources to match its ambition. Even so, when it comes to artificial intelligence, it is feeling its way.

In a time when AI has its fingerprints on almost every corner of the world, the question has been knocking on the garage door. Are teams using it to stay ahead of the curve? Reddick, who opened the season with three wins on the bounce, shut down the inquiries about the usage of AI from the driver’s seat, saying that the road has not been fully constructed yet.

He said in a CNBC interview, “For me, in the car, I don’t have access really to any of that. I think it is something that the teams are exploring, just trying to find ways that we can make use of the data that we have. I think right now, it’s not something we really rely on a lot…

“But I think we’re just trying to learn and find ways how can we utilize this is, can we, can we go down this path and find a use for it?”

Reddick added that the search is still on, with teams booting the tires and looking under the hood to see where it might fit. “I definitely think it’s something that they’re playing around with to see if we can find use. And I certainly think once we find what that thing is, it’ll be used on a more consistent basis.”

The modern Cup car produces a flood of data, enough to bury a team if left unchecked. Drivers can see more, engineers can measure more, and yet making sense of it all can feel like chasing shadows. The aim with AI is not to reinvent the wheel, but to cut through the noise, flag what matters, and leave the rest in the dust.

The #45 driver pointed to that overload, noting how the sheer volume can slow teams down rather than push them forward.

“But there’s a lot in the NASCAR world now that we race and live in with all the data that we’re able to see off of these race cars, the drivers are able to see of each other. There’s just so much data to go through that it is a bit overwhelming. So, trying to nail something down in that direction to make it just make it more efficient,” Reddick continued.

For now, AI remains a tool on the bench; more of a testing concept. Once teams find a clear lane, they can move from trial to track in short order.

Reddick, meanwhile, sees it in simple terms, likening it to everyday tech where answers appear with a tap, for example, using SIRI on his iPhone.

The post Tyler Reddick Confirms NASCAR Teams Are Playing Around With AI to Improve Overall Performance appeared first on The SportsRush.

Pietra Tordin and Reilyn Turner each had a goal and the Portland Thorns downed the Seattle Reign 2-0 on Friday night despite having two players sent off with red cards.

It was the 44th match between the two Pacific Northwest National Women's Soccer League rivals. It was played before a record crowd of 21,321 fans for a Portland home opener.

In other NWSL games, the Orlando Pride and the visiting Denver Summit played to a 1-1 draw; and the Washington Spirit tied 2-2 with Racing Louisville.

Portland midfielder Cassandra Bogere received consecutive yellow cards in the eighth and ninth minutes, and was sent off.

But it was Tordin’s header that gave the Thorns the 1-0 lead in the 28th minute. Turner's goal made it 2-0 in the 37th with Tordin providing the assist.

The home side lost another player in the 58th minute, when Reyna Reyes was given a straight red for violent conduct on Madison Curry.

Sophia Wilson and Marie Muller made their Providence Park season debuts in the ensuing minute.

The series between the teams is now tied at 17-17-10.

Banda scores a birthday goal in draw

Summit forward Melissa Kossler and Pride forward Barbra Banda each scored for their teams for the second consecutive game in the draw in Orlando.

In the 24th minute, Kossler scored on a perfectly slipped in ball from Natasha Flint.

Banda equalized on her birthday in the 61st minute on a cross into the box from Jacquie Ovalle.

It was the first point earned by the expansion Summit and head coach Nick Cushing after a season-opening loss at Bay FC.

Racing Louisville squanders two-goal lead and settle for home draw

Kayla Fischer opened the scoring for Racing Louisville in the 28th minute with an assist from Emma Sears.

Sears scored a goal of her own in the 42nd minute. Picking up a loose ball, she dribbled it end to end to finish past goalkeeper Sandy MacIver for the 2-0 lead.

Sofia Cantore closed the gap for the Spirit in the 50th minute with a blast from outside of the box. Leicy Santos completed the comeback for the visitors with a goal in the 74th.

Spirit midfielder Andi Sullivan returned from maternity leave to make her first appearance since Oct. 6, 2024.

___

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

The mantra in March is “survive and advance”, and Miami did just that with an 80-66 win over Mizzou in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

Moving forward, the Canes are headed to a matchup with the 2-seed Purdue Boilermakers, one of the favorites to get to the Final Four. And the opening line tells that story:

Miami will need to play one of their best games of the year to pull an upset over a Purdue team that just hung 100+ points on their opening round opponent. We’ve seen the Canes win some big games this year, but this one would take an effort and performance we’ve yet to see against a team of this caliber.

But hey, anything can happen, so let’s go win!

See you Sunday!

Go Canes

In a college sports landscape where resume is so important, loyalties don't just lie with teams anymore. They lie with conferences as well, even if it's to push an agenda.

With that in mind, every conference wants to believe it is the creme de la creme. The SEC showed its depth for the second year in a row by sending 10 teams to the Men's NCAA Tournament, the Big Ten fielded nine, and the Big 12 sent eight. The ACC also sent eight teams, whereas the Big East sent just three.

MARCH MADNESS SCORES: See the big shots, moments, highlights in today's first round

Other multi-bid conferences include the West Coast Conference, the MAC, and the Atlantic 10.

Of course, beyond them are the auto-bid conference tournament winners, the single-bid conferences who annually send one team. How did these teams fare, and who is moving on to the second round? Here's a breakdown of the records across the board for all 31 college basketball conferences.

Power 4 Men's NCAA Tournament records

The SEC is leading the way among the Power 4, with only Georgia and Missouri suffering losses in the opening round. First Four team Texas was able to defeat former Big 12 conference-mate BYU and AJ Dybantsa, while Tennessee unseated regular season undefeated darlings Miami (Ohio).

In the Big Ten, Wisconsin suffered an upset at the hands of High Point, whereas Ohio State lost to TCU to open the tournament. The rest of the conference was able to advance. The Big 12 lost BYU and UCF, while the rest of the conference advanced despite scares to Kansas and TCU. The ACC struggled, with Duke being forced to play all 40 against Siena and North Carolina suffering a devastating loss at the hands of VCU.

Other multi-bid conference records in March Madness

One and only one conference stands undefeated after two days of March Madness: The dreaded Atlantic 10.

Indeed, Josh Schertz's Saint Louis squad completely dismantled Georgia in the first round, while VCU pulled off the aforementioned comeback against North Carolina. The West Coast Conference lost Saint Mary's and Santa Clara in Round 1, while Gonzaga continues to dance, and the MAC dropped Miami and Akron.

While the Big East saw UConn and St. John's move on, Villanova lost to Utah State, capping off the Wildcats' season.

Other conferences March Madness records

Beyond the eight conferences to send multiple teams, there were 23 other conferences represented. Of those, the only single-bid conferences to advance to the second round were the Big South's High Point, which stunned No. 5 Wisconsin, and the Mountain West's Utah State, which took down Villanova as a No. 9 seed. That puts them at 2-21 as far as single-bids go.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: March Madness records by conference: How Big Ten, SEC, others fared

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Alex Killorn broke a tie off a scramble at 9:09 of the second period, Lukas Dostal stopped 29 shots and the Anaheim Ducks beat the Utah Mammoth 4-1 on Friday night to pad their Pacific Division lead.

After the puck was cleared off the goal line behind goalie Vitek Vanecek, the Ducks' Sennecke ended up with it on the left side and slipped a pass to Killorn for a shot before Vanecek was set. Killorn also had two assists.

Ryan Poehling, Cutter Gauthier and Mikael Granlund also scored to help the Ducks — playing without suspended defenseman Radko Gudas — rebound from a 3-2 overtime loss to Philadelphia on Wednesday night at home. They moved three points ahead of Edmonton in the division.

Gudas served the fourth game of a five-game suspension for kneeing Auston Matthews in a loss at Toronto on March 12. Matthews tore the medial collateral ligament in his left knee and will miss the rest of the season.

Poehling tied it with 6:23 left in the first, beating Vanecek with a nifty move on a short-handed break. Poehling took a pass from Killorn, sped down the left side, cut right and shot against the grain to the left.

The Ducks put it away with two empty-net goals, with Gauthier scoring his 36th goal on the first.

Dylan Guenther scored his 34th goal of the season for Utah — at 1:48 of the first of the Mammoth's second shot on goal.

Utah remained six points ahead of Los Angeles for the first wild-card spot in the Western Conference.

The Mammoth opened a four-game homestand. They had won two straight on the road, beating Dallas 6-3 on Monday night to snap a four-game losing streak and topping Vegas 4-0 Thursday night.

Up next

Ducks: Host Buffalo on Sunday.

Mammoth: Host Los Angeles on Sunday night.

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Jarrad Branthwaite and Jame Tarkowski have both returned to training this week after missing the trip to Arsenal last weekend, and the pair could feature for Everton as they host Chelsea.

“Both hopefully will be in and around the squad tomorrow.

“We did great without them, so, if we didn’t have them, I’d be fine – but we’ve got them back amongst it, I think.”

All the talk this week around the visitors has been around the measly fine the Stamford Bridge side have been served for the years of financial infractions they had committed under previous ownership, while ironically Everton were docked points by the Premier League for overspending on their new stadium and their reliance on sponsorships that later became outlawed after Russia invaded Ukraine.

For Chelsea, Liam Rosenior will be without Levi Colwill, Trevor Chalobah, Filip Jorgensen, Reece James and Mykhailo Mudryk. Malo Gusto and Benoit Badiashile could return following illnesses with Jamie Gittens set to have a late fitness test.

Who’s Out?

Jack Grealish (foot) is unavailable for the rest of the season and Tyrique George is ineligible to face his parent club. Carlos Alcaraz and Seamus Coleman are expected to be out for a couple more weeks at least.

Everton squad available vs Chelsea

Goalkeepers: Pickford, Travers, King

Defenders: Keane, Branthwaite, Tarkowski, O’Brien, Mykolenko, Coleman (INJURED), Patterson, Aznou

Midfielders: Gueye, Garner, Iroegbunam, Dewsbury-Hall, Röhl, Armstrong

Wingers: McNeil, Ndiaye, Grealish (INJURED), Dibling, Alcaraz (INJURED), George (INELIGIBLE)

Strikers: Beto, Barry

Tactics and Formation

Everton will likely stick to the 4-2-3-1 they’ve used so far.

Starters (likelihood of starting rated out of 10)

Jordan Pickford – 9/10

Vitaliy Mykolenko – 8/10

Jarrad Branthwaite – 6/10 Sounds like he might be fit again

James Tarkowski – 7/10 Everton’s ironman surprisingly missed a game last week

Jake O’Brien – 7/10

James Garner – 9/10 Will be celebrating a well-earned England call-up

Idrissa Gueye – 9/10

Dwight McNeil – 8/10

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall – 9/10 Unfortunate not to get a call-up as well

Iliman Ndiaye – 9/10

Beto – 7/10 Seems to be the flavour of the month now over Barry

Bench

Mark Travers

Nathan Patterson

Adam Aznou

Michael Keane

Tim Iroegbunam

Merlin Rohl

Harrison Armstrong

Tyler Dibling

Thierno Barry

—————————————-

Where to watch Big Ten men's hockey championship: Time, TV channel, live stream for Michigan vs. Ohio State originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

It may not be the rivalry matchup many expected, but the Big Ten men's hockey tournament final is a rivalry game nonetheless as Michigan hosts Ohio State on Saturday.

The Wolverines are a unanimous No. 1 in the national rankings this week, while the Buckeyes entered the poll at No. 19 despite a 14-20-2 record on the season thanks to their upset of No. 3 Michigan State in last weekend's semifinals. 

That overtime victory in East Lansing put the Buckeyes in the Big Ten tournament final for the fourth time. They're 0-3 in previous championship games with all of those defeats coming in overtime, including a double-OT heartbreaker at Michigan State last year. 

Michigan has three Big Ten titles to its credit, more than any other school. The Wolverines most recently took back-to-back trophies in 2022 and 2023 and will look to get back on top. 

They won all four regular-season meetings between the teams, but who will come through with the conference title on the line? Here's everything you need to know to watch. 

Where to watch Big Ten men's hockey championship

• TV channel: Big Ten Network
• Live stream: Fubo

The Big Ten hockey tournament semifinals will air on Big Ten Network and can be streamed live on Fubo, which offers a free trial to new subscribers. 

Stream ESPN, ABC, CBS, Fox and 100+ top channels of live TV and sports without cable. (Participating plans only. Taxes and fees may apply.)

Michigan vs. Ohio State hockey start time

• Date: Saturday, March 21
• Time: 8 p.m. ET

Puck drop for Michigan vs. Ohio State is set for 8 p.m. ET on Saturday. The game will be played at Yost Ice Arena in Ann Arbor, Michigan. 

Big Ten hockey tournament schedule, scores 2026

Big Ten hockey tournament champions history

Here are the results of previous Big Ten men's hockey tournament finals:

Related Links

• Latest NHL news and rumors
• Full NHL schedule, scores for 2025-26
• How to bet on the NHL

The Portland Thorns beat the Seattle Reign 2-0 in the 44th edition of the Cascadia Rivalry in Providence Park on Friday night despite going down to 10 players within the first 10 minutes, and to nine in the 57th due to red cards.

Thorns midfielder and Norwegian international Cassandra Bogere earned two quick-succession yellow cards in the eighth and ninth minutes and became the earliest red card send-off (due to two yellow cards as opposed to a straight red) in NWSL history.

The Thorns, who began their season with a 1-0 road win over the Washington Spirit last Friday night, were resolute and composed on the pitch after Bogere’s exit, the deficit hardly noticeable as they maintained possession in their attacking third for several minutes that followed. Seattle, who ended the match averaging 62% possession, struggled to exploit their advantages in either half.

In the 28th minute, Thorns striker Pietra Tordin capitalized on a corner taken by U.S. women’s national team midfielder Olivia Moultrie, which fell to her in the penalty box and required only a flick to the far post.

Portland doubled its lead nine minutes later on a counterattack; Moultrie received the ball near her team’s defensive third and found Tordin at the center half with a swift pass. Tordin then slotted a through ball to Thorns forward Reilyn Turner, who bounded down the left flank to receive it and found the far post side netting past Seattle Reign goalkeeper Claudia Dickey.

The second half of the game brought more drama for the Thorns, but not by way of goal concession. In the 57th minute, the home side went down another player when Thorns defender and Mexican international Reyna Reyes pulled the hair of Reign fullback Madison Curry as both players jumped up to contest a ball in the air. Reyes was not initially carded, but a video assistant referee review escalated the offense to a red card. Reyes was sent off, and the Thorns’ personnel was reduced to nine players.

Shortly after Reyes’ red, Thorns striker and USWNT star Sophia Wilson subbed on for Turner, marking her first return to Providence Park since Nov. 24, 2024. Wilson gave birth to her daughter in September and played her first regular-season minutes with the Thorns last week in their away meeting with the Spirit.

Neither team had ever received a red card in a Cascadia Rivalry before Friday night’s match, but Bogere and Reyes’ suspensions have already brought the total number of red cards in the NWSL to four in the second matchweek.

During the league’s opening weekend, Boston Legacy defender and Canadian international Bianca St-Georges was sent off after earning two yellow cards in the expansion team’s home opener against Gotham FC. A few hours later, another Canadian on another expansion team, Denver Summit fullback Janine Sonis was handed a straight red after a VAR review ruled her foul on Bay FC winger Alex Pfeiffer dangerous.

This article originally appeared in The Athletic.

Portland Thorns, OL Reign, NWSL

2026 The Athletic Media Company

Many people tune into March Madness for the chaos. It’s in the name. They were sorely disappointed on Friday.

All 16 NCAA tournament games of the Friday’s first-round slate saw the favorites emerge victorious, from No. 1 seeds Florida and Arizona to No. 9 seeds Utah State and Iowa. Before you note a No. 9 seed beating a No. 8 seed is definitionally an upset, be aware we are talking about the spreads on BetMGM.

Per ESPN’s David Payne Purdum, that’s the first time the first-round betting favorites have gone undefeated for a day since March 19, 1992.

Both Utah State and Iowa were favored in their games and prevailed, making them part of a four-game sweep for No. 9 seeds in the first round. It’s only the sixth time No. 9 seeds have gone 4-0 since the tournament expanded in 1985, along with 1989, 1994, 1999, 2001, and 2019.

Here’s every game and how it went down for the favorite:

• No. 7 Kentucky (-2.5) def. No. 10 Santa Clara, 89-84

• No. 5 Texas Tech (-7.5) def. No. 12 Akron, 91-71

• No. 1 Arizona (-30.5) def. No. 16 Long Island, 92-58

• No. 3 Virginia (-17.5) def. No. 14 Wright State, 82-73

• No. 2 Iowa State (-24.5) def. No. 15 Tennessee State, 108-74

• No. 4 Alabama (-11.5) def. No. 13 Hofstra, 90-70

• No. 9 Utah State (-1.5) def. No. 8 Villanova, 86-76

• No. 6 Tennessee (-11.5) def. Miami (OH), 78-56

• No. 9 Iowa (-1.5) def. No. 8 Clemson, 67-61

• No. 5 St. John’s (-9.5) def. No. 12 Northern Iowa, 79-53

• No. 7 UCLA (-5.5) def. No. 10 UCF, 75-71

• No. 2 Purdue (-25.5) def. No. 15 Queens (NC), 104-71

• No. 4 Kansas (-13.5) def. No. 14 Cal Baptist, 68-60

• No. 1 Florida (-35.5) def. No. 16 Prairie View A&M, 114-55

• No. 2 UConn (-20.5) def. No. 15 Furman, 82-71

• No. 7 Miami (FL) (-2.5) def. No. 10 Missouri, 80-66

Overall, the favorites went 12-4 against the spread, with Virginia, UCLA, Kansas and UConn failing to cover. Florida, meanwhile, posted the largest blowout the NCAA tournament has seen since 1963.

It’s not like there wasn’t drama, though. Just watch how Kentucky forced overtime.

Despite the chalkiest of Fridays, only six perfect brackets remain on Yahoo Sports’ bracket challenge.

It was a familiar story on the women’s side as well for the day, as the betting favorites went 15-1 in the first full day of action. The lone upset was No. 7 NC State over No. 10 Tennessee, which was favored by 1.5 points despite the seeding. The higher-seeded team won all 16 games.

Kaden Honeycutt’s Darlington outing began with huge promise, as he edged Carson Hocevar out by 0.02 seconds to bag his first pole in the Craftsman truck series. But in ended in bitter disappointment, leaving him wondering just what went wrong in the race, in which he finished fourth.

Honeycutt had set the pace at the drop of the green and backed it up by taking Stage 2 which his fourth stage win. But then the race slipped through his fingers. Corey Heim emerged as the ultimate winner of the outing.

The turning point came on a restart with 20 laps to go, as Hocevar drove low into Turn 1 to muscle past Honeycutt and take the lead. Then, with four laps left, Hocevar‘s run unraveled with a tire going down, throwing the order into chaos, something Ross Chastain took advantage of without a lot of thinking. It turned the race into a free for all and safe to say, Honeycutt was not happy.

The Tricon Garage driver pointed to moves from Hocevar and also Chastain, that, in his view, crossed the line as they fought for track position, knocking the wind out of his run when it mattered most.

“It was definitely the best truck long run for sure. The last restart, just the top lane wasn’t preferred. Everyone at Tricon, that was good. And just hate it wasn’t us, man. I mean, we definitely were the best. Just when you line up against Cup guys, they really don’t care about restarts or nothing. So they just plug you in the fence or do what they have to do to win it,” he said in an interview with Bob Pockrass.

Honeycutt said his truck had the pace on a long run and that the outside lane on the final restart left him boxed in. Racing against drivers who also log laps in the Cup garage, he added, came with its own set of rules, where elbows came out, and space was at a premium. He felt the contact in Turns 1 and 2, and again, off Turn 2 took him out of the hunt.

“And that’s what happened to me when Hocevar went to the bottom, and he shoved me in 1 and 2, and then Ross did it again off two and just flattened the right side out too good. So it’s what it is.”

“It’s, you know, what the hell do they care about, right? I mean, I understand racing for a win, but they knew I was the best truck, so they did what they had to do to take me out of it. It just sucks,” Honeycutt added.

Honeycutthas been knocking on the door of a win for a while, but the final step has stayed out of reach. He has shown he can run up front when the green flies, yet the closing laps have seldom been kind to him.

Across 63 starts in the series, Honeycutt has put together a stack of runs near the front, including a runner-up finish, four top-three results, and seven top-four finishes, with Darlington adding another to the list.

The post Kaden Honeycutt Tears Into Cup Drivers Carson Hocevar and Ross Chastain After Darlington Showing appeared first on The SportsRush.

Favorites dominate NCAA Tournament Day 2: Explaining how day without point-spread upset fits into history originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

It was a Friday of favorites on Day 2 of the 2026 NCAA Tournament. In 15 games on Friday, the team that was favored came out victorious, bringing a rare sense of chalk to a bracket that had been set on fire in years past. After a chaotic Thursday defined by High Point’s historic upset and multiple double-digit seeds advancing, the heavyweights reasserted their dominance to ensure the weekend wouldn't be entirely devoid of blue bloods.

Top seeds Arizona, Florida, Purdue, and Iowa State all handled their business with relative ease, avoiding the nightmare 16-over-1 scenarios that have haunted favorites in recent years. Arizona, in particular, looked the part of a national title contender, dismantling LIU behind a balanced attack that saw five players reach double figures. Even in the few games that flirted with drama, the higher-seeded teams found ways to survive and advance, preserving their place in the Round of 32.

The lack of upsets on Friday was a welcome sight for bracket purists and those chasing the "perfect bracket" dream, though the number of unblemished entries still plummeted below 1,500 by late evening. While the magic of March was largely absent from the scoreboard today, the stage is now set for a heavyweight-heavy second round. 

Here's more on the favorites' dominant day.

SN's MARCH MADNESS HQ:Live NCAA bracket | TV schedule | Printable PDF

Favorites record on Day 2 of NCAA Tournament 

The second day of the 2026 NCAA Tournament was a stark departure from the relative madness of Thursday, as higher-seeded teams collectively slammed the door on any potential Cinderella stories. In a rare display of dominance, favorites went a perfect 16-0 on Friday, restoring order to a bracket that had been rattled by High Point’s massive upset just 24 hours earlier.

While the betting favorites all advanced, the path was anything but easy for several Blue Bloods. Kentucky provided the game of the day in St. Louis, surviving a near-disaster against 10th-seeded Santa Clara. The Wildcats were saved by Otega Oweh’s miraculous, half-court buzzer-beating heave to force overtime, eventually pulling away for an 89-84 victory. Similarly, Virginia had to sweat out a final-second defensive stand to avoid a repeat of their infamous tournament history, narrowly edging out a gritty Wright State squad.

SN AWARDS: All-America team | Player of the Year | Coach of the Year

What was the last first-round day without an upset?

Per ESPN research, the last time favorites went undefeated on a single day in the Round of 64 was March 19, 1992 -- 34 years ago. 

The opening day of the 1992 tournament saw all 16 higher-seeded teams advance, including top-ranked Duke's blowout win over Campbell and Ohio State’s victory over Mississippi Valley State. While several games that day were closely contested, including a narrow escape by 4-seed North Carolina against Miami (OH), the favorites ultimately held firm across the board.

The feat remained unmatched for over three decades until this Friday, March 20, 2026, when the favorites again pulled off a perfect 16–0 sweep. While the 2019 tournament saw a similar run on its opening Thursday, that day is technically excluded from this specific historical record due to the "seeding upset" of No. 9 Washington over No. 8 Utah State; while the betting favorite won, the higher seed did not.

HISTORY OF UPSETS BY SEED:
16 vs. 1 | 15 vs. 2 | 14 vs. 3 | 13 vs. 4 | 12 vs. 5

How many upsets were in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Tournament?

In total, there were 5 upsets in the first round (Round of 64) of the 2026 NCAA Tournament.

The lopsided nature of the opening round was defined by a chaotic Thursday followed by a historically chalky Friday. While Thursday saw multiple double-digit seeds advance, Friday became the first day in more than 30 years where favorites went a perfect 16–0.

SN AWARDS: All-America team | Player of the Year | Coach of the Year

How many upsets were in the first round of last year’s NCAA Tournament?

The 2025 NCAA Tournament was also one of the most chalky in recent history, featuring only 7 first-round upsets.

While the tournament eventually provided plenty of drama — including Florida's run to its third national title — the opening round was historically stable for top seeds. For the first time since 2008, all four No. 1 seeds advanced to the Final Four, and not a single team seeded 1 through 4 lost their opening game.

SN EXPERT BRACKETS:DeCourcy (Arizona) | Bender (Michigan) | Iyer (Arizona) | Gay (UCLA women)

At the Minnesota Golden Gophers’ Williams Arena in Minneapolis, Minnesota (also known as ‘The Barn,’ established in 1928), the No. 12-seeded Gonzaga Bulldogs (24-10, 14-4 WCC) fell to the much tougher No. 5-seeded Ole Miss Rebels (24-11, 8-8 SEC) in the NCAA Tournament’s Round of 64.

Gonzaga may have outrebounded Ole Miss 45-39, but the Zags did allow 16 offensive rebounds and lost the battle in the paint 40-28. Coach Lisa Fortier stated postgame that the physicality of the Rebels was too much to handle in this matchup. The battle-tested group from Oxford, Mississippi, looked much more up for the challenge thanks to their experience in SEC play.

“There were a couple of plays where Lauren (Whittaker) was being bear-mauled… and that was different than what she’s used to.” Lisa Fortier on Ole Miss

Star redshirt freshman forward Lauren Whittaker struggled to find her footing offensively, only adding four points on 4-for-21 shooting. The New Zealand native did snag 13 rebounds, five of which were offensive.

The glaring issue with this Pacific Northwest team all season long has been the inability to take care of the ball, as was evident on Friday, March 20. Gonzaga’s 21 turnovers, leading to 23 Ole Miss points off turnovers, was the dagger to their 2025-26 campaign.

Whittaker and sophomore guard Allie Turner (game-high 27 points on a shooting clip of 7-for-12 field goals/5-for-9 three-pointers/8-for-8 free throws) combined for 13 of those turnovers. It’s hard to win any game when your star pieces can’t find a consistent offensive rhythm. Gonzaga did finish the game strong on a 29-13 fourth quarter performance, but it was too late at that point.

Off the bench for the Zags, freshman forward Jaiden Haile contributed 11 points on a perfect 4-for-4 from the field and eight rebounds in 23 minutes. Sophomore guard Teryn Gardner put in nine points on 3-for-4 makes from beyond the arc in 18 minutes for the second unit. Those two have proven themselves worthy of more responsibility and a larger role next season as the program transitions into the Pac-12 Conference.

Fortier’s 2026-27 group is going to be more dangerous with a hopeful return of Whittaker/Turner and only losing the great senior guard Ines Bettencourt, who has run out of college eligibility. It’s a young and hungry team that will only continue to get more compatible with each other over the offseason in Spokane, Washington.

All in all, it was a historic season for the West Coast Conference Tournament champions, the first time they have done so since 2022. Gonzaga returned to March Madness for the first time since 2024. Those are memorable accomplishments to be proud of and build off of.

Arden Cravalho is a Gonzaga University graduate from the Bay Area… Follow him on X @a_cravalho

AJ Dybantsa’s comments raises eyebrows about what’s next originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

It was a simple answer. But from AJ Dybantsa, it didn’t sound small. “I definitely made the right decision." he said. 

In the moment, it was reflection. After the moment, it felt like something more. Not because the BYU Cougars lost 79-71 to the Texas Longhorns in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, but because of what comes next.

Dybantsa is widely projected as a top-two or top-three pick in June’s NBA Draft. Whether he formally says it now or later, the path forward is already coming into focus.

“Just talk to my family,” he said when asked about his next step. “My mom ultimately. She kind of is the big boss.”

Even in defeat, Dybantsa showed flashes of why NBA teams are already circling. There were stretches where his shot-making and ability to create space stood out, moments where the game slowed and everything ran through him.

For BYU, that presence defined the season. “I just like how we persevered,” Dybantsa said. “We could have folded and lost by 20, but we tried to cut it down and make a push for the win.”

That push came after a difficult first half, one that head coach Kevin Young called “extremely disappointing,” particularly on the glass. BYU adjusted in the second half, but the early gap proved too much to overcome.

Still, the fight matched what Young has seen from this group all year, and what Dybantsa helped establish.

More: Why Bryce James has already done something LeBron and Bronny never did

“I’ll probably look back in 20 years and just have a lot of joy that I was able to be a part of his story,” Young said. “He’s going to be a Coug for life.”

That’s the part of AJ’s season that won’t show up in draft projections.

He arrived as a headline, a centerpiece talent capable of reshaping a program. BYU built around him, pairing him with veteran leadership and scoring options that, at one point, formed one of the most productive trios in college basketball.

More: March Madness: NCAA tournament should expand to 80 or 96 teams or revert to 64

Dybantsa remains what he’s been all season: a player comfortable taking over, capable of creating his own offense, and already looking like he belongs at the next level.

Now comes the decision everyone is waiting for, even if he isn’t rushing it.

And when he looks back on this moment, on this season, on everything that came with it, one part already feels settled. “I love this place,” he added. 

More college basketball news:

• Darryn Peterson situation not alarming to NBA teams, ESPN insider says
• Grant McCasland sees evolving Texas Tech team amid JT Toppin absence
• John Calipari on Nolan Richardson statue at Arkansas
• College Basketball Invitational cancels 2026 tournament
• Doug Gottlieb follows disastrous Green Bay debut with Coach of the Year level season
• Mike Krzyzewski fights against NCAA Tournament expansion

For the first time since 2018, the Gophers won an NCAA Tournament game Friday, rallying past Wisconsin-Green Bay in the final frame.

Now, Minnesota takes aim at its first Sweet 16 appearance since 2005.

That will require a win over fifth-seeded Ole Miss, a significantly stiffer test than the Phoenix.

Fourth-seeded Minnesota hosts the Rebels at 1 p.m. Sunday at Williams Arena. The game can be seen on ESPN.

The Gophers are 4.5 point favorites in the matchup. Ole Miss beat 12th seeded Gonzaga by 15 on Friday.

The winner of Sunday’s tilt is likely to face UCLA in the Sweet 16.

Related Articles

• NCAA Tournament: Gophers explode in final frame to escape major upset
• For Niamya Holloway and Gophers women’s basketball, road back to NCAA Tournament was a long one
• Gophers women’s basketball: How deep will Minnesota advance in NCAA Tournament? Here’s what odds say
• NCAA Tournament: Jenna Guyer found a home, and her versatile game, in Green Bay
• NCAA Tournament: Gophers start ‘Big Dance’ full of confidence

There is no rivalry like it in college sports. And in the Big Ten for hockey, it finds a way to elevate the competition even further, for a Big Ten title. Ohio State will make the three-hour trip up north to take on the Michigan Wolverines in the first-ever championship game affair between these two.

To start with Ohio State, this is more than a Big Ten title, as it can automatically qualify the Buckeyes for the NCAA tournament, a feat many did not see achievable just a few weeks ago for an anticlimactic Ohio State squadron. 

The Buckeyes find themselves 60 minutes away from the Big Ten Championship, although they hold an overall record of 14-20-2 on the season. Their strength of schedule and recent performance has earned them a national ranking, at #19. Considering that and the NPI, there is no possible chance they can sneak into the NCAA tournament unless they win here on the road.

Ohio State seeks its first Big Ten title, after making it last year but falling in a thrilling double overtime win for Michigan State at Munn Ice Arena. All three title game appearances up to this point for OSU have all ended negatively in overtime. 

Michigan has been nothing short of dominant, having swept all meetings against Ohio State and winning by a combined score of 13-3 in two games at Yost Ice Arena.

TJ Hughes was named Big Ten player of the year, and the offense doesn’t stop there. The nation’s best offense is well above the competition, averaging 4.5 goals per game. Quinnipiac holds the second-best at 4.13 goals per game, to put into reference how historic this Michigan offense is. 

It definitely helps when you have a top three consisting of Hughes, Michael Hage, and Will Horcoff. Hage leads this Michigan team in postseason points with five over two games. The three in total have combined for 136 points up to this frame.

Netminder Jack Ivankovic has been sharp, especially in the tournament, a 0.943 save percentage against Notre Dame and Penn State.

PREDICTION

Not a lot of things favor Ohio State, although it would be a perfect time to find that first win against Michigan here. I just don’t see it happening. This Michigan team is endlessly hungry, even if they have the top seed in the NCAA tournament on lock. It’ll be a fight, just not a Buckeye victory, as Michigan will win their fourth Big Ten tournament title, Michigan 5, Ohio State 3

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Malik Reneau scored 24 points, Tre Donaldson hit a couple of big baskets down the stretch, and seventh-seeded Miami pulled away late for a 80-66 victory over No. 10 seed Missouri on Friday night in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Donaldson finished with 17 points, and Shelton Henderson had 15 for the Hurricanes (26-8), who trailed midway through the second half before an 11-0 run that gave them control and pushed them into a matchup with Purdue for a spot in the Sweet 16.

The second-seeded Boilermakers routed No. 15 seed Queens earlier in the night.

Jayden Stone scored 21 points and Mark Mitchell had 19 for the Tigers (20-13), who have lost nine of their last 10 NCAA Tournament games. Anthony Robinson II also had 11 points and five assists before fouling out in the final minute.

The Tigers entered the tourney on a three-game skid, their last win coming way back on Feb. 28, and for most of the first half they looked like a team that had barely scraped off the bubble and into the 68-team field. Miami dominated them on the boards, and the Tigers resorted to launching contested 3-pointers as they struggled to find any offense.

The Hurricanes stretched their lead to 10 points in the first half.

Mitchell finally ended a five-minute scoring drought with a pair of free throws, and the rest of the Tigers heated up just before the break. Robinson hit a bucket in transition, Mitchell added two more free throws, and Robinson's 3-pointer capped nine straight points that closed Missouri within 27-26 as the teams headed to the locker rooms.

Miami held tight to its lead until midway through the second half, when the Tigers ran off eight straight points to pull ahead. But after Mitchell's 3-pointer gave Missouri a 54-52 advantage, the Hurricanes answered with their 11-0 burst to regain control.

Reneau and Henderson each had back-to-back baskets during the stretch, which pushed Miami ahead 63-54 with 4:23 to go.

Mitchell hit a couple of 3s down the stretch to keep Missouri alive, but Reneau answered the first by getting to the line for two free throws, and Donaldson answered the second with a 3-pointer of his own.

Up next

Purdue has won three of its four games against the Hurricanes, including a second-rounder in the 1999 NCAA Tournament, when Miami was the No. 10 seed. The Boilermakers lost to Temple as the No. 10 seed in the Sweet 16.

___

AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness

Wisconsin Lutheran High School boys basketball team is headed to the WIAA Division 1 state title game after defeating Appleton North on Friday night at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wisconsin.

The 68-61 outcome ended an impressive run for the Lighting, with the Appleton North team making its first-ever tournament appearance in 2026. The fourth seed gave the top-ranked team in the state all they could handle, highlighting the chemistry that led the storylines all season.

Now the focus shifts to the championship game, and a chance to cap off a dominant run for Wisconsin Lutheran, including sealing an undefeated season.

Here's what to know about the program.

Where is Wisconsin Lutheran High School located?

The school is located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, just a few miles from American Family Field, home of the Milwaukee Brewers.

What is Wisconsin Lutheran High School basketball team's record?

Entering the state final, the boys team is 29-0.

Is Wisconsin Lutheran High School basketball team ranked?

Wisconsin Lutheran is ranked No. 13 in the latest USA TODAY Sports Super 25.

Who is best player on Wisconsin Lutheran High School basketball roster?

The team has multiple players with next-level talent, but Zavier Zens would be at the top of the list. The 2026 WBCA Mr. Basketball Award winner and Northern Iowa has been a force all season.

Next in line would be Kager Knueppel, with the class of 2027 recruit already truing heads as a 6'10" junior.

Wisconsin Lutheran High School basketball talent in NBA

Kon Knueppel, the older brother of Kager and a cousin of Zens, went from the spotlight at Duke to the NBA. He's currently playing for the Charlotte Hornets.

Who is the Wisconsin Lutheran High School boys basketball coach?

Coach Ryan Walz has been part of the program since 2003, beginning with the junior varsity team before taking the reins at the varsity level (2008). A Coach of the Year recipient, Walz has amassed over 300 wins during his tenure.

How many state titles does Wisconsin Lutheran High School boys basketball have?

The Vikings have four state titles: 2009, 2014, 2024, and 2025, the latter marking the first in Division 1.

Who Wisconsin Lutheran High School playing in the WIAA Division 1 state championship?

Wisconsin Lutheran will play Madison Memorial in the final.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY High School Sports Wire: Wisconsin Lutheran High School basketball, what to know

Rangers urged not to panic over slugger’s rough spring originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Texas Rangers are getting a familiar version of Joc Pederson this spring—and if history is any guide, that may not be a bad thing.

Pederson has struggled to produce in the final week of spring training, with a .486 OPS in exhibition games. On the surface, it appears to be a continuation of his already disappointing 2025 season, which called his long-term role in Texas into question.

However, according to Evan Grant from the Dallas Morning News, this is where things usually go wrong for Pederson.

If you look at Pederson's career trends, his production has rarely matched his spring training numbers—and in many cases, it has been the opposite.

In 2024, he had a 1.018 OPS in spring training, but struggled out of the gate and didn't hit his first regular-season homer until May. What happened the year before? After a poor spring, he had one of his best seasons yet. The pattern extends back several seasons: strong springs, uneven years; weak springs, strong rebounds.

Pederson isn't buying into the panic.

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He's been working closely with Justin Viele, his hitting instructor, to improve his launch and power consistency by making his swing more vertical.

The underlying data suggests that there could be progress beneath the surface. Pederson's average exit velocity is 94.2 mph this spring, up from 2025, indicating he's still making quality contact, even if the results haven't yet arrived.

Despite a slow spring and a disappointing 2025 campaign, the Rangers remain confident in Pederson's ability to rebound.

Manager Skip Schumaker has made it clear that the veteran will stay in the lineup, citing his work ethic and experience as reasons for confidence. Chris Young, president of baseball operations, echoed that sentiment, citing Pederson's motivation and track record as key factors in predicting a turnaround.

Still, there's some pressure.

Pederson is entering the final year of his contract, and Texas has other options at designated hitter, including veterans such as Andrew McCutchen and Mark Canha, as well as younger, more versatile players.

For the time being, however, the Rangers are confident in the process.

If history is any indication, Pederson's quiet spring could be the precursor to a much-needed rebound season.

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — Raegan Beers had 18 points and 10 rebounds, and No. 4 seed Oklahoma overwhelmed No. 13 seed Idaho 89-59 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday night.

Beers, a senior center, also had four assists and four blocks. Sahara Williams had 17 points and 10 rebounds, Aaliyah Chavez scored 15 points and Payton Verhulst added 14 for the Sooners (25-7), who stopped Idaho's win streak at 18 games. The Vandals hadn’t lost since Jan. 10.

Oklahoma will play No. 5 seed Michigan State in the second round on Sunday. The Spartans outlasted No. 12 Colorado State 65-62 in the early game on Friday.

Kyra Gardner scored 19 points and Hope Hassmann added 12 for Idaho (29-6).

Oklahoma played one of its most efficient halves of the season to go up 57-35 at the break. The Sooners shot 59.5% from the field and committed just four turnovers. The Sooners held Idaho to 25.5% shooting. Williams had 13 points and Verhulst had 12 at the break.

The Sooners opened the second half on an 8-1 run, including six points from Beers, to go up 65-36.

Williams drained a shot from beyond halfcourt at the end of the third quarter, but she released it just a bit too late to count. The Sooners took a 76-38 lead into the fourth.

___

AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-womens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - Harrison Bader was the lone expected starter left out of the San Francisco Giants' lineup for Friday's game against the Kansas City Royals. 

He's dealing with left hamstring tightness, the team announced, and is day-to-day. Manager Tony Vitello doesn't like to make definitive statements, but he's confident the Giants' center fielder will be ready for Opening Day on Wednesday. 

"He's doing good. If you ask us, he's doing good and moving along and getting in a comfort zone," Vitello said. "I don't know for a fact, but if you ask him he's not doing good because he wants to do what he wants to do and that's being on the field all the time."

Bader, signed to a two-year contract this offseason, is batting .316 with a home run in nine Cactus League games. He played for Team Israel, eliminated in the pool round of the World Baseball Classic. 

The rest did just fine in the Cactus League's penultimate game. Matt Chapman hit his third home run of the spring, a game-tying two-run blast. Then Luis Arráez struck a single into shallow center field and scored on Willy Adames' double and Jung Hoo Lee poked an RBI single into right field. The Giants won 5-2. 

All is in motion. Friday, the roster narrowed and the Opening Day outlook grew a bit clearer.

The Giants made three more cuts, reassigning infielder Osleivis Basabe, right-handed pitcher Gregory Santos and outfielder Victor Bericoto.

The Giants have 39 players in big league camp. There's a good chance that players cut this deep in spring training will have their number called by San Francisco at some point in the season. It wouldn't be a surprise to see Santos and Bericoto, in particular, down the line. 

With Bericoto out, Jerar Encarnacion, Luis Matos, Will Brennan, Drew Gilbert and non-roster invitee Jared Oliva are the outfielders that remain in contention for a bench spot. Encarnacion and Matos are out of options, so not including them on the Opening Day roster would risk losing both. 

Including both on the roster, though, would tilt the bench very right-handed. Brennan and Gilbert are the left-handers that remain and Oliva is an intriguing option, getting on base and stealing 12 bags this spring. 

The Giants have three non-roster pitchers still vying for a bullpen job: Joey Lucchesi, Caleb Kilian and Michael Fulmer. Trevor McDonald and Carson Seymour are among the younger pitchers contending for the bullpen, and Seymour inched himself closer to a role on Friday. He recovered from a two-walk seventh inning with an easy 1-2-3 eighth with a strikeout.

Seymour has a powerful sinker/four-seam fastball and slider this bullpen needs. Folks in the front office are pushing for Seymour to start with Triple-A, while others see him as a potential late innings option or, at least, someone who can eat a few innings as he did on Friday, Vitello said.

"I see him as kind of a swing guy," Vitello said. "I think everybody's right, as long as he's the guy he was in the second inning. … For Seymour to be as big as he is and have the imposing stuff he does, it just makes complete sense for him to attack the plate the way he did in the second inning."

Santos consistently threw 100 mph and has the stuff to make an impact out of the bullpen. But a personal matter kept him out for a decent chunk of camp, and when he returned he didn't have his best command. 

"I really think utilizing his stuff," Vitello said, asked what Santos could work on. "It's an easy answer, but a true answer, but getting into rhythm. It's why we were in heavy pursuit in the offseason."

Barney Nugent:Bericoto is this year's Barney Nugent award winner, given to the player in his first big league camp "whose performance and dedication in Spring Training best exemplify the San Francisco Giants' spirit," the team said in its announcement. 

Vitello has described Bericoto as "hitterish" and he lived up to the name this spring, batting .441 with 12 RBIs, two home runs and two doubles in 17 games. The 24-year-old exemplified that name when he took his bat with him to give his speech to the team following his award win. 

Bericoto's standout spring at the plate and his positional versatility make him more viable for a big-league call up. In the minors, he played first base in addition to the outfield.

"It was awesome and in general because it's deserved," Vitello said. "He ran away with those votes even though guys like Parks Harber went about their business every day, which is the spirit of the award and showed some things on the field to get excited about. The thing about it is that if you're in there, he brought his bat up there with him. He'd been hitting in the cage so it shows he's a good worker."

This article originally published at Cuts bring Giants' Opening Day roster into view; Harrison Bader's status unclear.

Everyone has been singing the San Francisco 49ers' praises after the signing of veteran receiver Mike Evans this offseason, including some of the team's players.

49ers star fullback Kyle Juszczyk is especially excited about the acquisition. He told NBC Sports Bay Area's Jennifer Lee Chan that Evans is a true No. 1 receiver that the 49ers can look at first.

“With the offense, obviously, you got to look to Mike Evans first,” Juszczyk said. “A true 1-on-1 winner on the outside, that has produced in the NFL for how long? I think that’s going to be a seamless transition. Just the right addition that we need.”

Juszczyk also noted that pairing the additions of Evans and fellow veteran wideout Christian Kirk will elevate the rest of the younger receiver room of Ricky Pearsall and Jacob Cowing, as well as Demarcus Robinson.

“With the productivity that they’ve had and with the leadership those guys can bring, those additions aren’t just themselves, it’s about Ricky and Jay Cowing and Demarcus Robinson," Juszczyk said. "As a unit, I feel like those two can raise the whole group. Really excited about all that.”

The 49ers quietly have a solid group of pass catchers now after losing Kendrick Bourne, likely losing Jauan Jennings and probably being without Brandon Aiyuk. Evans, Pearsall, and Kirk all have quality NFL experience, with Cowing and Robinson serving as reserve players as well. With tight end George Kittle still recover from an Achilles injury, Jake Tonges should fill in nicely as well to round out the group, along with star running back Christian McCaffrey.

Adding Evans was a necessary move for the 49ers, and it's being lauded by the team's top stars.

More 49ers: Why 49ers insider doubts Brandon Aiyuk will be traded

This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: 49ers star calls Mike Evans 'the right addition that we need'

Big Ten gymnastics championships 2026 schedule, TV channel, live stream to watch UCLA, Michigan and more originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The college gymnastics season is almost over, but not without crowning a few champions. First up is the Big Ten.

The Big Ten gymnastics championships go down this weekend at the University of Illinois. Four teams will compete across three sessions, but it's Saturday's evening session that will be the biggest.

UCLA, Minnesota, Michigan and Michigan State will compete in Session III of the championships. While it comes down to the highest score, these programs account for the latest five Big Ten champions.

The Bruins won the regular season for the second-straight year. Can anyone top the No. 5 team in the nation? Plus, who will cement their place in the NCAA postseason?

It all starts now. Here's how to watch the Big Ten gymnastics championship with TV and schedule information.

Big Ten gymnastics championships 2026 schedule

• Date: Friday, March 20 | Saturday, March 21
• Time: 7 p.m. ET | 1 p.m. ET | 6 p.m. ET

The Big Ten gymnastics championship will take place over two days at State Farm Center in Champaign, Illinois.

Session I will compete on Friday, March 20 at 7 p.m. ET, featuring Washington, Rutgers, Nebraska and Illinois.

Sessions II and III will compete on Saturday, March 21. The afternoon session will see Penn State, Ohio State, Iowa and Maryland at 1 p.m. ET while UCLA, Minnesota, Michigan and Michigan State will compete at 6 p.m. ET in the evening session.

How to watch Big Ten gymnastics championships 2026: TV channel, live stream

• TV channel: Big Ten Network
• Live stream: Fubo

The Big Ten gymnastics championships will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network. Viewers can also stream each session on Fubo.

Fubo offers a free trial for new subscribers, so you can try the service before you buy. Stream ESPN, ABC, CBS, Fox and 100+ top channels of live TV and sports without cable. (Participating plans only. Taxes and fees may apply.)

Big Ten gymnastics championships 2026 teams, seeding

1. UCLA (Session III)
2. Minnesota (Session III)
3. Michigan (Session III)
4. Michigan State (Session III)
5. Iowa (Session II)
6. Penn State (Session II)
7. Ohio State (Session II)
8. Maryland (Session II)
9. Nebraska (Session I)
10. Rutgers (Session I)
11. Washington (Session I)
12. Illinois (Session I)

Big Ten gymnastics championships 2026 scores

Session I

Session II

Session III

List of Big Ten gymnastics champions by year

NCAA gymnastics rankings, Week 11

Team NQS

1. Oklahoma (197.963
2. LSU (197.917)
3. Florida (197.700)
4. Alabama (197.500)
5. UCLA (197.478)
6. Georgia (197.385)
7. Stanford (197.267)
8. Arkansas (197.192)
9. Missouri (197.191)
10. Michigan (197.150)
11. Michigan State (197.056)
12. Utah (197.008)
13. Minnesota (196.834)
14. California (196.834)
15. Clemson (196.644)
16. Auburn (196.547)
17. Penn State (196.522)
18. Ohio State (196.522)
19. Kentucky (196.503)
20. NC State (196.448)
21. Iowa (196.447)
22. North Carolina (196.433)
23. Denver (196.361)
24. BYU (196.233)
25. Oregon State (196.106)

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A new One UI 8.5 Beta update is in the making for the Galaxy S25 series, but a report signals a feature gap with Samsung’s Galaxy S26 series.

Samsung may release the 8th One UI 8.5 Beta for the Galaxy S25 series next week, but the ZZCB build doesn’t add new features from the Galaxy S26 series.

Tipster TarunVats, who may have already installed the ZZCB build on his Galaxy S25 Ultra, reports the feature gap with the Galaxy S26 lineup. If this build comes out, users might end up having an uninteresting experience.

It seems the source is talking about the best features of the Galaxy S26 series, such as Now Nudge, Photo Assist with text input, and enhanced Now Brief.

This move isn’t shocking either. Samsung usually keeps new features on hold for a certain time to prioritize the sales of new phones. Once they achieve their pre-determined milestone, feature expansion begins.

Meanwhile, it could stretch the ongoing delay of Stable rollout. It’s been around three months, and Galaxy S25 users are testing Beta firmware. One UI 8.5 has gone official with the S26 series, but S25’s Beta may not end early.

If Samsung goes ahead to test S26 features before public deployment, we may see the Beta Program extended. It doesn’t sound like good news for Samsung fans who are desperately waiting for their turn to install the major update.

Samsung knows Galaxy S25 users won’t upgrade to the S26 series on a scale. The upgrade rate from S23 and S24 users is higher than that of the latest models. The upgrade cycle has also been extended by a year to reach around three and a half years.

The post Galaxy S25 One UI 8.5 Beta report hints at feature gap with S26 appeared first on Sammy Fans.

The Samsung Galaxy S26 series launched globally on Wednesday last week, which means that this was its first full week of sales – and the prices are already dropping. The Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra 512GB is down to €1,230 – that’s 25% off! It’s the most popular of the S26 trio around the world and with good reason. It’s the most updated phone this generation with some tangible improvements. We’ll skip S26+ here – it’s €1,120 for a 512GB unit, which is the same price as last week. However, the €110 upcharge to the Ultra model is worth every euro. ...

6) Louisville Cardinals (24-10) vs. 3) Michigan State Spartans (26-7)

NCAA Tournament East Region Second Round

Game Time: 2:45 p.m.

Location: KeyBank Center: Buffalo, N.Y.

Television: CBS

Announcers: Brian Anderson (play-by-play), Jim Jackson (analysis), Allie LaForce (sideline)

Favorite: Michigan State by 4.5

Series: Tied, 6-6

Last Meeting: Michigan State won, 73-64, on Dec. 1, 2021 in East Lansing, Mich.

Series History:

Projected Starting Lineups:

Louisville

• G Adrian Wooley (6-4, 200, So.)
• G Isaac McKneely (6-4, 195, Sr.)
• G Ryan Conwell (6-4, 215, Sr.)
• F J’Vonne Hadley (6-7, 210, Sr.)
• C Vangelis Zougris (6-8, 240, Jr.)

Michigan State

• G Jeremy Fears Jr. (6-2, 190, So.)
• F Coen Carr (6-6, 225, Jr.)
• F Jordan Scott (6-7, 190, Fr.)
• F Jaxon Kohler (6-9, 245, Sr.)
• C Carson Cooper (6-11, 245, Sr.)

Statistics:

Michigan State’s Season to Date:

Relevant Videos:

About Michigan State:

There are some teams where you have to dig to figure out who they are. Michigan State isn’t one of them.

If you’ve watched a Tom Izzo team at any point over the last two decades, you already understand the foundation. They’re going to defend, they’re going to rebound like it matters more than anything else on the floor, and they’re going to make you earn every single possession. Nothing is accidental, and very little comes easy.

What’s interesting about this particular version of the Spartans is that it’s a little less star-driven and a little more about control.

The engine of everything is habitual crotch-kicker Jeremy Fears Jr., the nation’s leader in assists at 9.2 per game. Fears has improved dramatically as a scorer this season (15.2 ppg), but he still doesn’t dominate games as a scorer so much as he quietly dictates how they unfold. He plays with pace without rushing, gets Michigan State into the right actions, and consistently makes the simple, correct read. When he’s comfortable, the offense feels organized and patient. When he’s not, things can get a little more rigid and harder to generate.

That balance is important, because Michigan State isn’t built to overwhelm you with shot creation. They don’t have a roster full of guys who can go get a bucket whenever something breaks down. Instead, they rely on execution—screens set at the right angle, cuts made at the right time, and the ball moving until something opens up. It’s not flashy, but it’s effective when it’s working.

Where Sparty really shine is, per usual, on the glass. They lead the nation in defensive rebounding rate and are ninth in the same category on the offensive end. Louisville had the luxury of getting multiple cracks at scoring on many possessions against South Florida. That won’t be the case Saturday afternoon.

Tom Izzo’s vaunted frontcourt of Jaxon Kohler, Carson Cooper and human highlight reel Coen Carr leans into that identity. They are big, physical, active, and more concerned with positioning and effort than finesse. They’re not trying to out-skill you as much as outwork you, and if they succeed in doing that, the game starts to feel heavier with each possession.

The perimeter is where things can swing for Louisville. Michigan State will get decent looks because of how they run offense, but whether those shots fall tends to determine their ceiling. When they’re hitting from the outside, it forces defenses to stretch, which opens driving lanes and makes their halfcourt sets more dangerous. When they’re not, everything compresses. The paint gets crowded, post touches get tougher, and possessions can stall late in the clock.

There’s also a very real comfort level with playing in the mud. Michigan State doesn’t mind if a game turns into a grind. In fact, they’re usually better for it. Lower possession games, longer trips down the floor, more physical play—those are all conditions that play directly into their identity. They’re patient enough to live in that space without getting frustrated, which isn’t something every team can say.

The flip side is that they’re not at their best when the game speeds up. Teams that can push tempo, create early offense, and avoid getting stuck in halfcourt possessions can keep Sparty from fully settling in. The less time they have to set their defense and the fewer opportunities they get to crash the glass, the more you take away what they do best.

Some recent defensive issues were on full display in MSU’s last three games of the regular season, where they surrendered 90 points and 88 points in losses to Michigan and UCLA, and 87 points in a 4-point win over Rutgers.

Per usual, Michigan State is a team built around extremely solid college players, not future NBA stars. They are extremely solid, occasionally frustrating to watch, and consistently difficult to play against. They’re not built to blow you out with overwhelming talent, but they are very capable of wearing you down over 40 minutes.

And that’s really the defining trait. You don’t usually walk away from a Michigan State game feeling like they did anything spectacular. You just look up, realize you had to work for everything, and somehow they controlled more of the game than it felt like in the moment.

The good news in this one is that one of the things Michigan State isn’t is a team that likes to apply constant ball pressure and force tons of turnovers. The Spartans are forcing turnovers on 14.9 percent of their defensive possessions, just the 299th-best mark in the country. The ideal Izzo defensive possession is 28 seconds of effective guarding that ends with a difficult, contested shot from the outside and an easy defensive rebound.

Michigan State wants Louisville to take outside shots. Only 21 teams in Division-I are forcing their opponents to take a higher percentage of their field goal attempts from behind the three-point line. Obviously, this is something that could work in U of L’s favor if the Cards are creating at least halfway decent looks in halfcourt situations and … everyone say it with me … the shots are falling.

Against MSU, U of L’s best outside shooters have to be ready to pull when they have a sliver of space. You can’t afford to pass up a good shot in hopes of finding a great shot moments later, because more times than not against this team that great shot is never going to come.

Against a team that doesn’t really try to force turnovers and has some turnover issues of its own on offense, Louisville cannot afford to be as careless with the ball as they were on Thursday. In fact, winning the turnover battle should be an attainable goal and one Pat Kelsey’s team should aim to achieve.

Bring the same defensive effort you brought against USF, compete as much as you can on the glass, value the possession, win the battle for the free-throw supremacy, shoot the shit out of it from the outside, and let’s see what happens.

Notable:

—Louisville is making its 45th NCAA tournament appearance, and is making back-to-back appearances in the Big Dance for the first time since going to nine straight tournaments from 2007-2015.

—Louisville is 77-45 all-time in NCAA tournament games.

—Michigan State is making its 39th appearance in the NCAA Tournament and has an all-time record of 77-37 in the Big Dance.

—Michigan State is playing in its 28th consecutive NCAA Tournament. That streak is the longest active streak in the country and also tied for the longest in NCAA history (Kansas, 28, 1990-2017).

—Louisville is one win away from advancing to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2015.

—This is the 12th time in the last 14 tournaments that Michigan State has reached the second round, and the 16th in the last 19.

—Since 1998, the Spartans are 16-5 in their second NCAA Tournament game.

—Louisville and Michigan State have met in the NCAA Tournament four times before, with each team winning twice.

—In each of the last three tournament meetings between these two (2009, 2012 and 2015), the worse-seeded team has won the game.

—Louisville has not defeated a better-seeded team in the NCAA Tournament since the fourth-seeded Cardinals upset No. 1 seed Michigan State in the 2012 Sweet 16.

—Overall, the underdog has won four of the last six meetings between these two teams.

—Since the NCAA Tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985, Michigan State has advanced to the round of 32 on 27 occasions.

—MSU has an 18-8 record in round of 32 games since 1985, including 16-5 under current head coach Tom Izzo.

—Under Tom Izzo, Michigan State is 25-9 in the second game of an NCAA Tournament weekend. Seven of those nine losses have come to No. 1 seeds or eventual national champions.

—Louisville head coach Pat Kelsey is 1-5 in NCAA Tournament games, and 0-6 against the spread in the Big Dance.

—Louisville’s NCAA Tournament win over Michigan State in 1959 sent the Cardinals to the first Final Four in program history.

—Louisville is 10-17 all-time in NCAA Tournament games when playing as the worse seed.

—Michigan State and Louisville have four common opponents this season. Both MSU (83-66) and U of L (96-88) beat Kentucky. MSU and U of L both beat Indiana, with Michigan State winning, 81-60, while Louisville won by a palindromic, 87-78. Both MSU and U of L also played Arkansas, with the Spartans beating the Razorbacks, 69-66, while the Cardinals lost, 89-80. They both lost to Duke, with MSU falling, 66-60, and U of L losing, 84-73 and 83-52.

—Louisville is 3-2 all-time in neutral site games against Michigan State.

—Michigan State forward Kaleb Glenn is a Louisville native who began his college career with the Cardinals. He is sitting out this season with a torn patellar tendon.

—A second round meeting between MSU and Louisville will be the earliest meeting in the NCAA Tournament between the pair, with previous matchups coming in three Regional Finals in 1959, 2009 and 2015, and one Regional Semifinal, in 2012.

—Louisville is a No. 6 seed in the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in program history. The Cards are 7-3 all-time as a 6-seed. They advanced to the Sweet 16 in 1996, the Elite Eight in 1997 and the second round in 2007.

—Louisville is 4-1 all-time in NCAA Tournament games against 3-seeds.

—Louisville has won 28 of its last 39 games in the NCAA Tournament, advancing to the Elite Eight five times in its last 13 appearances.

—Louisville head coach Pat Kelsey has never faced Michigan State.

—Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo is 4-2 in games against Louisville.

—Louisville is 40-5 under head coach Pat Kelsey when leading at halftime.

—Louisville is 0-9 under head coach Pat Kelsey when trailing by 5 points or more at halftime.

—Michigan State is 19-1 when leading at the half this season, and just 7-5 when trailing at the half.

—Michigan State has been outrebounded just three times this season. The Spartans are 1-2 in those games.

—Michigan State is 3-4 in games this season where it allows 80 points or more.

—Louisville is 5-1 in neutral site games so far this season.

—Louisville is 12-1 in Saturday games so far this season, and just 12-9 in games played on any other day of the week.

—Michigan State is 6-1 playing on Saturday this season.

—Louisville is 11-6 all-time in East Region games.

—Louisville has hit the 100-point mark six times in a season for the first time ever.

—Louisville is 49-0 under head coach Pat Kelsey when leading with five minutes to play. The Cardinals are also 1-18 under Kelsey when trailing with five minutes to play.

—Louisville is 14-0 over the past 11 seasons when limiting opponents to no more than one three-point field goal.

—Louisville is 122-0 all-time when scoring 100 or more points in non-overtime games.

—Louisville has won 167 consecutive games when holding an opponent under 50 points.

Ken Pomeroy Prediction: Michigan State 77, Louisville 75

Box Score

The Milwaukee Brewers’ top prospects prevailed in their first Spring Breakout game on Friday evening, as they beat the Seattle Mariners’ prospects by a 7-3 final behind a big homer and a solid day from the bullpen.

With Bishop Letson on the mound, the Mariners got out to a quick lead in the first. Jonny Farmelo started the game with a single before a pair of groundouts — including an impressive play from Cooper Pratt at short — pushed him over to third. With two outs, Lazaro Montes hit a soft tapper in front of the plate, but Letson was unable to field it cleanly, and Montes reached with an RBI single, giving Seattle a 1-0 lead.

Against Ryan Sloan, the Brewers’ top prospects failed to get anything going in the first, as Jett Williams struck out, Jesús Made popped out, and Luis Peña grounded out.

Letson stayed in for the second, inducing a flyout before giving up a single and a walk. That marked the end of his day, as Brian Fitzpatrick took over. Fitzpatrick walked the next batter to load the bases with one out, but he got a 4-6-3 double play from Farmelo to escape the jam.

Milwaukee went down in order again in the second, and Bryce Meccage entered for Fitzpatrick in the third. After recording a lineout and a strikeout, Meccage gave up a single, a stolen base, and a walk to put runners at first and second. He wouldn’t allow any runs across, though, as Luke Stevenson flew out to end the threat.

The Brewers continued to struggle against Sloan in the third, going down in order for the third straight inning to begin the game.

In the fourth, the Mariners once again threatened on offense. Yorger Bautista hit a one-out triple, but he was cut down at the plate on a 4-2 fielder’s choice one batter later. After a wild pitch by Meccage, he once again got out of the inning unscathed with a strikeout.

After three perfect innings from Sloan, the Mariners replaced him with Kade Anderson. Anderson was much more to Milwaukee’s liking, as Williams doubled and Made brought him home with a single one batter later, tying it up at 1-1. Peña lined out, Made stole second, and Pratt reached on an infield single to put runners at the corners with one out. Unfortunately, Milwaukee was unable to take the lead, as Pratt was caught stealing and Jeferson Quero struck out to end the inning.

Seattle retook the lead in the fifth with some help from Milwaukee’s defense, as Michael Arroyo singled and advanced to second on a throwing error by Williams. He moved over to third on a groundout before coming around to score on a single from Montes, his second RBI of the afternoon. Meccage induced a double play one batter later, but the score was now 2-1 Seattle.

After a leadoff walk by Luis Lara in the fifth, Josh Adamczewski struck out. A passed ball moved Lara to second, and Brock Wilken followed with a walk of his own to put two runners on with one out. A bad-luck liner off the bat of Braylon Payne (it left the bat at 108.1 mph!) turned into an unassisted double play, though, as first baseman Luis Suisbel caught it and stepped on first to end the inning.

Will Childers took over for Meccage in the sixth inning with the deficit at 2-1, working a perfect 1-2-3 frame with a pair of flyouts and a groundout. In the bottom of the inning, the Mariners replaced their entire defense, and Anderson proceeded to allow each of the first four batters to reach, as Williams and Made both walked before Peña slugged a big three-run homer to right center, flipping the scoreboard to 4-2 Milwaukee. Pratt followed with a walk, and that marked the end of Anderson’s day.

Charlie Beilenson replaced Anderson and didn’t fare much better. He started with a strikeout of Quero, but he then allowed a pair of singles to Lara and Adamczewski to load the bases for Wilken. Wilken went down looking, but Payne followed with a walk to make it 5-2 before Williams popped out to end the inning.

Jaron DeBerry replaced Childers in the seventh for the Brewers, and Milwaukee also substituted a good chunk of the defense. After Aiden Taurek led off the inning with a single, DeBerry induced a double play and a strikeout to end the frame.

Mason Peters took the bump for Seattle in the seventh and, after recording a pair of outs to start the frame, he hit Brady Ebel with a pitch before walking a pair to load the bases. Unfortunately, Adamczewski struck out, and the bases were left loaded.

DeBerry worked around a single and a wild pitch in the eighth, and the Crew tacked on two more runs in the bottom of the inning with a trio of doubles by Eric Bitonti, Andrew Fischer, and Daniel Dickinson.

With a 7-2 lead, Ryan Birchard took the ninth inning, and he allowed a solo homer to Bautista but nothing else, as the game ultimately ended on a successful challenge by Brewer catcher Darrien Miller, who got an 0-2 pitch overturned from ball one to strike three.

It was a solid day all around for the prospects, as Milwaukee scored seven runs on nine hits while the pitching staff scattered three runs and 10 hits. No player finished with more than two hits for the Brewers, though five of the nine hits were of the extra-base variety, including four doubles and Peña’s homer.

On the mound, Meccage lasted the longest, spanning three frames with one unearned run allowed on four hits and a walk while striking out a pair. Childers got the win with his scoreless inning, while DeBerry went two scoreless with three strikeouts.

The Brewers’ prospects will take on the A’s prospects in their second and final Spring Breakout game on Sunday afternoon at Hohokam Stadium. First pitch in that one is slated for 3:05 p.m. CT.

Harvard-Westlake doesn't drop too many series in high school baseball these days, but if there's one coach who gives the Wolverines fits, it's Randy Thompson of Bishop Alemany. The reminder happened years ago when Harvard-Westlake had three future first-round draft picks on the same team in Max Fried, Lucas Giolito and Jack Flaherty, and Alemany defeated that powerful Wolverines team with Giolito on the mound.

On Friday, Alemany (8-3, 4-1) completed a week in which it took two of three games from the Wolverines with a 10-4 victory. Apparently success against Harvard-Westlake isn't just limited to the head coach. Thompson's son, Brody, hit two home runs and a double and finished with three RBIs. Also hitting two home runs was Chase Stevenson, who had three hits and two RBIs.

Great team win today and series win over Harvard Westlake. Went 3-4 with 2 homers, double, and a walk today. @latsondheimer@hardy03bsbl@LesLukachpic.twitter.com/AnuAcWFIy6

— Brody Thompson (@brodythompson25) March 21, 2026

Alemany had 16 hits on the day.

Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 5, Chaminade 4: The Knights (10-0) stayed unbeaten, with Dru Wilson's RBI single in the sixth breaking a 4-4 tie. Malakye Matsumoto had three hits and three RBIs, including a home run. Lachlan Clark threw four innings of scoreless relief with seven strikeouts and no walks. Andrew Chute had a home run and three RBIs for Chaminade.

Loyola 5, St. Francis 4: Freshman Anthony Adame closed out the win with two innings of stellar relief and three strikeouts in the eight-inning contest. Austin Junk drove in the winning run with a double.

Sierra Canyon 19, Crespi 2: Charlie Cummings had two doubles, a single and three RBIs for Sierra Canyon.

Royal 6, Simi Valley 2: Dustin Dunwoody struck out 16 in six innings for Royal.

Hart 15, Valencia 14: The Hawks survived a four-run rally by Valencia in the seventh to win a wild Foothill League game. Justin Gaisford had a home run and five RBIs for Valencia. Hart received four hits and three RBIs for Matix Frithsmith. Josh Whitson had three hits and four RBIs. The two teams combined for 49 runs and 11 errors in two games. Another game ended in a 10-10 tie.

El Camino Real 6, Chatsworth 3: RJ De La Rosa and Jackson Sellz each had two RBIs to help El Camino Real stay unbeaten in the West Valley League.

Birmingham 8, Granada Hills 2: Carlos Acuna struck out five in six innings, Aidan Martinez struck out three in one inning of relief and Julius Monroe-Truitt had three RBIs for Birmingham.

Cleveland 3, Taft 2: Ezra Preis had two hits and two RBIs for the Cavaliers.

Bell 17, Huntington Park 1: Daniel Garcia had two triples and three RBIs for 12-1 Bell.

Carson 6, Banning 4: The Colts took control of the Marine League race this week. Skylar Vinson had two hits.

St. John Bosco 13, JSerra 0: For the fifth time in seven games, St. John Bosco (7-0), ranked No. 1 by The Times, recorded a shutout. Jack Champlin started and gave up one hit in five innings. Jhett Ohira had three hits and three RBIs. Ohira was seven for 12 in the Braves' three-game sweep of JSerra.

Corona del Mar 8, Newport Harbor 1: Stevie Jones gave up one run in 6⅔ innings and Ryan Williams and Grant Horsley each had two hits.

El Dorado 4, Villa Park 2: Brady Abner had the game-tying triple and Xavi Cadena hit the winning home run.

Corona 19, King 7: Anthony Murphy had a home run, a double and two singles. He also struck out three batters in his one inning of relief. Trey Ebel added two hits and three RBIs.

Norco 7, Corona Centennial 4: Dylan Seward and Jordan Ayala hit home runs for Norco.

Corona Santiago 9, Eastvale Roosevelt 1: Striker Pence hit a two-run home run and Joshua Angulo had two hits and three RBIs for Santiago. Ayden White threw three innings of hitless relief.

Redondo Union 6, Mira Costa 2: Robby Zimmerman struck out eight in 5⅔ innings.

Cypress 7, Mater Dei 5: Austin Gerken hit a three-run home run for Mater Dei, but Drew Slevcove got the save for Cypress.

Los Alamitos 6, Edison 5: A two-run double by Willie Adams keyed the comeback win.

Bishop Amat 7, St. Paul 0: Ashton Chavez, Kevin Martin and Izaac Muniz combined on the shutout. Omar Arretche had three hits for Bishop Amat.

Royal 6, Simi Valley 2: Dustin Dunwoody struck out 16 in six innings for Royal.

Softball

Norco 14, Corona Centennial 0: Leighton Gray hit two home runs for Norco.

Sign up for the L.A. Times SoCal high school sports newsletter to get scores, stories and a behind-the-scenes look at what makes prep sports so popular.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

After picking up a technical foul for what he called “standing on business” following a dangerous play in the Knicks’ narrow victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Friday, backup center Mitchell Robinson challenged his teammates to play better in first quarters, a struggle the team has faced routinely in recent weeks,

“[The Nets] brought the fight to us. They came out. They wanted to prove a point obviously, so our approach has to be better,” a frustrated Robinson said in front of his locker following his 10-rebound performance against the Nets on Friday. “We can’t just look at their record and just say, ‘Alright, we’re gonna whip their ass.’ We’ve just gotta be better all together, and until we figure that part out, it’s gonna be a long road.

“Our approach in shoot around, the way we come to the game. We’ve gotta be ready to go.”

Robinson picked up a technical foul for taunting after Nets rookie guard Nolan Traore appeared to undercut the Knicks’ big man on an alley-oop with roughly three minutes left in the second quarter. Traore came crashing down to the ground, and Robinson stood over him before several Nets players approached the scene. Officials separated the two, Robinson was assessed a technical, and Traore was whistled for a common foul.

“Yall saw that s–t bro. It ain’t even a need to speak on it right now,” Robinson said after the game. “It is what it is. I don’t even wanna talk about that s–t.”

Starting Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns said Robinson has every right to defend himself how he sees fit. The Knicks’ defensive anchor has undergone two surgeries to repair stress fractures in his left ankle. Plays like Traore’s lend themselves to re-injury.

“I’ve seen Mitch have moments, but I think today was one of those days where you’ve gotta protect yourself,” Towns said. “Especially if something like that happens. We need him. We need him on this team. We need him available and healthy, and that’s a play that can lead to [injury].”

The Nets, who entered the night with a 17-52 record and lost 13 straight games to the Knicks before making in 14 on Friday, won the first quarter, 22-14, behind a level of physicality Robinson said his team wasn’t prepared for.

“We’ve played them how many times this year? Three or four? This is probably the most physical they’ve gotten with us,” he said. “So we can’t just take their record and say this is an easy one. They’re grown-ass men just like us and in the NBA too, just like us. So our approach has to be better and more respectful. That’s all.”

The Knicks proceeded to outscore the Nets, 61-43, in the second and third quarters.

“We had to get physical back. That’s how it’s gonna be,” Robinson said. “Gotta stand on business about that. So f–k it.”

Brown said the Knicks haven’t struggled with physicality from opposing defenses regularly this season. He considers Friday’s result an outlier — and a loss on his personal resume against Jordi Fernandez, his former assistant coach during his tenure with the Sacramento Kings.

“Give Brooklyn a lot of credit. I thought they came out and they were extremely physical throughout the whole game and it impacted us, starting with Jordi on down,” Brown said. “Jordi out-coached me. They out-played us in a lot of areas, and we were just able to find a way to get a win.

“We have shown we’ve been comfortable with [physicality] in the past. Tonight was just one of those nights we didn’t do a good job handling their pressure. You’ve just gotta go by someone if somebody’s pressuring you cause they’re probably not gonna call the foul. You’ve just gotta go by them. You’ve gotta make the right play and if you make the right play, after going by them a couple times, the pressure will loosen up. And then whether you’re blitzed or hit, you just have to make sure you get off the ball timely. And then we had more 24 second shot clock violations tonight than the entire season. There were a lot of things that were unlike our group.”

Robinson had a different message: The Knicks have been sleepwalking against teams with losing records like the Nets. They barely beat a Golden State Warriors team without a recognizable starter in its rotation, and the Knicks have been routinely punting on first quarters and playing catch-up later in games, a habit all-but certain to come back to bite them in the playoffs.

Towns said he didn’t think the Nets were going to be a walk in the park, even though the Knicks won their last meeting by 50 points.

“They’re an NBA team, a really great team. They’ve got young talent, a great coaching staff,” he said. “There’s no part of me that thought this was gonna be an easy game. We had to meet them and exceed the physicality. Obviously they brought it today. They wanted to win the game. Like I said it was a team effort to win tonight.”

Live from Tampa, the Register's Tyler Tachman joins Chad Leistikow to break down Iowa basketball's win over Clemson on Friday.

In Ben McCollum's first season, the Hawkeyes have their first NCAA Tournament win since 2021.

Bennett Stirtz did not have his best showing, scoring 16 points on 4-of-17 from the field. But his teammates delivered. Alvaro Folgueiras and Kael Combs were in double-figures scoring. Cooper Koch hit some important free throws. Tate Sage gave Iowa some offense.

The Hawkeyes held the Tigers to just 41% shooting from the field and 35% from deep. Clemson was 4-of-19 to start the game.

For a direct link to this podcast, click here.

To watch the YouTube livestream replay, click here.

Tyler Tachman contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Dissecting Iowa basketball's NCAA Tournament win vs. Clemson | PODCAST

Carson Hocevar has spent only four years in the NASCAR Cup Series, logging 82 starts and learning the ropes the hard way. But in that time, he’s seen enough limitations to urge the authorities to allow drivers to take part in as many different racing ventures as possible.

Hocevar has experienced the impact of trimmed practice windows, where track time has been cut back, and drivers are left to make do with less time to dial in a car, feel a new tire, or find a cadence with a new track package. NASCAR continues to hold off on these limits and Hocevaris pushing for a return to more seat time.

In his view, there is no substitute for the real thing. No simulator, no replay, no data set can match the effort of running laps, hitting pit road under pressure, and reacting on the fly as the field closes in. The Cup Series drivers are permitted to compete in a maximum of 10 races in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (formerly the Xfinity Series) and 8 races in the Craftsman Truck Series. The aim is to give others a shot, to spread the wealth and keep the ladder moving. Hocevar, however, is calling for a rethink.

“We say all the time how beneficial the sim is. Well, I much rather real life experience by all means,” he saidin an interview with Eric Estepp.

“Wanting them to reopen everything and let let us race all three series because I think we’d have a we would just race all three series,” he added, making the case for opening the gates and letting drivers run across all three tiers.

The idea harks back to a time when drivers did not pick and choose. Names like Kyle Busch would show up wherever there was a race, stacking laps across Cup, O’Reilly Auto Parts, and Trucks, keeping their edge sharp by staying in the thick of it week in and week out. It was a run-what-you-bring mindset, where more laps meant more lessons.

The Spire Motorsports driver wants that playbook back. In his eyes, the more a driver races, the more they learn, and the better they become. Sitting idle between race weekends does not move the needle. Behind the scenes, he has been beating that drum, pushing for a system that gives drivers more freedom to compete.

The post Carson Hocevar Wants NASCAR to Lift All Restrictions Over Drivers Running Different Series appeared first on The SportsRush.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Logan Thompson made 30 saves, losing his shutout bid with just 43 seconds remaining, and the Washington Capitals beat the New Jersey Devils 2-1 on Friday night.

Ryan Leonard scored midway through the first period, and Aliaksei Protas added an empty-netter with 1:43 remaining.

Jesper Bratt scored for the Devils, extending his point streak with three goals and four assists over his last seven games. Jake Allen stopped 26 shots.

It was the third meeting between the teams and the first that didn’t require extra time. The Devils beat the Capitals in a 3-2 shootout win on Nov. 15, but lost 4-3 in overtime on Dec. 27. Thompson and Allen covered the net in all three games. They will conclude their season series on April 2 in Newark.

HURRICANES 4, MAPLE LEAFS 3, OT

TORONTO (AP) — Alexander Nikishin scored 41 seconds into overtime to give the Eastern Conference-leading Carolina a victory over Toronto.

Nikishin fired a shot beyond goalie Joseph Woll’s blocker.

Eric Robinson scored on a penalty shot for Carolina, K’Andre Miller and Jordan Staal also had goals, and Brandon Bussi made 23 saves. Seth Jarvis and Sebastian Aho each had two assists.

John Tavares, William Nylander and Dakota Joshua scored for Toronto. Woll stopped 32 shots, and Matias Maccelli had two assists.

AVALANCHE 4, BLACKHAWKS 1

CHICAGO (AP) — Nathan MacKinnon had three assists in Colorado’s victory over Chicago, helping the Avalanche become the first NHL team to clinch a playoff spot this season.

Martin Necas had a goal and two assists for Colorado, which had lost four of five. Nazem Kadri, Brock Nelson and Valeri Nichushkin also scored.

The league-leading Avalanche (45-13-10) moved four points ahead of idle Dallas for the top spot in the Western Conference.

Wyatt Kaiser scored for Chicago (26-31-12), and Arvid Soderblom stopped 45 shots.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Skyy Clark flashed a gap-toothed smile and said there was only one place to put a chunk of the top front tooth that he lost during UCLA's NCAA Tournament win over UCF.

Under the pillow, of course.

There was no telling what Clark would find there in the morning — though if anyone in the Philadelphia area had the name of an oral surgeon, the Bruins guard would gladly take one.

In the locker room after UCLA beat UCF 75-71 — a win that Clark secured when he shook off throbbing pain to sink a free throw — Clark said he was at about a nine on a scale of 10.

“It definitely hurt,” he said. “I have a little lisp going on.”

Clark indeed spoke differently — teammate Eric Dailey Jr. compared him to boxer Mike Tyson — in the aftermath of the incident.

“He looked so good in the locker room,” coach Mick Cronin said. “Looks like a boxer. Keep trying to talk to these guys about my old days. He just looked tough. Looks tough. In the locker room, smiling. There’s blood.”

Clark lost the tooth late in the game when he dived for a loose ball and took an elbow to the face from a UCF defender. The tooth went flying and members of the UCLA staff scurried around to try and find it.

UCLA walk-on Jack Seidler found the tooth.

Seidler's role on the Bruins is simple: “Whatever they ask me to do, I’ll do it. Whatever helps the team.”

In this instance, Seidler — who didn't even play — had the assist of the night.

“Somebody’s got to get it, somebody’s got to get it,” Seidler said his teammates and other staff yelled as Clark got up off the court.

Seidler got it. He said his cellphone blew up with social media posts and direct messages about his 15 minutes of fame.

He gave all the credit to Clark for staying in the game and helping the Bruins hold off a late push by UCF.

“That’s toughness right there,” Seidler said. “Losing half a tooth and coming back into the game to help us get the win.”

As for that foul shot, Clark said it was all part of the game.

“I had my adrenaline going so I really didn't feel it,” he said.

Clark is part of a toothless trend of late. New Jersey Devils star Jack Hughes had some teeth knocked out before he won Olympic gold in hockey for the United States.

Cronin and the Bruins — they are no March Madness Cinderellas but could still use a tooth fairy — are on to the second round. He'd like everyone to have a full mouth of teeth when they play Sunday against either UConn or Furman.

“(We) need — what is it? The dental stuff. An oral surgeon,” Cronin said. “We need a late-night oral surgeon.”

___

AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness

Furman vs. UConn box score: Full stats from 2026 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament game originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The No. 2 seed UConn Huskies look to get off on the right foot in the NCAA Tournament. Dan Hurley's team faces the No. 15 seed Furman Paladins in the first round on Friday night. 

The back-to-back title years seems like an eternity ago in Storrs. The Huskies are trying to become the first school to win three national titles in four years since UCLA and John Wooden did it starting in 1972. Furman has played the role of being a giant killer in the past. They stunned No. 4 seed Virginia in the first round in 2023.

Here is a look at the box score from Friday's first round East Region in Philadelphia.

UConn vs. Furman March Madness box score

UConn stats

Furman stats 

More college basketball news:

• Darryn Peterson situation not alarming to NBA teams, ESPN insider says
• AJ Dybantsa makes college basketball history never done by NBA stars
• John Calipari says college athletics is broken — Here’s his plan to fix it
• March Madness upset predictions for 2026 NCAA men’s basketball bracket
• Where Arkansas Darius Acuff Jr. ranks among John Calipari's best NBA guards

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Tennessee barely extended its streak of March Madness appearance and the Lady Vols' trip to the NCAA Tournament didn't last very long.

No. 7 North Carolina State ended the 10th-seeded Lady Vols’ season with a 76-61 victory in the first round Friday night.

Tennessee which has played in every NCAA Tournament since its creation in 1982 had only been knocked out twice previously in the first game of the tourney – in 2009 by Ball State and in 2019 by UCLA.

“Really not the season we wanted, but it doesn't really help us to get into that right now," said second-year Tennessee coach Kim Caldwell when asked about what happened this season. “Trying to enjoy our seniors for the last little bit that we have them.”

It was an uncharacteristic season for the Lady Vols (16-14), who closed the year with the school’s first eight-game losing streak in the modern era and went winless in March. Their last victory was Feb. 12 against Missouri.

“It was the worst year of my professional career,” Caldwell said. “Our players deserve better than that from me, and you learn from that going forward.

“There was never clear leadership on my part of hey, this is exactly what we're going to do. This is why we're going to do it. We never got consistent rotations.”

Players, some with tears in their eyes, expressed their disappointment of how the year ended.

“Of course it sucks to lose any game, but this game our season is over and it sucks even more,” said Tennessee junior forward Alyssa Latham. “We tried our best today to extend our season but it didn’t go the way we wanted to.”

Pat Summitt, who won eight NCAA championships with the Lady Vols, had 23 seasons with six or less losses. This year’s team equaled the most defeats since the 2015-16 season and had the fewest wins for an at-large team since 2018, which led to Tennessee’s worst seeding since 2019.

The Lady Vols fell behind by 19-4 early in the game and clawed back to within 48-46 late in the third quarter but that was as close as they could get the rest of the way.

“We just had a rough patch,” said senior Zee Spearman. “We just couldn't get out of it. Honestly, we tried our best. But at the end of the day, this didn't work out the way we wanted it to.”

On the eve of their first-round game, Caldwell called out her players and staff.

“Our players are very spoiled,” Caldwell said. “Our coaching staff is very spoiled. The way we do things is first class, it’s high class. It’s really remarkable at how quickly anyone can get spoiled and used to it.”

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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-womens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Bailey Maupin scored seven of her 17 points in the final three minutes, and No. 7 seed Texas Tech held on to defeat 10th seed Villanova 57-52 on Friday night in the first round of March Madness.

Denae Fritz scored 13 points for Texas Tech (26-7), which went 7 of 15 from 3-point range, outshot Villanova, 44% (18 of 41) to 37% (20 of 54) and made 14 of 15 foul shots.

Fritz and Maupin both hit 3-pointers in the final 4:22 to help Tech carry a 53-47 lead into the final two minutes.

Villanova guard Jasmine Bascoe's jumper cut the Wildcats' deficit to four with 52 seconds left. But Bascoe, a slashing point guard who led all scorers with 21 points, turned the ball over when she lost her dribble off her leg with 21 seconds left.

After Maupin hit two free throws, Bascoe hit a 3 to make it a one possession game with 14 seconds left.

A Texas Tech turnover on an offensive foul by Maupin gave the Wildcats (25-8) a chance to tie it, but Denae Carter's 3-point attempt missed, Maupin rebounded and hit two more free throws to seal it.

Neither team led by more than seven points in what was a physical, defensive-oriented game.

Kelsey Joens scored 14 points and Brynn McCurry had 13 points and nine rebounds for Villanova.

The first half ended tied at 26, with both teams shooting below 42%

With Tech defenders swarming Bascoe early, Joens took shots decisively, hitting five of her first six shots, including her first four 3-point shots. But Joens attempted just two shots in the second half — both missed 3s.

Up next

Texas Tech moves into the second round on Sunday against LSU, the site host and No. 2 seed in the Sacramento 2 region, which routed Jacksonville 116-58 on Friday. The winner advances to the Sweet 16.

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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-womens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness

Cal Baptist vs. Kansas box score: Full stats from 2026 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament game originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The fourth-seeded Kansas Jayhawks face a March Madness newcomer in the No. 13 seeded California Baptist Lancers in an East Regional first-round game on Friday at Viejas Arena in San Diego. This is the first-ever meeting between the schools. 

Kansas' season has been rocky with great wins and terrible losses. Freshman Darryn Peterson averages 19.8 points and is projected by many as the top pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. On the other side, California Baptist clipped top-seeded Utah Valley 63-61 for the Western Athletic Conference title. Dominique Daniels Jr. leads the Lancers with an average of 23.2 points. 

Here is a look at the box score from Friday's first round East Region game in San Diego.

Cal Baptist vs. Kansas March Madness box score

Kansas stats 

Cal Baptist stats  

More college basketball news:

• Darryn Peterson situation not alarming to NBA teams, ESPN insider says
• AJ Dybantsa makes college basketball history never done by NBA stars
• John Calipari says college athletics is broken — Here’s his plan to fix it
• March Madness upset predictions for 2026 NCAA men’s basketball bracket
• Where Arkansas Darius Acuff Jr. ranks among John Calipari's best NBA guards

Hofstra’s meteoric season came to an end on Friday, as the Pride gave Alabama all they could handle for 30-plus minutes before running out of gas against the deeper, more athletic, hot-shooting Crimson Tide.

The Pride earned a 13-seed in the NCAA Tournament after a thrilling CAA Tournament where they blew the doors off William & Mary, outlasted Towson in a classic, and gutted out a hard-fought final over Monmouth. Their reward for their efforts was Alabama, one of the nation’s best offenses that features a potential NBA lottery pick in guard Lebaron Philon.

Hofstra, though, has a couple of solid guards in its own right in the CAA Player of the Year Cruz Davis and his backcourt mate Preston Edmead, whose heroics in the conference tournament lifted the Pride to their first March Madness berth in 25 years. And, with Alabama star Aden Holloway sidelined on Friday with ongoing criminal proceedings, Hofstra felt like a Cinderella waiting to happen.

Unfortunately, the clock struck midnight on the Pride before they even finished their first dance. After taking a 10-point lead in the first half, the Crimson Tide upped the ante, finishing the frame on a 19-7 extended run before pushing their newfound advantage as far as 13 in the early stages of the second.

Hofstra competed, though. Physically, big men Silas Sunday and Victory Onuetu were up to the challenge against Taylor Bol Bowen and Aiden Sherrell, and wings Joshua DeCady and German Plotnikov did their jobs. Alabama simply won a war of attrition, grinding the Pride down with their physicality, talent, and Philon, who looked every bit the part of a future NBA star.

It was Philon who hit the dagger, for all intents and purposes. With the score at 71-66 and 4:49 remaining, the Tide hit a layup, got a Sherrill free throw, made a few stops, and set up Philon, who drained a wing three to make it 77-66 with just over three minutes to go. It spiraled from there, with an Onuetu technical foul handing ‘Bama two points and the ball before Bol Bowen added a 7-point spurt of his own. All in all, it was a late-game flurry that put the game beyond doubt, but failed to tell the whole story. Hofstra — for all their disadvantages — had this one within two possessions with less than five minutes to play.

“In a tournament like this, you pretty much have to play perfect basketball,” Claxton said postgame. “We didn’t do that. We didn’t play well enough to win this game.”

Friday spelled the end of the season that was, by Claxton’s own proclamation, legendary. Hofstra won 24 games, defeated ACC foes Pitt and Syracuse, and romped through the CAA Tournament. Oh, and Davis and Edmead became the first pair of CAA teammates ever to win Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year honors, respectively.

“We know what we did was special,” Edmead said. “We can always look back on that. We made history. I’m proud of my teammates.”

For now, though, it’s back to the drawing board for Speedy Claxton and his beloved alma mater. His life will be made somewhat easier (maybe) by the fact that Davis and Edmead can both return. In Davis’ case, he’ll have a year of eligibility stemming from a redshirt he took years ago; for Edmead, he has a full three years remaining, and his father eased transfer rumors last week by appearing to insinuate that Edmead would return to Hofstra for his sophomore campaign. 

Of course, in this landscape, nothing is guaranteed. We don’t truly know what’ll happen until it actually does. Seasons, programs, and legacies can change in a blink.

But nothing can change what the Pride accomplished this year, even if it ended in defeat.

CHICAGO (AP) — Nathan MacKinnon had three assists in Colorado's 4-1 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday night, helping the Avalanche become the first NHL team to clinch a playoff spot this season.

Martin Necas had a goal and two assists for Colorado, which had lost four of five. Nazem Kadri, Brock Nelson and Valeri Nichushkin also scored.

The league-leading Avalanche (45-13-10) moved four points ahead of idle Dallas for the top spot in the Western Conference.

Wyatt Kaiser scored for Chicago (26-31-12), and Arvid Soderblom stopped 45 shots.

The last-place Blackhawks played without defenseman Louis Crevier and forward Andrew Mangiapane because of unspecified injuries. They were hurt Thursday night in a 2-1 victory at Minnesota.

Kadri made it 3-1 with a power-play goal 36 seconds into the third period. It was Kadri's second goal in seven games since he was reacquired by Colorado in a trade with Calgary.

Nichushkin helped close it out with his 15th goal at 8:34. MacKinnon picked up his team-high 69th assist on the play.

Colorado jumped in front with two goals during a dominant first period.

Slick passes by MacKinnon and Nichushkin set up Necas for his 32nd goal at 13:19, extending his career high. Necas has 10 goals and 12 assists in his last 13 games.

Nelson added a power-play goal at 15:22. It was Nelson's first goal since Feb. 25 and No. 31 on the year.

Chicago trimmed the deficit to 2-1 on Kaiser's sixth goal 6:48 into the second. Ryan Greene found a streaking Kaiser with a perfectly placed pass, and the defenseman beat Mackenzie Blackwood through the goaltender's legs.

Up next

The Avalanche are at the Washington Capitals on Sunday. The Blackhawks host the Nashville Predators on Sunday.

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

The women’s squad did not just show up, they took over the meet, with seven of their athletes in the top-10 during the first day of competition at the Yellow Jacket Invitational on Friday, March 20, in Atlanta, Ga.

Women’s Javelin Throw is Back! 

Skylar Ciccolini led the charge with a first place finish, launching a 57.45m throw. Right behind her, Valentina Barrios Bornacelli secured second place with her throw of 55.06m. 

Morgan Cannon, Marysa Flieg, Val Galligan and Lexi Graig all finished in fourth through seventh, flooding the leaderboard with Mizzou marks. Taylor Ciccolini added a 10th place finish, while Nora Hark took 13th. 

Men and Women’s Hammer Throw 

Garik Pozecki placed sixth overall in the men’s weight throw with his personal best of 61.72m. Following him in 10th, Clayton Kamp had a throw of 54.60m. 

Petra Gombas came out in third for the women, with a throw of 56.81m. Following her, Reagan Kimrey and Kaitlyn Morningstar with a personal best finished in third and fourth place with throws of 53.98m and 52.31m. 

Delilah Pippen came in seventh with her new personal best of 49.83m. Rounding it out for the Tigers in 10th, Tania Duncan had a personal best throw of 46.69m. 

Men’s Shot Put 

Chase Crawford opened his outdoor season with a second place throw of 17.26m. In third, Sam Albert finished with a personal best throw of 16.62m, and Clayton Kamp rounded it out for the Tigers in fifth, with a throw of 15.64m. 

Women’s Long Jump

Brianna Utecht entered her outdoor season placing third overall in the women’s long jump with a her mark of 5.57m. 

Women’s 100m Hurdles

Utecht placed sixth overall in the women’s 100m hurdles with a time of 14.06 seconds. Sofia Wydra followed her in 20th, with a time of 15.71 seconds. 

Men’s 110m Hurdles

Dillon Leacock set the stage for the Tigers by placing fourth overall in the 110m hurdles with a time of 14.54 seconds.

“Dylan is brand new to the 60 hurdles, he never ran it at Houston, coming in and kind of introducing that to him this year was really exciting to see,” assistant coach Jordon Andreassen said. “He’ll run the 110 which would be super exciting. He’s born a hurdler, making the first round last year, so just to see the versatility of him as a student athlete, I think is going to be super exciting.”

Women and Men’s 1500m Race

Brianna Lee placed 11th overall in the women’s race, finishing with her new personal best of 4:31.21. Natalie Barnard followed in 23rd with a time of 4:38.39, while Elissa Barnard rounded out the Tigers’ performances with a 34th-place finish and secured a new personal best.

On the men’s side, Andrew Hauser led the way with a seventh-place finish in 3:50.52. Close behind, Ethan Hogan secured a personal best in eighth and River Hardman took ninth, clocking times of 3:50.61 and 3:50.76.

Yordanos Zelinski finished 12th, Joseph Bariola placed 15th and Andrew Simard completed the Tigers’ lineup with a 19th-place finish.

Men’s 5000m to End the Day 

Zelinski placed eighth overall in the men’s 5000m with a time of 14:57.17. Alongside him, Bariola and Hogan placed 13th and 15th with times of 15:14.30 and 15:22.53. 

Meet Results: https://live.pttiming.com/?mid=8742 

Saturday’s Slate of Events

The Tigers will do it all again starting at 11 a.m., on Saturday, March 21. They will compete in the high jump, pole vault, discus, 800m and finish the day off with the 200m races.  

To read more about Missouri’s Track and Field team, follow @Rock MNation and @SophBleedsLA on twitter/X.

Patriots Reportedly Among Top-3 Teams Interested In Electrifying College QB originally appeared on NESN. Add NESN as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Of all 32 teams in the NFL, you could make an argument that the New England Patriots need a quarterback the least. However, Georgia Tech signal-caller Haynes King is far from just a quarterback.

The sixth-year quarterback threw for 2,951 yards in his third season starting for the Yellow Jackets. He added 953 yards on the ground, finishing the season with more than 4,000 total yards and 29 touchdowns in just 12 games played.

His efforts were good enough to earn him the ACC Player of the Year award, as well as a top-10 finish in the nation’s Heisman Trophy voting.

King is now out of eligibility and will be entering the NFL Draft in April. The Patriots are among the top-three teams showing the Georgia Tech quarterback the most interest, according to Atlanta-based reporter Miles Garrett.

“I’ve talked to a handful, especially at the Shrine Bowl and the Combine,” King told reporters at Georgia Tech’s pro day. “Recently, meetings and stuff like that, it was the Bills, the Cowboys and the Patriots. So far, we’ve had meetings. That’s going to grow here. Maybe soon. But each and every day, I’m getting new ones.”

King is currently projected as an undrafted free agent on many big boards. This would allow New England to bring in the exhilarating playmaker for next to nothing. Certainly worth keeping an eye on.

More NFL: Patriots Linked to Surprise Offensive Line Prospect After Recent Meeting

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — Tyler Fay pitched Alabama's first nine-inning, complete-game no-hitter in 84 years, striking out 13 in a 6-0 victory over Florida on Friday night.

Fay retired the last 10 batters, getting Brendan Lawson to fly out to left to end the game. Fay, who had never pitched more than seven innings in college, threw a career-high 132 pitches, 85 for strikes.

The redshirt junior from Doniphan, Nebraska, issued a walk in the second inning and another in the sixth against the Gators (19-4, 3-1 SEC), who are ranked as high as No. 17. Fay came into the season as Alabama's No. 1 starter and entered the game with a 3-2 record and 5.43 ERA.

The Crimson Tide (16-7, 1-3) hadn't had a pitcher throw a complete-game, nine-inning no-hitter since Eddie Wocar did it at Mississippi on April 24, 1942.

Florida was no-hit for the first time since Jacksonville’s Tom McMillan did it in a seven-inning game June 1, 1963.

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AP college sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports

Queen’s University made its first-ever NCAA basketball tournament appearance Friday night.

Even in a 104-71 loss to the #2 seed Purdue, the small school nestled in the Queen City made fans proud as they watched on from Angry Ale’s in south Charlotte as the school made history.

“It’s great... the fact that Charlotte is out here supporting us... we’re such a small school; it’s great to be out here,” Queens graduate Zack Brusso said. “You’re such a small school... trying to compete.”

Queens earned an automatic bid to the tournament after winning the ASUN Conference tournament.

(WATCH BELOW: Hornets to retire Dell Curry’s No. 30 jersey, joining Bobby Phills’ No. 13)

Prairie View A&M vs. Florida box score: Full stats from 2026 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament game originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The No. 16 Prairie View A&M Panthers will battle the top-seeded Florida Gators in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Tournament on Friday night. This will be the start of the defending national champions run to repeat. Prairie View A&M is coming off a 67-55 win over Lehigh in Wednesday's First Four matchup. 

On the other hand, Florida didn't make it to the SEC Championship game. The Panthers (19-17) have won eight in a row to walk away with a SWAC title. The Gators (26-7) won 12 of their last 13 in the regular season. 

Here is a look at the box score from Friday's first round South Region game in Tampa. 

Prairie View A&M vs. Florida March Madness box score

Florida stats

Prairie View A&M stats 

More college basketball news:

• Darryn Peterson situation not alarming to NBA teams, ESPN insider says
• AJ Dybantsa makes college basketball history never done by NBA stars
• John Calipari says college athletics is broken — Here’s his plan to fix it
• March Madness upset predictions for 2026 NCAA men’s basketball bracket
• Where Arkansas Darius Acuff Jr. ranks among John Calipari's best NBA guards

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Jerami Grant made a 3-pointer with 22.2 seconds left and the Portland Trail Blazers escaped with a 108-104 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday night.

After a timeout by the Trail Blazers, Grant took an inbound pass from Jrue Holiday and made his fourth 3 of the night from the right corner. Grant grabbed a defensive rebound at the other end and made two free throws to finish with 26 points in Portland’s third straight win.

Donovan Clingan scored 21 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for his sixth straight double-double. Deni Avdija added 25 points and eight rebounds for the Trail Blazers, who moved into eighth place in the Western Conference. Holiday had 12 points and 12 rebounds.

Rudy Gobert led short-handed Minnesota with 18 points and 15 rebounds. Ayo Dosunmu added 17 points and tied a career high with 10 rebounds.

Julius Randle added 19 points for the Timberwolves, but they lost for the first time in three games without All-Star guard Anthony Edwards, who remains out with right knee inflammation. Center Naz Reid, a top bench player, missed his second straight game with a right knee sprain.

Donte DiVincenzo missed a driving layup with 11.3 seconds to play that would have tied it. Gobert missed twice on tips before Grant grabbed his fifth rebound.

The Trail Blazers led by 18 with 2 minutes left in first half, but three 3-pointers by the Timberwolves, including two by Bones Hyland, were part of an 11-2 run before intermission to get within single digits.

A fast-break layup by DiVincenzo capped an 18-7 run by Minnesota to tie it at 79 midway through the third quarter.

Portland played its third straight game without forward Vit Krejci (left calf contusion).

Up next

Trail Blazers: Finish a five-game road trip Sunday at Denver.

Timberwolves: Play at Boston on Sunday.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

DETROIT (AP) — Jalen Duren scored 23 points as the Detroit Pistons beat the Golden State Warriors 115-101 on Friday night in a game missing two of the NBA’s biggest stars.

The Pistons beat the Warriors in the first matchup of the season between the teams on Jan. 30, but that was the last game Golden State’s Steph Curry (knee) has played this season. Now, Detroit’s Cade Cunningham (chest) has joined him for an extended absence.

Golden State’s injury situation got worse in the first half when Kristaps Porzingis left the game with lower back soreness.

Daniss Jenkins, starting for Cunningham, had 22 points, eight assists and seven rebounds for Detroit, which has won six of its last seven games. Paul Reed added 15 points for the Pistons, who won despite shooting 23.8% (5 for 21) on 3-pointers.

Golden State, which has lost seven of eight, turned the ball over 26 times, leading to 32 Pistons points. Brandin Podziemski had 15 points to lead Golden State.

KNICKS 93, NETS 92

NEW YORK (AP) — Karl-Anthony Towns had 26 points and 15 rebounds, and New York outlasted the Brooklyn for their fourth consecutive victory.

Jalen Brunson scored 17 points and OG Anunoby finished with 16 for the Knicks, who trailed by 13 points in the first half, then blew a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter.

Ben Saraf had a chance to win it for the Nets at the buzzer but missed a 45-footer.

The Knicks beat the Nets for the 14th straight time, the longest winning streak for either team in the local rivalry. The Nets’ last victory over the Knicks was on Jan. 28, 2023, shortly before trading Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.

Josh Minott scored 22 points and Ziaire Williams added 17 for the Nets, who have lost six straight games.

ROCKETS 117, HAWKS 95

HOUSTON (AP) — Kevin Durant scored 25 points, Jabari Smith Jr. added 23 and Houston snapped Atlanta’s 11-game winning streak.

Alperen Sengun had 15 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds for Houston, which was just 4-6 in its previous 10 games and was coming off back-to-back losses to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Nickeil Alexander-Walker led Atlanta with 21 points, but the Hawks shot just 42% from the field and 26% (9 for 35) from 3-point range. Houston shot 51% overall and 47% (14 of 30) from deep.

CJ McCollum had 17 points and Zaccharie Risacher had 16 for Atlanta, which was riding its longest winning streak in over a decade that had positioned the team for a play-in berth.

The Rockets outrebounded the Hawks 51-37.

CELTICS 117, GRIZZLIES 112

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Jaylen Brown scored 30 points, Luka Garza added a season-high 22 points and Boston used a fourth-quarter rally to defeat Memphis.

Payton Pritchard added 19 points for the Celtics, who have won four straight. The win kept Boston in second place in the East, 1 1/2 games ahead of the New York Knicks who held on for a 93-92 victory over Brooklyn earlier Friday night.

Tyler Burton, who signed a 10-day contract with Memphis on March 12, led the Grizzlies with 23 points, a career-high. Ty Jerome added 16 points and seven assists. Javon Small and DeJon Jarreau finished with 13 points each.

On April 1, New Mexico United will host El Paso Locomotive in the Round of 32 of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup at the UNM Soccer Complex. Kick off is at 7:25 p.m.

“We are excited for the opportunity to host our rival in this historic competition,” said United vice president Clint Gray in a news release. “We look forward to seeing the best fans in the league pack the stands at UNM once again for this match.”

The rivalry between New Mexico and El Paso has been a must see event since the two clubs met for the first time in 2019.

United currently leads the all-time series between these longtime rivals with a 7-8-5 record — across all competitions.

The last meetign between United and the Locomotive in the U.S. Open Cup was April 16th, 2025 in Albuquerque. El Paso advanced to the next round on penalties 4-1.

Both sides are coming off wins against lower division sides in the first round.

United played host to Cruizers FC of the NPSL and advanced to the Round of 32 with a 3-2 win thanks to a late goal by Cristian Nava.

El Paso traveled to Laredo, Texas where they beat USL2 side Laredo Heat 2-0.

Tickets for this match go on sale early next week.

After leading New Mexico to the program’s best (and most well-attended) season in years, head coach Jason Eck received a new five-year deal with a tidy $400,000 raise in December.

A few Lobo assistants got similar treatment — albeit at a smaller scale.

Three of UNM’s coaches received raises, per contracts available on the athletic department’s website, bringing the program’s on-field staff salary pool to $2,070,000.

UNM’s staff salary pool last season was $2,040,000. All of UNM’s assistants are on one-year deals with uniform incentives tied to team performance.

Defensive line coach Hebron Fangupo received the biggest raise, boosting his compensation from $150,000 to $165,000. The former Idaho assistant and Pittsburgh Steelers defensive lineman led a room that keyed UNM’s league-best run defense (112.8 yards per game) and sack total (36) in his first year with the program

Offensive coordinator Luke Schleusner and safeties coach Clay Bignell each received $10,000 raises, increasing their salaries to $385,000 and $130,000, respectively. Schleusner’s offense averaged 27.1 points per game (sixth in the Mountain West) while Bignell’s safeties consistently produced despite injuries.

Outside of Eck, Schleusner is now the highest-paid coach on UNM’s staff.

“We have a pretty high spread between our highest-paid guys on the staff and our lowest-paid guys on the staff,” Eck said in an interview with the Journal earlier this month. “And I want that systematically, because if you can keep your coordinators in place, you know, it keeps the overall system.”

Defensive coordinator Spence Nowinsky ($375,000), offensive line coach Cody Booth ($165,000), cornerbacks coach Stanley Franks Jr. ($150,000) and linebackers coach Nate Palmer ($85,000) did not receive raises on their new deals.

Two of UNM’s new hires — associate head coach and tight ends coach Zach Lujan ($160,000) and wide receivers coach Carson Walch ($160,000) — are set to make a combined $95,000 more than their predecessors. Former tight ends coach Jared Elliott and receivers coach Colin Lockett made $115,000 and $110,000, respectively.

New special teams coordinator Erik Link ($175,000) and running backs coach Darrius G. Smith ($120,000) will make less than their predecessors, Daniel Da Prato ($250,000) and John Johnson ($145,000), respectively.

Elliott (Illinois), Lockett (UCLA), Da Prato (Minnesota) and Johnson (Iowa State) all left for jobs at Power Four programs this offseason.

Pro day participants

UNM will host two Cowboys at its pro day Monday.

New Mexico Highlands safety Trevor Romaldo and offensive lineman Joe Taase will test alongside 17 Lobos as part of UNM’s annual pro day, a showcase for NFL scouts.

Romaldo made 45 total tackles and seven interceptions as a senior with Highlands last season while Ta’ase — a Melbourne, Australia native — appeared in all 11 games last year with the Cowboys.

The list of Lobos scheduled to participate in Monday’s testing:

*

RB Damon Bankston

*

OL Nevell Brown

*

WR Michael Buckley

*

S Caleb Coleman

*

K Luke Drzewiecki

*

DL Keyshawn James-Newby

*

CB Jon Johnson

*

WR Keagan Johnson

*

OL Mason Jones

*

DL Brett Karhu

*

QB James Laubstein

*

CB Azariah Levels

*

S Ky'Won McCray

*

OL Israel Mukwiza

*

S Albert Nunes

*

OL Isaiah Sillemon

*

S Aaron Smith

Sean Reider covers college football and other sports for the Journal. You can reach him at sreider@abqjournal.com or via X at @lenaweereider.

Cleveland and Rio Rancho, the top two seeds and who have lost only one game between them in 23 tries this season, will determine the winner of the Albuquerque Metro Baseball Championships.

Volcano Vista prevented a 1-2 metro softball final.

The Hawks upset No. 1 Cibola on Friday in the semifinals, setting up a Volcano visit to No. 2 La Cueva at 10 a.m. Saturday.

Rio Rancho will visit Cleveland, also at 10 a.m.

SOFTBALL: The fourth-seeded Hawks (9-3) and new coach Melody Smith gained one of the more surprising upsets of the young season, as they went to District 1-5A rival Cibola (5-5) and beat the Cougars 6-3.

Audrianna Jim pitched a complete-game five-hitter against one of the top offenses in 5A softball.

Only one of the three runs were earned. Jim struck out five and walked two in her complete game.

Eighth-grader Madison Mazuranich delivered three of Volcano Vista’s hits in the win, and drove in a run.

At La Cueva, the Bears (5-3) and No. 3 Rio Rancho (5-4) combined for 37 hits in a wild semifinal, eventually won 14-12 by La Cueva.

The Bears didn’t secure their berth in the final until their starting pitcher, freshman Alyssa Hunt, was called back into the game in the top of the seventh with nobody out and the Rams having the tying run at first base.

But Hunt got the three outs to save the game.

Sophomore Madisyn Likar came off the bench to hit a pinch-hit grand slam in a five-run sixth for La Cueva, a home run that proved important when Rio Rancho scored three in the top of the seventh.

Elizabeth Hoggan homered for the Bears during an eight-run third inning. It was 9-2 at that point. But Rio Rancho shoved home four runs in the fourth and three more in the fifth to tie the game at 9-all.

All of La Cueva’s starters hit safely in the victory.

BASEBALL: Cleveland starter Xavier “Jacob” Vasquez was magnificent for the top-seeded Storm (12-0) in their 8-0 victory over the fourth-seeded Matadors (6-6).

The senior left-hander went the distance, striking out 15 Sandia batters while walking no one.

Anthony Del Angel swatted a two-run home run in the bottom of the second inning for Cleveland. Francisco Hernandez and Caleb Budagher also added two hits apiece for the Storm.

At Rio Rancho, the Rams (11-1) downed No. 3 seed Eldorado (7-2) by a 9-2 count.

Matthew Cook pitched four innings, striking out six and yielding just one run to the Eagles.

Wyatt Tinker homered and doubled for the Rams. Cook and Anthony Knoll both had two hits and drove in a run.

James Yodice covers prep sports for the Journal. You can reach him at jyodice@abqjournal.com or via X at @JamesDYodice.

Otega Oweh etched his spot in Kentucky and March Madness lore forever on Friday afternoon as he drilled a 32-footer to send the game to overtime tied at 70.

The historic shot has come with a bit of controversy, as Santa Clara’s head coach was seen calling for a timeout before the ball was inbounded.

Allen Graves, the Broncos’ stretch-4, nailed a 3-pointer from the right wing to put his team up three, 73-70, and then Sendek was seen signaling for a timeout that was not granted by the officials, ultimately leading to Oweh’s legendary shot to tie the game.

Sendek was asked about the timeout postgame and was definitely upset that the refs didn’t see him on the sidelines.

“I unequivocally called a timeout. But they didn’t grant it,” he said.

However, it turns out that the referees’ decision not to grant Sendek a timeout was the correct call.

Former Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl commented on the situation postgame, saying that when the ball is still in the net, it’s no one’s possession. But once the Wildcats grabbed the ball and took it inbounds, it was then Kentucky’s possession.

So, because Denzel Aberdeen grabbed the ball to inbound it so quickly, that immediately meant it was Kentucky’s ball, and therefore, Sendek could no longer call a timeout. Had Sendek called the timeout before Aberdeen got the ball, then it should have been granted.

A controversial call that the Cats ended up on the right side of against Santa Clara and live to fight another day.

Be sure to add us to your “Preferred Sources” on Google to get the latest Kentucky Wildcats news and views! And as always, Go CATS!!

The Boston Celtics had a tougher matchup than expected, but they found a way to get the job done in the second half against the Memphis Grizzlies. It was one of the worst games for Jayson Tatum since he returned from his Achilles injury, going just 3-15 from the field as he finished with 13 points and 9 rebounds.

Friday's win was Boston's fourth-consecutive win as they continue to pick up momentum towards the playoffs. With the Detroit Pistons being without Cade Cunningham for at least two weeks due to a collapsed lung, Boston has a chance to make a run for the No. 1 seed, although they are still four games back.

Here's a quick recap of Boston's win on Friday night:

Final score: Boston Celtics 117, Memphis Grizzlies 112

Keys to the game:

Bench contributions: While Boston didn't outscore the Grizzlies in bench scoring, both teams had major contributions from their reserves, and for the Celtics, their bench kept their heads above water. Getting a season-high 22 points out of Luka Garza and 19 from Payton Pritchard, the Celtics were able to lean on two of their top reserves while Tatum, Derrick White and Sam Hauser struggled from the floor.

Paint dominance: Although known for their identity as a three-point shooting team, there's been plenty of games this season where Boston controlled the paint to lead them to victory. Getting 52 points in the paint, while outrebounding Memphis 57-35, the Celtics had 7 players with at least 5 rebounds in the game.

Highlight of the game: Neemias Queta with the flashy assist to Jaylen Brown

Queta play PG!? 👀 pic.twitter.com/SaKQiINa0x

— Boston Celtics (@celtics) March 21, 2026

What's next: vs. Minnesota Timberwolves, Sunday, March 22, 8:00PM ET on NBC/Peacock

Boston will look to continue their winning streak, taking on an undermanned Timberwolves team, who are likely to be without superstar Anthony Edwards. The Timberwolves won the first of the two season matchups back in November, when the Celtics were without Jayson Tatum, on a night where Jaylen Brown scored 41 points and 7 assists. Minnesota is fighting for seeding in the very competitive and tight Western Conference, so this game will have big meaning to them as the playoffs draw near.

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This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Celtics survive tough fight from Grizzlies for fourth straight win

Florida State softball continues to roll, as they open yet another ACC series with a win.

Lineup

• SS – Isa Torres (JR)
• 3B – Jaysoni Beachum (JR)
• RF – Bella Ruggiero (R FR)
• CF – Kennedy Harp (JR)
• LF – Ashtyn Danley (JR)
• C – Anna Hinde (FR)
• DP – Shelby McKenzie (SO)
• 2B – Marin Heller (FR)
• 1B – Hayley Griggs (FR)
• RHP – Jazzy Francik (SO)

Recap

1st Inning

Jazzy Francik got the ball in the opening game of the series against Cal. In her first inning, she only allowed a single for the Bears.

Kiki Mashhoud took the circle for Cal, facing one of the most feared lead off hitters in the country. A infield single had Isa Torres on base, followed by a walk for Jaysoni Beachum. Beside the two baserunners, FSU was not able to score in the inning.

2nd Inning

Mashhoud got the first two outs quickly in the 2nd, bringing up the last part of the lineup. A double from Marin Heller had a runner in scoring position for the second straight inning. In the 9 hole, Hayley Griggs tripled to open the scoring.

Back to the top of the lineup, a double from Torres easily scored Griggs, to make it 2-0. A wild pitch moved her to third base, but a fly out stranded her.

3rd Inning

Francik worked a 1-2-3 inning of the Bears, using her defense for two ground outs to match her strikeout. In the bottom of the inning, Kennedy Harp singled followed by Ashtyn Danley reaching on one out error. A fly out put a second out on the board, but moved both runners up sixty feet. Mashhoud faced Shelby McKenzie, who sent a 3 run shot to make it a five run lead.

4th Inning

Francik had a lead off walk in the 4th, and bounced back with a strikeout. However, with a runner on base, she gave up a 2 run homerun to cut into the FSU lead, 5-2.

In the home half of the inning, the Seminoles faced new Cal pitcher, Tamya Waiters. Waiters walked Griggs to start the inning before facing the top of the lineup. Torres made history this inning, as she became the NCAA leader with 14 consecutive hits, with her triple.

A ground out brought home Torres, cleared the bases, and made it 7-1 for FSU. Waiters put Bella Ruggiero and Harp on base before Cal went to the bullpen. Layna Gerhard took over, and gave up a 3 run homerun to Danley, increasing the lead for the ‘Noles.

The hits kept coming, when Anna Hinde singled. With Hinde on base, McKenzie had her second multi RBI homerun of the day.

5th Inning

Back out for the 5th, Francik looked for the complete game win. She made quick work of the Cal offense, only needing six pitches to retire the side, and claim the 12-2 win.

Up Next

FSU will continue their series with Cal on Saturday March 21st at 1 pm on ACCNX

NEW YORK -- The Brooklyn Nets (17-53) had one of their toughest challenges to end the season with the New York Knicks (46-25) and their fanbase visiting Barclays Center to continue the Crosstown rivalry. Brooklyn's last matchup against New York resulted in a 54-point loss, but this time around, the Nets made sure to put forth a better effort in front of their fans.

The Nets lost to the Knicks on Friday 93-92, but it wasn't for a lack of trying as Brooklyn had everything working for them, at least when it comes to pulling off an upset over one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference. Forward Josh Minott had 22 points and five rebounds off the bench while forward Ziaire Williams had 17 points and four rebounds.

"The fight was great, but it comes down to the free-throw line and some of those things we cannot control. 32 to 10, but if you do your math, is 22 free throws in difference," Nets head coach Jordi Fernandez said after Friday's loss to the Knicks. Brooklyn shot 40.0% from the field, but they also held New York to 41.0% shooting and that explains why the scoring was so low by the end.

Not only did Minott and Williams step up for an injury-riddled Nets team, but they also contributed to what was a complete team effort when it came to limiting Knicks guard Jalen Brunson's impact on the game. Brunson, who came into Friday's game averaging 26.3 points per game on 46.4% shooting the floor, finished the contest with just 17 points on 7-of-19 shooting (37.0%).

Brooklyn racked up as much as a 13-point lead in the first half as they did whatever they wanted to do before the Knicks came out of halftime to win the third quarter 31-15 to flip the game on its head. The Nets have been enduring some blowout losses as of late due to the amount of injuries and tough opponents, but Friday showed that Fernandez can get his players to give maximum effort on any given night.

This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: Nets' Josh Minott drops 22 points in narrow 93-92 loss to Knicks

Tennessee’s season came to an abrupt, but predictable, end on Friday night as the No. 10 seed Lady Vols lost 76-61 to No. 7 seed NC State.

The loss marked Tennessee’s 14th of the year, and it ended one of the worst end-of-season stretches in the storied history of the program. Led by second-year coach Kim Caldwell, the Lady Vols exited on an eight-game losing streak and lost 11 of their final 13 games. For the first time in program history, they were winless in March.

This was only the third time in 38 tournament appearances that Tennessee dropped a first-round game, and it was the first time since 2019 when it lost to UCLA. The loss is especially jarring to long-time basketball fans who were accustomed to Tennessee’s dominance. The Lady Vols own the second-most NCAA Tournament championships with eight under Pat Summitt from 1987 to 2008.

Friday’s game, which resulted in Tennessee’s fourth straight double-digit loss, was an opportunity for Caldwell to quiet any noise about her fitness for the job. She was an unorthodox choice as a hire out of Division II, but her unique system and early returns last season provided her with some credibility as she led the Lady Vols to the Sweet 16.

Tennessee, which was projected to finish fourth in the SEC this season, started 14-3, but couldn’t keep things together down the stretch. The Lady Vols lost in the SEC tournament to Alabama and then lost to the Wolfpack on Friday, giving up a career-high 30 points to NC State guard Zamareya Jones.

It didn’t help that when Tennessee took the floor, it was without second-leading scorer and leading rebounder Janiah Barker.

Without Barker, the Lady Vols still out-rebounded the Wolfpack 41-32, but couldn’t find any consistent scoring. Talaysia Cooper led them with 24 points, but nobody else scored more than 10 as they shot 32.9 percent from the field and made just 7 of 36 3-point attempts. Tennessee led 2-0 to begin the game, but never led again.

Though the Lady Vols cut the Wolfpack’s lead to three points in the third quarter, Tennessee never looked capable of taking control, even with NC State’s second-leading scorer Zoe Brooks leaving in the third quarter with a foot injury.

Caldwell had no answer for Jones and couldn’t find anybody, other than Cooper, to score. That will leave Caldwell with a lot of questions this offseason.

Though there are some unhappy fans in Knoxville, it seems unlikely that Tennessee will fire Caldwell after her second season, considering her $4 million buyout. But an ending like this will make for an uneasy feeling entering next season.

This article originally appeared in The Athletic.

North Carolina State Wolfpack, Tennessee Lady Volunteers, Women's College Basketball

2026 The Athletic Media Company

There’s something steady, something unshakable about this Alabama softball team right now, and it starts in the circle with Jocelyn Briski.

On a Friday night in Columbia, the Crimson Tide once again rode the arm of their junior ace, as Briski delivered yet another complete-game performance to lead No. 6 Alabama to a gritty 2-1 win over Missouri.

And if it feels like we’ve said that before, it’s because we have...this marked the fourth time in her last five outings that Briski has gone the distance.

That’s not just consistency.

That’s dominance.

Briski was in full command from the first pitch, working with confidence, control, and efficiency.

She needed just 80 pitches to navigate seven innings, allowing only one run while striking out five.

Even when Missouri threatened late with a solo home run in the seventh, Briski didn’t flinch. With the tying run already across and the pressure building, she locked back in and got the final out, because that’s what aces do.

Alabama didn’t need a big offensive explosion to back her up, just a couple of timely swings.

Brooke Wells wasted no time setting the tone, launching a solo home run in the first inning to give the Tide an early spark

. It was her 11th of the season, and at this point, it feels like every time she steps into the box, something big is about to happen.

Then came Marlie Giles in the fourth inning.

With two outs and momentum hanging in the balance, Giles delivered a solo shot of her own, her first home run since late February, and it proved to be the difference.

In a tight SEC road game, those moments matter.

And Alabama capitalized when it counted.

Still, there’s room to grow, and this team knows it.

The Tide had multiple opportunities to break things open, leaving runners stranded in scoring position in the second, third, and fifth innings. Against tougher competition, those missed chances can come back to bite you. It’s something head coach Patrick Murphy will no doubt emphasize heading into Game 2.

But here’s what stands out: Alabama played clean, disciplined softball.

No errors.

No self-inflicted mistakes.

On the road in SEC play, that’s how you win.

Now sitting at 28-1 overall and 6-1 in conference play, the Crimson Tide will look to keep things rolling Saturday afternoon.

With freshman Vic Moten expected to get the start, Alabama will need both timely hitting and continued defensive sharpness.

Because if this team keeps pairing elite pitching with clutch moments?

That’s a dangerous combination.

And right now, Alabama looks every bit like a team built for the long haul.

Roll Tide.

PORTLAND, Ore. — Of all the interesting stats that emerged out of BYU’s ultimately disappointing 2025-26 college basketball season, a season that ended Thursday night with a discouraging 79-71 upset loss to the Texas Longhorns in an NCAA Tournament first-round game, perhaps the most telling was the difference in halves.

BYU outscored its opponents by just 15 overall points in first halves and by 265 overall points in second halves.

“We faced a lot of challenges this year, just like we did in this game. We battled back. That’s the mantra of this group. They never quit.”

BYU coach Kevin Young

“We were a big second-half team, for whatever reason,” said senior center Keba Keita.

And they were a mediocre first-half team, at best.

The disturbing trend that haunted the Cougars (23-12) almost all season continued at Moda Center in front of a largely pro-BYU crowd, as sleep-deprived Texas took a 46-37 halftime lead and increased it to 68-51 before BYU woke up and made a game of it down the stretch.

The Cougars outscored the Longhorns 34-33 in the second half, but it clearly wasn’t enough.

“I thought our guys fought their tails off in the second half,” said second-year coach Kevin Young. “In a lot of ways it was a microcosm of our season. We faced a lot of challenges this year, just like we did in this game. We battled back. That’s the mantra of this group. They never quit.”

Unfortunately, they rarely got off to great starts, either.

From the opening tip, Texas seemed to have more energy, at both ends of the floor. Oregon State transfer Jordan Pope got wide open and drained a 3-pointer on UT’s first possession. Then AJ Dybantsa, who finished with a game-high 35 points, committed the first of five turnovers. Texas took a 5-0 lead on a rebound dunk by Camden Heide and then an 8-2 lead on a triple by Tramon Mark, and the tone had been set for the rest of the half.