MADRID (AP) — Elche left the relegation zone in La Liga by defeating Mallorca 2-1 for its first victory of the year on Saturday.

The host scored twice in less than 10 minutes in the second half to earn the come-from-behind victory.

Mallorca went ahead with a goal by Pablo Torre in the 58th minute but Elche rallied with scores by Rafa Mir in the 62nd and Tete Morente in the 71st.

The result moved Elche to 16th place, one point above the drop zone. It hadn’t won a match across all competitions since Dec. 21. It had lost eight of its last 12 games with four draws.

Mallorca dropped to 18th place and entered the relegation zone.

Also on Saturday, Espanyol extended its winless streak in 2026 to 12 games after a 2-1 home loss to Getafe. Getafe moved to eighth place, two spots ahead of Espanyol.

Osasuna defeated Girona 1-0 with an 80th-minute goal by Ante Budimir, halting a three-game winless run.

In a match between bottom-table teams, 19th-placed Levante beat 20th-placed Oviedo 4-2 at home.

___

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

We had a great matchup of two dominant lefties in Spring Training on Saturday, with Chris Sale facing Garrett Crochet and Sale’s former team, the Red Sox.

Sale gave up two very hard-hit balls in the first at over 104 MPH each, but only allowed a walk for a single baserunner. Sale was able to reign in the hard contact after the first and generally looked like himself, touching 97 on the radar gun and generating plenty of whiffs, despite relatively low strikeout totals. Michael Harris gave Chris an assist with a great jumping catch in the third. Sale continued to cruise his way through the game efficiently, completing 6.0 innings on 86 pitches wit 4 strikeouts, 1 walk, and 1 run allowed. That’s a solid outing for Sale, even with the relatively tame strikeout total by his standards in his final spring tune-up. Tyler Kinley took over in the seventh and allowed a single in a scoreless frame with one strikeout. Dylan Lee was the last major league pitcher to get some work on Saturday, as he worked a clean 8th inning with one strikeout.

Michael Harris II leaps into the wall on a spectacular catch 👏 pic.twitter.com/B9wH8skmVj

— MLB (@MLB) March 21, 2026

On offense, Austin Riley continued his strong spring, blasting a 110 MPH home run off of Crochet in the second and a hard-hit double in the third.

Austin Riley crushes one out of the ballpark 😳 pic.twitter.com/yVVTHByjP6

— MLB (@MLB) March 21, 2026

Elsewhere on offense, Ozzie also hit a double, Olson hit a 101 MPH single in the third and a 107 MPH single in the seventh, and Eli White drew a walk. There were some additional Looney Tunes moments that resulted in a box score single for Olson and double for Riley in the fifth that were not batted balls deserving of those box score classifications. Those were the most notable performances at the plate by players expected to be on the Opening Day roster.

Join us again tomorrow at 1:05 PM ET, as Reynaldo Lopez gets his last bit of work in this spring.

Josh Kerr reclaimed the men's 3000m world indoor gold he first won two years ago in Glasgow after crossing the finish line in 7:35.56 in Poland.

The Scotsman hovered patiently behind the pack leaders, picking his moment to surge in front on the last lap.

Kerr held off a final-stretch fightback from Cole Hocker, the man who pipped him to Olympic 1500m gold in 2024.

Kerr, the 2023 world 1500m champion, sustained a grade-two calf tear in the 1500m final at last summer's world championships in Japan, leaning on his mother to work him back to top form.

"From where we were in Tokyo to right now, having another world gold medal, that's all down to coaching, it's all down to physio and my mum. That's a family win right there," Kerr told the BBC.

Kerr hovered patiently behind the pack leaders, picking his moment to surge in front with about 200 metres remaining, and managed to hold off a final-stretch fightback from Hocker, who took silver in 7mins 35.70secs, just enough to beat Schrub, who rounded out the podium one millisecond later.

Kerr said before these championships that there was a time he could not even walk himself to breakfast, but he had surprised even himself with the speed of his recovery.

The 2024 Olympic 1500m silver medallist had hoped to compete in the 3000m final at the British indoor championships last month, but was granted a medical exception, reportedly due to back issues.

Kerr was full of confidence approaching Torun, declaring himself still "the best athlete in the world at these distances".

He was not wholly pleased by how the race unfolded in Poland, nor parts of the event's execution, but was nevertheless relieved to get the job done after troubleshooting on the fly.

"For people watching, that is not how you win a world final," Kerr said. "I knew that I had to get that close right, or else I might be having a pretty tough conversation with my coach.

"I was extremely fit coming into this. Obviously I had some problems coming into British champs, but this was the main goal. From a coaching and staff standpoint, and from just general work, I just... I needed this one.”

Serge Gnabry scored twice and Harry Kane inched closer to the Bundesliga single-season goal record as Bayern Munich beat Union Berlin 4-0 at home on Saturday. 

Kane's second-half strike took him to 31 this campaign -- the same number Union have scored all season -- and 10 short of Robert Lewandowski's mark from 2020-21, with seven games to play. 

Michael Olise struck for the brilliant Bavarians. 

"It's still possible, I just have to keep doing what I'm doing," Kane told reporters about the record. 

"All it takes is a hat-trick or a couple of braces in a row and then it'll look a bit more likely."

Bayern have 97 goals this season, four short of the best mark set in 1971-72, when Franz Beckenbauer and Gerd Mueller helped the Bavarian giants tear through the Bundesliga. 

Coach Vincent Kompany made five changes from the side which thumped Atalanta on Wednesday to set up a Champions League quarter-final clash with Real Madrid, but kept Kane front and centre. 

Union, who had never beaten Bayern in 14 clashes, held out until the 41st minute, when Olise collected a punted Leon Goretzka pass and curled the ball into the top corner. 

Gnabry made it two just before the break, knocking in a rebound at the far post. 

Kane pirouetted and curled in Bayern's third just after the break, boosting his tally to 48 in 40 games in all competitions this season. 

Gnabry was again in the right place to volley in with 67 minutes gone to add gloss to another big Bayern win. 

- Wild comeback for Dortmund, Leverkusen 'speechless' -

Ramy Bensebaini scored two second half penalties as Borussia Dortmund came from two goals down to win 3-2 at home against promoted Hamburg and all but lock up second spot. 

Philip Otele and Albert Sambi Lokonga scored to put Hamburg two goals up at half-time, after Dortmund's Felix Nmecha missed a penalty just before the break. 

Bensebaini converted a penalty after 73 minutes to bring Dortmund back into the match and Serhou Guirassy hammered in a rebound while off balance five minutes later. 

With six minutes left, Jobe Bellingham tried a long-range effort which hit Miro Muheim's hand, bringing Bensebaini to the spot again. 

The Algerian nervelessly converted to bring Dortmund in front and put the hosts on track for victory. 

Second-placed Dortmund are 11 points clear of RB Leipzig in third but remain nine points behind leaders Bayern. 

Bayer Leverkusen's top-four hopes took a hit with a 3-3 draw at rock-bottom Heidenheim after leading 2-0 at half-time and 3-2 with five minutes remaining. 

The draw leaves Leverkusen sixth, four points behind Leipzig, Stuttgart and Hoffenheim, who are all level on 50 points. Stuttgart have a game in hand. 

"I'm speechless," goalkeeper Mark Flekken told DAZN. "We talked at half-time about not getting complacent."

Hoping to bounce back from Tuesday's Champions League exit at Arsenal, first-half goals to Malik Tillmann and Patrik Schick had Leverkusen on course for a routine win. 

Heidenheim fought back through a Hennes Behrens goal and a Marvin Pieringer penalty. Schick once again gave Leverkusen the lead with a header but Pieringer levelled  again from a corner with 85 minutes gone. 

Justin Njinmah scored the only goal as Werder Bremen won 1-0 at Wolfsburg to push their hosts closer to a first ever Bundesliga relegation. 

Second-last with just one victory in the calendar year, 2009 German champions Wolfsburg could be six points from safety if St Pauli beat Freiburg on Sunday. 

Elsewhere, Rhine rivals Cologne and Borussia Moenchengladbach played out a 3-3 draw. 

dwi/ea/pb

Bayern Munich beat Union Berlin in a rather dominant display with goals of Michael Olise, Harry Kane, and a brace by Serge Gnabry. At the moment, sits atop the Bundesliga table with 70 points from 27 matches, while having scored 97 goals. With 7 games left in the Bundesliga campaign, the Bavarians will surely surpass that record, unless the world suddenly disintegrates or is affected by a massive cosmic event.

In a postgame interview, Bayern Munich attacker Serge Gnabry was questioned about the record, stressing how it shows the current level of the team’s attack (as captured by @iMiaSanMia). “During games, you don’t really think about records like that. Of course, when we break it we’ll be happy and see how much higher we can push it. The fact that we’re already at 97 goals is really incredible; I didn’t expect that at all. It simply shows how good our attack is.”

It’s worth noting that the current record has stood over 50 years, when in the 1971/72 campaign, Udo Lattek’s Bayern scored the aforementioned 101 goals. That season also saw legend Gerd Müller establish a 40-goal record, a mark that stood 49 years, until Robert Lewandowski broke it with 41 goals in the 2020/21 season.

---

If you are looking for more Bayern Munich and German national team coverage, check out the latest episodes of Bavarian Podcast Works, which you can get on Acast, Spotify, Apple, or any leading podcast distributor…

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La Liga giants Real Madrid are set to welcome a leading member of the club’s midfield ranks back to the pitch in Sunday’s derby.

The player in question? Jude Bellingham.

England international Bellingham has for his part not featured in a competitive setting since all the way back in early February.

This comes owing to a serious hamstring injury picked up during a La Liga meeting with Rayo Vallecano.

Bellingham has spent the last couple of weeks ramping up his recovery efforts, to the point that he was named as part of Álvaro Arbeloa’s squad to face Atlético on Sunday.

Speaking during his pre-match press conference this afternoon, Real Madrid’s headmaster was therefore drawn on the former Borussia Dortmund man’s status for the derby.

And Arbeloa went on to confirm:

“Jude Bellingham is already available. I think he’s going to play vs Atlético. I’m really looking forward to seeing him on the field already.”

Conor Laird – GSFN

United Rugby Championship

Glasgow Warriors (26) 38

Tries: Duncan, Hiddleston, Horne 2, Rowe, Smith Cons: Horne 4

Leinster (12) 17

Tries: Kenny, Keenan, Frawley Cons: Prendergast

Glasgow Warriors strengthened their place at the top of the URC with a bonus-point win over a strong Leinster side as their rivalry continues to deepen in the tussle for another title.

It was Leinster's ill-discipline that undid them at Scotstoun, with Glasgow striking four times while the Irish side were briefly down to 13 men in the first half.

It was Leo Cullen's side who got the scoring started when All Blacks star Reiko Ioane nabbed the ball inside his own 22m and sent young winger Joshua Kenny flying along the wing to dot down.

However, Glasgow responded with four tries of their own to secure the bonus point before they reached half-time.

With Leinster's Brian Deeny in the bin, a set-piece move from a tap-and-go 5m out put Maccenzie Duncan over the line - some way to celebrate signing his first pro deal at Scotstoun.

From the restart, Leinster went down to 13 men when Ronan Kelleher was adjudged to have put in a high tackle on Stafford McDowall. After a bunker review, the card remained yellow.

The Warriors immediately made use of the extra two men, with Gregor Hiddleston scoring at the back of a driving maul before George Horne scored a breakaway try after line breaks from centre partnership McDowall and Johnny Ventisei, the latter making his pro debut.

The fourth try was the pick of the bunch from one of Glasgow's form players.

Receiving the ball on the edge of his own 22m line, Kyle Rowe burned past Ireland international Jimmy O'Brien before hacking on and collecting his own kick.

In the corner, he even had the composure to dance inside the last defender and score undoubtedly one of the best tries of his career.

There was still time in the first half for Leinster to score, sucking players in at a driving maul before spreading wide for Hugo Keenan to dart over.

The second half was a low-scoring affair in comparison to the first, but the all-important try came Glasgow's way when Ollie Smith spun out of three tackles to break free and score to seal the game for the hosts.

Leinster kept fighting, and gave themselves hope of a losing bonus point when replacement Ciaran Frawley fought through the bodies to cross the line.

But it was Glasgow who scored just before the end as Josh McKay broke the line and fed Horne, who crossed for his second and the Warriors' sixth try before a good, old-fashioned dust up that ended up with Adam Hastings and Rabah Slimani going to the bin.

Hastings, who will depart for Montpellier in the summer, was cheered from the pitch by the home fans after ruffling the feathers of opposite number Sam Prendergast.

In another sterling season for Glasgow and Franco Smith, this marked a statement win against a Leinster side with plenty of recognisable names.

The Warriors team was considerably depleted with plenty still on rest from Scotland duty, but Smith has built such unbelievable depth at the Warriors that their standards rarely dip, if at all.

Glasgow Warriors: McKay, Rowe, Ventisei, McDowall (c), Smith; Lancaster, Horne; Schickerling, Hiddleston, Richardson, Craig, Samuel, Ferrie, Vailanu, Duncan.

Replacements: Stephen, Sutherland, Talakai, Oguntibeju, Miller, Fraser, Oliver, Hastings.

Leinster: Keenan, Kenny, Ioane, Henshaw, J O'Brien; S Prendergast, McGrath (c); Usanov, Kelleher, Clarkson, Snyman, Deeny, Connan, Connors, Culhane.

Replacements: McKee, Sahir, Slimani, O'Tighearnaigh, Deegan, Penny, Gunne, Frawley.

Referee: Adam Jones.

Antrim avoided relegation from Division 1B of the National Hurling League despite a dramatic last-gasp defeat at the hands of Ulster derby rivals Down at Pairc Esler.

Donal Hughes was the matchwinner for the Mournemen as his goal in the final minute of the game secured a 3-22 to 3-20 success.

Despite the victory, Down finish bottom of the division and are relegated to Division 2, along with Carlow, who went down 0-34 to 2-14 to Dublin at Dr Parnell Park.

Antrim retain their status on points difference and will face Down again in the Joe McDonagh Cup in four weeks' time.

Fortunes ebbed to an from in a pulsating game on Saturday as the sides traded scores throughout a close contest, with the outcome in doubt right until the end.

Shea Pucci scored two of Down's three goals, with Ruairi Donaghy doing likewise for the Saffrons.

Pucci found the net twice in the opening quarter of the contest but Donaghy's first goal reduced his side's deficit to five points at 2-7 to 1-5.

The same margin prevailed at the interval as the hosts went in 2-11 to 1-9 to the good despite five first-half points from Seaan Elliott.

The visitors began the second half strongly and Donaghy's second goal brought Davy Fitzgerald's side to within one of their opponents.

Elliott scored Antrim's goal and the see-saw encounter continued until the away side managed to nudge ahead 3-20 to 2-22 in added time thanks to a James McNaughton point.

Hughes had the final say however to clinch victory for his side.

Betfred Super League

Catalans (14) 26

Tries: Lipowicz 2, Navarrete, Marc Goals: Sexton 5

Hull KR (6) 20

Tries: May, Burgess, Amone Goals: Lewis 4

Reigning Super League champions Hull Kingston Rovers suffered a third defeat in their opening four games as Catalans Dragons earned a remarkable 26-20 victory in Perpignan.

The Robins swept all before them last season, taking all three domestic trophies before beating Brisbane Broncos to become world champions last month, but the French side were exceptional as two tries from Zac Lipowicz and one by Romain Navarrete had them 20-6 ahead at the 60-minute mark.

It seemed like Rovers, despite an unconvincing display, were hauling their way back towards victory as tries from Joe Burgess and Tom Amone and Mikey Lewis' penalty levelled the scores.

In a dramatic finale, Catalans went up the other end and 19-year-old Lenny Marc raced over for a winning try which boosts them up to seventh place.

More to follow

Catalans: Staines; Cotric, Laulu-Togagae, Faatape, Marc; Sexton, Dodd; Allen, Da Costa, Navarrete, Lipowicz, Laguerre, Garcia.

Interchanges: Satae, Bousquet, Leeming, Chan, Wilson (18th man).

Hull KR: Broadbent; Davies, Hiku, Gildart, Burgess; Lewis, May; Sue, Litten, Hadley, Whitehead, Batchelor, Minchella.

Interchanges: Amone, Luckley, Whitbread, Leyland.

Referee: Jack Smith.

Chelsea's hopes of Champions League qualification suffered another damaging blow as Everton stormed to a 3-0 win on Saturday to compound a miserable week for Liam Rosenior's men.

Dumped out of the Champions League 8-2 on aggregate by holders Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday, the Blues have now lost four consecutive games to put Rosenior under pressure just over two months into his reign.

Beto struck twice for the Toffees as they surged into contention for a top-five finish, before Iliman Ndiaye rounded off Everton's best win so far at their new home.

Only two points now separate the sides as Chelsea remain in sixth, while Everton climb to seventh.

A place in the top five will almost certainly guarantee Champions League football next season due to the strong performance of English sides in European competitions this season.

But Chelsea's chances are fading fast with a tough run-in after the upcoming international break with Manchester City, Manchester United and Liverpool to come in their remaining seven games.

The debate over who should start in goal for the Club World Cup winners will also rage on after another error-strewn night for Robert Sanchez.

James Garner celebrated his first ever call-up to the England squad with a brilliant pass that allowed Beto to beat Sanchez for the opening goal on 33 minutes.

Moments later Jordan Pickford proved the value of a top goalkeeper with a stunning save to tip over Enzo Fernandez's blistering strike.

Worse was to come for Sanchez after the break when he allowed Beto's fiercely struck shot to slip between his legs just after the hour mark.

Beto even played a part in his side's third as he bullied the Chelsea defence to head Pickford's long ball into the path of Ndiaye.

The Senegal international wriggled into the box before blasting into the top corner to this time give Sanchez no chance.

Everton have struggled to settle into their new 53,000 capacity stadium.

But for the first time they have won back-to-back home league games this season to climb within three points of neighbours Liverpool.

And they face off in the first ever Merseyside derby at the Hill Dickinson Stadium in Everton's next home game on April 19.

kca/ea

• Watch live BBC Two coverage of World Athletics Indoor Championships (UK only)
• LIVE: Armand Duplantis bids for fourth indoor pole vault title - and to break world record for 16th time
• GB's Dina Asher-Smith into women's 60m final at 20:20 GMT but Amy Hunt out
• Josh Kerr wins superb men's 3,000m title for Britain's first medal of competition
• Second world indoor title for Kerr after Glasgow triumph in 2024
• GB's Katie Snowden eighth and Hannah Nuttall ninth in women's 3,000m final

Watch World Athletics Indoor Championships: Duplantis bidding for pole vault gold

South Carolina had one of the biggest blowout wins in women’s NCAA tournament history on Saturday.

The No. 1 Gamecocks beat No. 16 Southern 103-34 in the first round. It’s the largest margin of victory for South Carolina in NCAA history and only six women’s NCAA tournament games have had a larger point differential.

Joyce Edwards had 27 points and missed just three shots from the field as all nine players who took the court for the Gamecocks scored at least one point and played at least 14 minutes. The Gamecocks were up by 25 at halftime and really blew the game open in the third quarter when they outscored Southern 32-2. 

Draft your Yahoo Fantasy Baseball team for the 2026 MLB Season

The Jaguars were just 1-of-15 in the quarter and missed eight shots in the paint as the margin grew to 55.

South Carolina’s win came exactly a year after it last set the record for its biggest NCAA tournament win. On March 21, 2025, the Gamecocks beat No. 16 Tennessee Tech 108-48 in the first round. In 2022, South Carolina beat Howard 79-21 in the first round of the tournament. 

Biggest NCAA tournament blowout is 89 points

For as staggering as South Carolina’s margin of victory was against Southern, it’s still not close to the biggest blowout in women’s NCAA tournament history. That game happened nine years ago, when Baylor beat Texas Southern 119-30 in the first round. That game eclipsed the previous record by one point as UConn had beaten Saint Francis (PA) 140-52 in 2018.

Oddly enough, none of the winning teams in the five biggest blowouts in women’s tournament history went on to win the national title. The national champion with the biggest blowout in the same tournament is UConn in 2000. The Huskies, who are the overwhelming favorites to win the 2026 tournament, beat Hampton 116-45 on their way to the title 26 years ago. 

Cam Schlittler pitched into the fourth inning without allowing a run, but the Yankees bats went cold in their 3-1 loss to the Tigers on Saturday afternoon.

With the loss, the Yankees are 17-11 in Grapefruit League play.

Here are the takeaways...

-In his final spring start before the regular season, Schlittler continued his dominant March. He didn't allow a runner into scoring position until the third, after Javier Baez led off with a single and made it to third base on a sac bunt and sac fly. However, Schlittler stranded Baez at third to keep the scoreless tie. 

To the Tigers' credit, they made Schlittler work the second time through the order. They were patient and forced the young right-hander to throw 5-6 pitches per at-bat. With two outs and a runner on first, manager Aaron Boone pulled Schlittler after 3.2 scoreless innings (62 pitches/40 strikes). He allowed just two hits and one walk, while striking out one. 

Over his three spring starts, Schlittler has allowed just one run on six hits and two walks across 9.2 IP while striking out 11 batters. 

-On the offensive side, the Yankees had opportunities against Framber Valdez but could not break through until the third. Amed Rosario, starting at third base, led off with a double and Jasson Dominguez hit a one-out bloop single to put runners on the corners for Austin Wells. The Yankees backstop, who had a double earlier in the game, hit a sac bunt to first base to drive in Rosario.

-Jasson Dominguez continued his very strong spring on Saturday. He went 2-for-3 with a standup triple, hitting right-handed against Valdez. The talented outfielder was optioned to Triple-A on Friday as the Yankees outfield is cluttered to start the season, but the 23-year-old is showing the organization why he was highly touted over the years.

Dominguez is now hitting .349 with three home runs, two doubles, one triple, 10 RBI and three stolen bases across 15 spring games. 

Randal Grichuk, who will make the Opening Day roster as the Yankees' fourth outfielder over Dominguez, started as the DH in this one. He went hitless and is now batting .111 in seven games after signing late this spring.

-Brent Headrick, looking for a spot in the bullpen, got the final out for Schlittler in the fourth. He's allowed two runs in seven appearances (7.0 IP) this spring. 

-Ryan Yarbrough took over after Headrick and was not his sharpest. The southpaw allowed a two-out single to Kerry Carpenter in the fifth to score Baez from second. He then followed up with a leadoff walk to Jahmai Jones in the sixth and Colt Keith's single put Jones on third with one out -- Keith was thrown out at second trying to stretch it into a double. Dillon Dingler flew out to left field to push across the Tigers' second run. 

In the seventh, Yarbrough allowed back-to-back, one-out doubles in the seventh to give the Tigers a 3-1 lead. However, that second double was lost in the sun by center fielder Kenedy Corona and dumped in for a ground-rule double when it should have been the second out. Yarbrough got one more out before he was pulled with a runner on, but he was stranded by Angel Chivilli as the book closed on Yarbrough's day.

Yarbrough threw 54 pitches (30 strikes), allowing three runs on five hits and two walks in 2.2 innings pitched. He's allowed four runs in three spring appearances (7.2 IP). It was just his second spring appearance since returning from the WBC. 

-Although the Yankees picked up seven hits, they could only get one run across the plate. Not too surprising considering most of their starters did not play in this one. But here's how the notable names, who will likely be on the Opening Day roster, did in Saturday's game:

• Paul Goldschmidt: 0-4, 2 K
• Jose Caballero: 1-3, BB
• Rosario: 1-4, R, K
• Grichuk: 0-3, BB
• Wells: 1-2, RBI, K

What's next

The Yankees' spring training slate continues Sunday afternoon against the Phillies. First pitch is set for 1:05 p.m.

HSV looked set for a famous away victory for much of the contest, leading 2-0 through goals from Philip Otele and Albert Sambi Lokonga. However, Dortmund showed immense resilience after the break, with Ramy Bensebaini converting two penalties either side of a Serhou Guirassy strike to complete a dramatic turnaround.

The opening exchanges were scrappy, with both sides struggling to maintain possession. Dortmund fashioned the first clear opportunity when Nicolai Remberg was dispossessed deep in his own half, allowing Maximilian Beier to race through on goal, but Daniel Heuer Fernandes reacted sharply to deny him with an outstretched leg.

HSV gradually grew into the contest and took the lead just before the 20-minute mark with their first real chance. William Mikelbrencis won the ball high up the pitch, drove into the area, and squared for Otele to tap home his first goal for Die Rothosen.

Dortmund were almost caught again soon after, with Gregor Kobel producing a fine save to keep out Ransford-Yeboah Königsdörffer from close range. At the other end, the hosts thought they had a penalty when Felix Nmecha went down in the box, only for the offside flag to cut the move short.

Seven minutes before the break, HSV doubled their advantage in fortuitous fashion. Dortmund failed to fully clear their lines, and the ball fell kindly for Fábio Vieira, who slipped in Lokonga to finish clinically and put the visitors firmly in control.

Dortmund were handed a golden opportunity to respond on the stroke of half-time when Warmed Omari brought down Beier inside the area. However, Nmecha squandered the chance, dragging his penalty wide to leave the hosts trailing 2-0 at the interval.

The home side emerged with renewed intent after the break, with Heuer Fernandes again called into action to deny Nmecha from close range following good work from Beier.

With time ticking away, Dortmund were given a lifeline in the 73rd minute when they were awarded another penalty. Bensebaini stepped up and calmly slotted down the middle to ignite hopes of a comeback.

Momentum quickly swung in Dortmund’s favour, and the equaliser arrived just five minutes later. Julian Ryerson delivered a dangerous cross that Guirassy met, and although his initial effort was saved, the striker reacted quickest to bundle the rebound over the line while on the ground.

HSV were rattled, and the turnaround was completed shortly after when Dortmund were awarded a third penalty following a handball by Miro Muheim. Bensebaini held his nerve once more, sending the goalkeeper the wrong way to fire into the bottom corner and send the Westfalenstadion into raptures.

Guirassy had a chance to seal the result in stoppage time, but Heuer Fernandes produced another excellent save. It proved inconsequential, however, as Dortmund held firm to complete a stunning 3-2 victory.

The win makes it three consecutive league victories for Dortmund and cuts the gap to leaders Bayern Munich to nine points. For HSV, the defeat leaves them with just one win in their last five matches, sitting 11th and at risk of slipping closer to the relegation battle depending on other results.

Georgia Bulldogs football fans are in a golden age. The Bulldogs won back-to-back national championships in 2021 and 2022 to silence rival fan bases. Dawg fans suffered for a long time before coach Kirby Smart and Georgia won a championship in 2021. Now, opposing fan bases can no longer flaunt that Georgia has not won a title since 1980.

To make things even better for Bulldog fans, several of Georgia's rivals are struggling to win. Florida, Auburn, and Georgia Tech (who has improved recently) are all struggling to win in recent seasons. This trio of Georgia rivals has each experienced turmoil, while Georgia has been in a state stability under Kirby Smart.

Georgia is far ahead of many of its rivals. Georgia's second-straight SEC-championship winning season in 2025 was viewed as a disappointing by some fans. However, none of Georgia's top rivals (outside of Alabama) have won an SEC title since Auburn won the SEC in 2013.

When was the last time Georgia's biggest rivals won a national championship in football?

Clemson Tigers

Last national championship: 2018

The Dawgs and Tigers often battle on the recruiting trail and renewed their rivalry in 2024 with Georgia taking home a dominant win. Georgia has gotten the better of Clemson in the Kirby Smart era. Clemson's national championship years seem further and further away in the name, image and likeness era.

Auburn Tigers

Last national championship: 2010

College football has changed a lot since Cam Newton and Auburn won the 2010 national championship. One thing has stayed the same: Auburn's program has been in almost continuous turmoil.

Georgia has won 14 of its last 16 games against Auburn since the Tigers won a national championship.

South Carolina Gamecocks

Last national championship: never

The Georgia-South Carolina rivalry is no longer being played annually in the expanded SEC. The teams will renew the series in 2026. The Gamecocks and Dawgs had faced off every season from 1992-2023. A pandemic couldn't stop the rivalry, but a conference expansion is making it be played less frequently.

Is South Carolina a future national title contender? The Gamecocks would settle for a second SEC championship appearance at this point. Coach Shane Beamer is fighting to keep his job.

Florida Gators

Last national championship: 2008

Alabama has won six national championships since Florida last won a title. Georgia has won back-to-back national titles and even Florida State has won a championship since 2008.

The Gators and Bulldogs will keep playing each other every year in the 16-team SEC. Florida is Georgia's top rival and will try to regain momentum in the series under first-year head coach Jon Sumrall.

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

Last national championship: 1990

Georgia Tech fans will say we are their biggest rival, but Georgia fans don't feel the same about the Yellow Jackets. Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate games become competitive recently in the Brent Key era, but Georgia still holds a significant winning streak in the series.

Georgia Tech isn't winning a national title any time soon. The Tech rivalry certainly intensified thanks to Georgia's eight overtime win in 2024 and a competitive game again in 2025.

Alabama Crimson Tide

Last national championship: 2020

Georgia and Alabama are not traditional rivals. However, they are two of the top programs in college football. Alabama derailed Georgia's national championship hopes in the 2012, 2018, and 2023 SEC championship games.

The Crimson Tide and Dawgs have met twice in national championships in the College Football Playoff era. Georgia defeated Alabama in the 2021 national title and looks like the top program in college football under Kirby Smart. Alabama is in a new era under Kalen DeBoer, who has the tough job of replacing Nick Saban.

Tennessee Volunteers

Last national championship: 1998

Tennessee Volunteers fans thought that 2021 was going to be their year (like they do every year when they are decent) until they faced the Georgia Bulldogs in Athens. The Volunteers missed a golden chance to beat Georgia in 2025. Tennessee and Georgia won't play in 2026, so Georgia's nine-game win streak in the series will continue.

The Volunteers seem to be back on track under head coach Josh Heupel. However, it has been over 25 years since 1998.

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This article originally appeared on UGA Wire: The last time Georgia's top rivals won a national championship

Everton 3 - 0 Chelsea

Everton are back home at the Hill Dickinson Stadium this weekend after their cruel defeat to Arsenal this time last week, Chelsea are just 5 points ahead of Everton in the Premier League table and come to Merseyside with a massive cloud over them after the Premier League's paltry fine levied for grievous misdoings that far outweigh Everton's breaches of PSR.

David Moyes was not giving much away at his pre-match press conference yesterday, with no apparent advance leaks of the line-up for this match in which James Tarkowski is now available while Jarrad Branthwaite is on the bench. Tyrique George is ineligible for selection against his parent club.

Still no sign of Charly Alcaraz and his mysterious unspecified injury, as O'Brien switches to left-back and Garner features in midfield. Iroegbunam and Armstrong are on the bench.

First Half

The visitors kicked off as the spring sunshine faded behind the West Stand of the glorious Hill Dickinson Stadium. Beto inspired a forward drive but McNeil could not fashion an early shot.

Everton looked to press Chelsea and it forced them back to Sanchez. Tarkowski#s long ball went through to Sanchez but the Blues' high press again forced a turnover, but again, Everton could not make it count.

Chelsea's first advance saw Caicedo shoot well wide. The pace of the game was too slow, Pickford trying a long punt which was lost by Beto. Fofana then gifted Everton a corner, Garner taking it but lots of silly pushing and a free-kick given to the visitors. But Beto chased the ball down and blocks Sanchez's clearance but could not turn the ball into the empty net, Sanchez recovering with a lucky touch.

Everton forced another turnover in midfield and Dewsbury-Hall got free down the right but crossed low too close to Sanchez with Beto on the wrong side.

Another giveaway fell for Ndiaye, but again, Everton could not turn it into a real chance. Yet another switch, Beto crossing for Garner but his shot was blocked. A great opening quarter of an hour for the Toffees... but nothing to show for it.

Palmer advanced but O'Brien blocked the cross from Neto behind off the Chelsea player. Everton built again, Mykolenko's hard low cross bouncing off Ndiaye. An Everton throw-in led to more forward play across the Chelsea area... but still no decent shot on goal.

Palmer adavanced and it looked like Gana caught him but nothing given, Ndiaye tried to play Dewsbury-Hall forward but it was initially deflected away but Everton kept pressing and yet still couldn't make that chance come.

Fernades swept the ball forward but Cuereela's cross was well over-hit, no-one there. But Everton allowed Neto to run the ball into the Everton area, however, no other Chelsea player anticipated his move. But it was the first spell of Chelsea momentum, testing the Everton defence on 25 minutes.

A much quicker Everton move ended wiith a poor cross from Gana on the byeline and Chelsea surged forward, Pedro's, shot blocked. A Chelsea corner was played to the far post where Keane headed clear.

But Chelsea worked it back, a dangerous ball forward wins a corner. An incredible sequence followed with four or five Chelsea shots, all blocked in a crowded penalty area.

Chelsea were now exerting much more control of the game, but out of notheingm a fantastic ball forward from Garner, looked impossible for Beto (33') to manage but a perfect dink over the advancing Sanchez bobbled and bounced into the Chelsea net -- a brilliant Everton goal!

A huge response from Chelsea saw Everton's goal under huge pressure. A corner came out to Neto, but a brilliant Pickford save prevented a certain goal. Another Chelsea corner followed as Everton had to withstand a veritable onslaught of Chelsea pressure.

Everton finally relieved the pressure with Dewsbury-Hall advancing down the left, winning a throw-in. Mykolenko's delivery to the near post forced Sanchez to punch it behind. The corner led to more Everton throw-ins. Eventually, Ndiaye got free down the left but yet again, the cross was just not good enough.

Chelsea passed the ball around until the board went up for 2 minutes added... and they carried on passing it around until Gana intercepted and tried to release Beto. But Chelsea came back and crossed in, Keane rising high to head it away and bring to an end a very good Everton half with a finely worked goal to cap it off.

Second Half

Everton restarted with a box kick, Beto almost upsetting Sanchez again before Chelsea regained control. But McNeil fought smartly for the ball and a ball in led to an Evertob corner from McNeil, Trakowski at the far post, Sanchez just beating Beto to the headed ball.

Chelsea slowed it right down again, trying to draw Everton out, but Dewsbury-Hall forced another turnover. Everton tried a couple of neat moves but both were cut off by good Chelsea defending. There were some lively exchanges in midfield, and some great turnovers, but Everton weren't holding the ball or making much of the possession.

Dewsbury-Hall was fouled by Caicedo wide left. McNeil gave way to Garner, swung hard to the far post, Sanchez backing into the post as he caught it and just kept it out. Another Chelsea advance broke down... and likewise another Everton advance. Joao Pedro got annoyed when his crazy antics were awarded with an Everton free-kick.

Cucurella then fouled O'Brien, winning a better free-kick to the right of the Chelsea area. But Garner swung it far too close to Sanchez -- what a waste!

Another lively Everton attack broke down and Chelsea finally got forward. Garnocho played back for Pedro who shot a brilliant curler coming onside the far post, Pickford parrying it brilliantly.

Chelsea advanced but Gana intercepted brilliantly and strode forward, setting up and another tantalising ball forward to Beto (63') who shot straight at Sanchez, and an immense fumble saw the ball creep over the line behind him. Fantastic!

The Chavs were devastated, but tried their best to pull things together after another stunning setback.

Everton: Pickford, O'Brien, Tarkowski, Keane, Mykolenko, Gana, Garner, McNeil, Dewsbury-Hall, Ndiaye, Beto.

Chelsea: Sanchez; Gusto (46' Garnacho), Fofana, Hato, Cucurella; Caicedo, Lavia; Palmer, Enzo, Neto; Joao Pedro

Subs: Sharman-Lowe, Acheampong, Tosin, Sarr, Essugo, Andrey Santos, Estevao, Delap.

//

Reader Comments (17)

Mykolenko wanted to press forward around 5 minutes in but Ndiaye told him to calm down and pass it backwards… our style of play is intentional and it is effective. We try not to ever stretch the game and get caught on the break.

Most Premier League teams have elite forward players who pray on mistakes and open spaces…. We keep it tight and nick goals which is good enough to get teams in the top 8-ish places in the Premier League.

As opposed to Angeball etc that is arguably more exciting but less effective… I'm fine with how we play and enjoy stifling opposing players.

With a couple of elite forwards of our own, our style would be even more effective. UTFT… in my opinion, the first objective in a game of football is not to concede. Scoring a goal comes second.

Ged Simpson 6 Posted 21/03/2026 at 18:10:05

Christy Ring

21/03/2026 : 18:01:34

Beto shocking

Sean Kearns 7 Posted 21/03/2026 at 18:10:25

Also I would keep Beto next season even if he is a backup.

A big heart goes a long way around these parts and the lad gets my vote.

Neil Tyrrell 9 Posted 21/03/2026 at 18:21:56

Impressive half, brilliant from Garner and Beto for our goal.

Keep it going, boys! COYB

Dave Abrahams 10 Posted 21/03/2026 at 18:22:11

A brilliant pass that made a good goal brightened up a mostly boring game.

Neil Lawson 11 Posted 21/03/2026 at 18:22:38

Sean 4. Reluctantly, I have to agree with your assessment. We could be so much better though if we had a midfielder to drive gorward and break the lines. Winning is great but we arent great to watch.

That said, what a pass and what a finish.

Neil Tyrrell 13 Posted 21/03/2026 at 18:30:13

Agree Sean @11, Beto over Barry all day even though neither are good enough really. Barry probably would have fell over and not even touched the ball, he's beyond useless. Be interesting to see if DM does the usual and brings him on around 60-70', and what reaction he gets. Imagine it will not be good.

John Collins 14 Posted 21/03/2026 at 18:34:59

Dave,

Thats the best half of football ive seen at home.

Not a high bar but I thought we played on the front foot and got plenty of players in the final third

Sean Kearns 15 Posted 21/03/2026 at 19:01:15

Keep Barry on the bench for fuck sake unless we get a third. He’s the last thing we need

16 Posted 21/03/2026 at 19:29:36

Credit where it's due, that's a brilliant performance from all involved, including the manager. I am not a Moyes fan in any way, shape, or form, but he got everything spot on in this game.

Special shout out to Pickford,he made crucial saves at vital times and McNeil has been excellent recently.

I wasn't impressed with the line up when I first saw it, how wrong can you be?

It's almost 3:30am here I'm the Philippines but I feel the need to celebrate with a few Red Horses.

For me that's one of our best performances of the season and a thoroughly deserved win.

All 11 starting players were outstanding and Chelsea weren't just beaten, they were outclassed

When Cody Rhodes made his return to WWE in 2022, one of his primary goals was to win the company's top championship – something his father, Dusty Rhodes, was never able to do. Over the last four years, Cody accomplished that and more. During a recent appearance on "Insight with Chris Van Vliet," he was asked to share his thoughts on the fact that his accomplishments have surpassed his dad's.

"Mr. Heyman told me that, and I thought, 'He might be the one guy I believe it [from]," Rhodes said. "I mean, they're still doing things of his today, and there's a whole fandom that will never even know they were his brainchild, or something that he – like, this was a silly one, but for example, the cage lowering [little by little], that's a Dusty thing. These production things are still in play. I appreciate you saying it. I think I have a lot more to do."

Among Rhodes' many WWE accomplishments over the last several years is his winning the King of the Ring tournament in 2025. Rhodes said it was a prize that he desperately wanted, and he celebrated the victory accordingly.

"I don't ride on the WWE charters anymore coming back from Saudi, because after the King of the Ring was probably the most partying I've ever done on a flight," Rhodes continued. "I got photos with people I don't even know. I'm arm wrestling Santos [Escobar] in one photo. My shirt is unbuttoned to my naval."

Rhodes' only regret from that night, though, is the fact that he didn't have the King of the Ring crown with him in the pictures that were taken.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Insight with Chris Van Vliet" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

Read more: These Wrestlers Ruined Their Career In A Matter Of Seconds

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Read the original article on Wrestling Inc.

The UEFA Champions League is down to eight teams, and according to some predictions, Barcelona sit in that middle ground. Close enough to dream big, but a small mistake could undo them. One thing that has helped them, at least in the minds of pundits, is the draw. It’s Atlético Madrid again, which won’t be easy given the Copa del Rey elimination, but the experts tip it toward Barça this time.

Projections have them moving on, and some even see them reaching the final. Of course, nothing is settled on paper.

Movistar+ pundit Julio Maldonado has been blunt about it. “I would see Barça as a finalist,” he said, but then added a warning that almost anyone would echo. “Barça has to improve defensively.”

Watching them, it’s easy to understand why. In attack, they can explode in a few minutes. Lamine Yamal finds pockets to play passes, Raphinha drifts into space, Pedri pulls strings in tight moments, Robert Lewandowski finishes. But the knockout rounds don’t forgive lapses, and Barcelona still has too many of those.

Hansi Flick is trying to adjust to the situation. Maldonado highlighted that too. “If Barça can win this Champions League it’s because Flick takes slightly fewer risks and has a lot of talent up front.”

The other side of the bracket is the tough one, according to most. Bayern Munich keeps appearing as the benchmark. “Bayern is a goal-scoring machine and I maintain they are the main favorite,” Maldonado said.

A potential semifinal opponent for Barcelona is Arsenal, who are perhaps a bit of a wild card. Their form has dipped since the start of the season, but they are still a highly dangerous team.

“I see Arsenal worse than at the start of the season… but I’ll give them quite a lot of chances,” Maldonado said.

Looking at the rest of the picture, PSG are trending upward again. The Chelsea win turned heads, and the return of key players makes them more dangerous. “They’re improving… not the top favorite, but I give them quite a lot of chances,” was Maldonado’s opinion.

Liverpool are not considered favorites but they are in the mix, too. You can’t predict knockout tournaments.

One team you definitely can never rule out is Real Madrid. But they have a potential roadblock up ahead. It’s that classic tie, Bayern versus Real Madrid. Maldonado doesn’t mince words. “I think Madrid will be eliminated, I hope I’m wrong.”

UCLA women’s basketball has six seniors and graduate students entering the 2026 WNBA Draft after this season. As these Bruins approach the final games of their collegiate careers, UCLA’s program has helped set these players up for successful professional careers.

“Not a lot of people get to play basically on a pro team,” senior guard Kiki Rice said, per Jack Maloney of CBS Sports. “That will help all of us.”  

Rice added that she has had the opportunity to play with multiple star players throughout her four seasons at UCLA. In a recent mock draft by The Athletic, Rice and four other UCLA players were projected to be drafted in the first round.

“I see a lot of alignment in their current roles to what they will need to be as pros,” a WNBA talent evaluator told CBS Sports about UCLA players. “Identifying and projecting a role for players at the next level is a critical part of this process. Each of their key players is in a role where they can impact winning and a lot of what they need to do now for this year’s team will apply to what they’ll need to do to be impactful contributors as pros.”

In addition to Rice, senior center Lauren Betts, senior guard Gabriela Jaquez, graduate student guard Gianna Kneepkens, graduate student guard Charlisse Leger Walker and graduate student forward Angela Dugalić are entering the 2026 draft.

Adding Michaela Onyenwere As an Assistant Coach Has Also Helped the Bruins

UCLA hired Michaela Onyenwere as an assistant coach this season, and she has given some advice to the Bruins entering the draft. Onyenwere was the No. 6 pick in the 2021 WNBA Draft and the 2021 WNBA Rookie of the Year.

She played with New York Liberty, Phoenix Mercury and Chicago Sky and is currently a free agent.

“I think we’re really fortunate to have someone who’s been through that and is currently still playing, so can give us some behind-the-scenes advice on what it’s gonna take to be successful,” Rice said. 

The WNBA Draft will take place on April 13 in New York City.

Photo Credit: Robert Goddin-Imagn Images

Gianluca Scamacca will join the Italy squad at Coverciano despite suffering an injury setback ahead of the crucial World Cup play-off fixtures against Northern Ireland and potentially Bosnia or Wales.

According to TMW, the striker has picked up an adductor tear, but he remains determined to respond to Gennaro Gattuso’s call-up. Scamacca is reportedly highly motivated to participate in the international break and is unwilling to withdraw from the squad despite the physical issue. He is no stranger to injuries but wants to push through this time.

His availability for the match against Northern Ireland on Thursday remains uncertain. The medical staff will conduct final tests in the coming days to determine if the forward can recover in time to feature. For Gattuso, having Scamacca present at the national team base is a priority, and the player’s commitment to the cause is seen as a significant boost for the group as they navigate a high-stakes play-off path.

Kaustubh Pandey I GIFN

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Inter Women played out a frustrating draw at the Arena Civica Gianni Brera in Milano on matchday 17 in Serie A Women. After a goalless first half, the Nerazzurre started the second 45 with character and aggression, breaking the deadlock through Bugeja (54') and doubling their lead with a precise left-footed strike from Wullaert (65'). However, Napoli caused problems for Piovani’s side in the closing stages. After pulling a goal back through Fløe, the Danish forward launched a counter-attack that allowed Barker to equalise in the 86th minute. Inter picked up a point to take their tally to 34 in the table.

INTER 2-2 NAPOLI WOMEN

Goals: 54' Bugeja (I), 65' Wullaert (I), 78' Fløe (N), 87' Barker (N)

INTER (3-5-2): 1 Rúnarsdottir; 3 Bowen, 24 Milinkovic, 5 Andrés; 18 Glionna, 10 Magull (79' Paz), 27 Csiszar, 20 Detruyer (66' 16 Tomasevic), 22 Schough (46' 21 Tomaselli); 31 Wullaert, 7 Bugeja (79' 6 Santi). Substitutes: 23 Ivarsdottir, 35 Robbioni, 4 Pleidrup, 14 Robustellini, 33 Bartoli, 44 Consolini. Coach: Gianpiero Piovani

NAPOLI WOMEN (4-4-2): 1 Beretta; 44 Pettenuzzo, 16 Jusjong, 32 Vergani, 67 Giordano; 17 Carcassi (77' 7 Barker), 23 Bellucci, 19 Sciabica, 8 Kozak (77' 27 Kainulainen); 10 Banusic, 11 Fløe Substitutes: 21 Thisgaard, 30 Hornschuch, 5 Veletanlic, 12 Kjolholdt, 14 Faurskov, 20 Troan, 24 A. D'Angelo, 26 O. D'Angelo, 77 Musumeci Coach: David Sassarini

Stoppage time: -; 4'

Booked: Pettenuzzo (N)

Referee: Acquafredda Assistants: Recupero - Galluzzo Fourth official: Cafaro

INTER VS. NAPOLI WOMEN | THE MATCH

At the Arena Civica in Milano, Inter lined up against Napoli with the duo of Wullaert and Bugeja in attack. The game began cautiously as both sides felt each other out. Inter’s first real chance came from Glionna, who received a pass from Schough but couldn’t find the target. Banusic was the biggest threat for Napoli in the first half: she had a go with her left foot (32') before wasting an opportunity from a Rúnarsdottir clearance shortly afterwards. After a goalless first half, the Nerazzurre came out with more aggression. Ten minutes into the second half, Bugeja opened the scoring, finishing off Andres' assist for her seventh league goal of the season. Inter kept control and doubled their lead in the 65th minute when Wullaert, set up by Detruyer, beat Beretta with a precise left-footed strike to score her twelfth league goal of the campaign. The Belgian striker moved into Inter’s all-time top scorers’ podium with 26 goals, level with Chawinga. Napoli pulled a goal back just over ten minutes from time through Fløe (78'), who also launched a counter-attack that allowed Barker to equalise (86'). In between, Tomasevic nearly scored a spectacular long-range effort, only for Beretta to tip it away. Inter took a point from the match and move up to 34 in the league table.

INTER-NAPOLI WOMEN | LA DIRETTA

SECONDO TEMPO: 94' - Si chiude sul 2-2 la sfida tra Inter e Napoli Women 86' - Pareggio del Napoli: progressione di Fløe che va sul fondo e serve Barker che a due passi dalla porta chiude in rete 85' - Conclusione di potenza di Tomasevic su cui si allunga Beretta 85' - Destro di Tomaselli, blocca Beretta 78' - Accorcia il Napoli: su un'incertezza di Milinkovic, Fløe si inserisce e chiude in porta di sinistro 76' - Colpo di testa diFløe, blocca senza problemi Rúnarsdottir 65' - RADDOPPIO NERAZZURRO!!! Wullaert servita da Detruyer supera Beretta con un sinistro preciso e letale e segna il suo 12esimo gol in Campionato e il 26esimo centro con la maglia nerazzurra (terzo posto marcatrici all-time al pari di Chawinga) 54' - INTER IN VANTAGGIO!!! Cross dalla sinistra di Andres e gol di testa di Bugeja: settimo centro per l'attaccante nerazzurra 46' - Squadre in campo: inizia il secondo tempo del match. Per l'Inter Tomaselli prende il posto di Schough

PRIMO TEMPO: 45' - Si chiude a reti inviolate e senza recupero il primo tempo della partita 39' - Anche Csiszar ci prova, palla smorzata e recuperata da Beretta 38' - Detruyer cerca l'incrocio dei pali, palla fuori 32' - Sul disimpegno di Rúnarsdottir, recupera Banusic che spreca una chiara occasione per la formazione partonopea 23' - Sinistro di Banusic, blocca tutto Rúnarsdottir 13' - Tiro a giro di Wullaert non lontano dalla porta del Napoli 12' - Cross di Schough per Glionna che non inquadra lo specchio della porta 1' - Inizia Inter-Napoli Women all'Arena Civica di Milano

MILWAUKEE – It’s rare that an NBA player misses 50-plus consecutive games within one NBA campaign, then returns before the season ends. Yet Indiana Pacers forward Obi Toppin pulled it off, missing 56 straight games from October 29 through February 24.

In that nearly four month span, Toppin was sidelined with a foot injury. In the Pacers third game of the season, the normally-durable forward exited the contest with what the team deemed a hamstring injury at the time. Further testing revealed Toppin had been diagnosed with a partial stress fracture of the fifth metatarsal in his right foot. The original estimate was at least a three month absence.

123 days later, he finally returned to the court. It was a long gap, and Toppin hasn’t reached 20 minutes in a game since his comeback. The Pacers want to be cautious with his playing time. But he’s back on the hardwood, and that means something to both him and the rest of his team.

Why did Obi Toppin return this season for the Pacers?

“Obviously, I love playing. I want to be out there as much as I can. I never want to sit any games out,” Toppin said of his desire to return this season. He couldn’t sit still during his rehab. At one point, he got up shots at the Pacers practice facility while riding around on a knee scooter. “We didn’t want to rush anything, but we still wanted to get out a couple of games just so I’m not going into the summer wondering how it’s going to feel when I’m out there playing real basketball. So that’s what we’re doing now and everything’s been good.”

Practice is one thing, and simulated games are another. But there is nothing like NBA action against an opponent to get rhythm and improve conditioning. That’s what Toppin has been doing the last four weeks. He’s started three times, seen his minutes increase, and played in all but two games – he missed one leg of two back-to-backs – since his return in late February.

At first, there were struggles. Toppin missed his first 10 three-point shots and didn’t make more than one field goal in a game until his fifth post-return outing. His non-rebounding numbers were muted outside of a five assist performance against the Memphis Grizzlies. A low minutes total was certainly a factor, but it was clear Toppin had to reacclimate to his teammates, some of whom were new, and to NBA action in general.

He’s been far more effective in recent games. Across his last four appearances, in which Toppin has only posted 16.3 minutes per game, he’s averaging 13.0 points and 4.0 rebounds per contest on 53% shooting from the field. Almost half of his outside shots have gone in. It took about 10 days, but Toppin looks more like himself of late.

“I’ll say after the first game. After [it], I got that ‘I can do this now’ feeling. Because you really don’t know coming back from injuries, putting a screw in your foot, and then playing that same year,” Toppin said when asked about what time he started to feel like himself on the court again. “You don’t know how that’s going to feel. So getting out there that first time, it was more just see how it feels, see if I can play through it and stuff. And everything felt good, I had no issues with my foot. Probably the second game I started to feel like myself. [I] need to make a couple more shots, but when I’m out there, I think I’m good.”

He has already started to make more shots and, importantly, play with more varied lineups. Toppin has played for 38 minutes with prized Pacers acquisition Ivica Zubac this season, and he also got some run with Kobe Brown, Micah Potter, Kam Jones, and Jalen Slawson for the first time. Those players are all new to the Pacers with the exception of Jones, a rookie who was injured early in the season when Toppin was initially playing.

Beyond Toppin getting his feet back under him, those moments of chemistry are important. That’s what the Pacers are trying to build in their games down the stretch of this season – while already eliminated from the playoffs, anything the Pacers can discover about their team right now that could help next season is beneficial. For example, it’s possible that Toppin and Jay Huff make up the Pacers reserve frontcourt next season. They’ve played together for just 68 minutes this season, including 47 since Toppin returned from injury. The more time they can get together to develop chemistry before the season ends, the better.

Chemistry for Toppin goes beyond the court. He’s one of the heartbeats of the Pacers team, and it’s easier to grow connections when actually playing in games. “He’s our engine. He brings energy on both ends of the floor,” Pacers guard T.J. McConnell said of Toppin. “To have him back, it’s just such a positive for our team. We’ve missed him dearly.”

Toppin has played in nine games since returning from injury. He’s averaging 7.2 points and 3.4 rebounds per game so far, with those stats growing of late. It’s been a strange year for the Dayton product – he played in 79 games last season and all 82 the year prior.

Some of his talent comes from his natural athletic gifts. Toppin grabs rebounds simply by jumping higher than surrounding players and gets system buckets for the Pacers by lifting above the rim and outrunning players in transition. His athleticism has a significant function for the blue and gold.

The injury was a challenge for his pop. “It didn’t feel normal. I’m still working on that now. It takes in-game like dunks to get that feel back,” Toppin said last weekend of his athleticism. “So we’ll see how these next couple games go. I might take off a couple times and see how it feels. But other than that, doing that (jumping up and grabbing the rim) before the game, that’s been feeling regular.”

He has just five dunks this season, and a career-low 8.4% of his field goal attempts have been dunks. That’s the next step for Toppin individually – showing more of the natural traits that make him special. With a screw in his foot, there should be little expectation for an instant recovery. His former level will return eventually, though.

And there are recent signs, particularly from a shooting and minutes perspective, that Toppin is more comfortable and closer to his pre-injury self. He’s played 12 games this season, and the Pacers have 12 more before 2025-26 ends. Toppin will hope to show off some of his athletic gifts as he continues his rare in-season return from such a long absence.

Max Holloway has shared his thoughts on what could come next for him after reflecting on UFC 326 in a recent video.

It comes after Charles Oliveira’s win over Holloway, which saw some fans head for the exits early due to the one-sided nature of the BMF title fight.

Although ‘Do Bronx’ was in control from start to finish, there were questions about whether the fight matched up to the usual standards expected of that title.

Max Holloway is open to any weight class for a potential Conor McGregor rematch

After his brief social media message following the fight, Max Holloway shared more of his thoughts on the aftermath of UFC 326 in a video posted to his YouTube channel.

‘Blessed’ mentioned that there are a few things he needs to take care of before reaching out to the UFC about booking another fight.

He didn’t commit to any specific opponent but did mention that a rematch with Conor McGregor interests him, no matter which division it happens in.

“I mean, Conor’s there, you know. Conor’s got one over me,” he said. “He’s talking about coming back. I’m coming off of a loss, I mean it would look pretty fun to get that one back with him.

“So, we’ll see what happens. I know a lot of people are worried about the weight and this and that but if he doesn’t want to cut weight, then I don’t want to cut weight,” Holloway continued. “We can do it at any weight to be honest. It’s just about getting it back.”

The two first met in 2013, with McGregor winning by unanimous decision early in his UFC career. Before UFC 326, McGregor had hinted that he could face the winner of the BMF title bout based on conversations with those around him in the promotion.

Certainly, given their history and fighting styles – not to mention OliveIra isn’t as much of a draw as Max – this would be a far better fit for ‘The Notorious.’

“Sign me up man,” Holloway said. “If 155 is kind of busy right now, we don’t know who to pick, I know Conor keeps talking about coming back. That’d be a fun fight. That fight really excites me and weight wouldn’t be an issue.”

Max Holloway and Conor McGregor’s timelines could clash

Conor McGregor mentioned International Fight Week as a more likely return date, especially after the UFC White House card was announced.

In his video, Max Holloway explained that he needs to complete all his medical procedures before even thinking about another training camp.

Holloway also said he plans to fight again in 2026 but has other obligations to handle before focusing fully on training.

“I got a bunch of work things I actually have to do outside of fighting,” he said. “After that, take a little vacay and then wait for news like I said from my team”, he concluded.

Read more:

Following last night’s game, Nate Rohr Of Huskers Radio described Coach Rhonda Revelle as “animated” when discussing yesterday’s 2-0 win with her team out in left field post-game.

There’s no telling 100% what the subject of that discussion was, but their inability to bring runners home would probably have been a solid guess. Despite 11 hits and receiving 5 walks, the Huskers stranded 13 runners and were 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position. So if Rhonda did get a little salty with her charges?

On what ended up a cool, sunny brunch date in East Lansing today, consider her message received.

The Huskers ripped out 16 hits, half of those for extra bases, cut the runners left on base almost in half, and crossed the plate 13 times while shutting out the Spartans to clinch a series victory before going for the sweep 30 minutes after the end of the first game.

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Five Huskers – Kacie Hoffman, Jordy Frahm, Jesse Farrell, Alexis Jensen and Sammie Bland – had multiple hit games. Three – Frahm, Jensen and Ava Kuszak – all left the yard. And Hoffman had a perfect day at the plate going 4-for-4 with 2 RBI’s and 2 runs scored. Frahm reached based 4 out of 5 trips and her 3-run blast in the 6th inning to conclude the scoring seemed to justify the Spartans attempts to pitch around her and walk her twice. Michigan State pitching by then had turned into a batting practice machine as their team ERA ballooned to 5.68 following the game.

On the mound, Jensen tossed a 1-hit complete-game shutout over the 6 innings. She began the game retiring 9 straight before getting out of a bases-loaded jam in the 4th. She then settled back down striking out 4 in the last two innings to finish things off and collect her 11th win of the season.

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The teams meet again shortly due to the doubleheader being played because of wet weather expected on Sunday. Once again, games will be streamed on B1G+ and broadcast on Huskers Radio.

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In a recent report, Fichajes claimed that Manchester City are facing stiff competition for Newcastle United ace Sandro Tonali. It has been revealed that the Mancunian giants would have to compete with Manchester United and Arsenal in the race to land the Italian talent this summer.

Tonali is having an impressive campaign at the Tyneside club as he has put in a lot of influential displays for them at the centre of the park. The Italy international has registered three goals and secured seven assists in 47 matches for Newcastle this season across all competitions.

The 25-year-old is currently among the most consistent midfielders in the Premier League. Thus, Man City would do well to lure him to the Etihad Stadium in this summer transfer window.

His current contract at St. James’ Park will run out in the summer of 2028, which could make it difficult for the Mancunian giants to sign him on the cheap this off-season.

NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, ENGLAND – MARCH 10: Sandro Tonali of Newcastle United looks on during the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 Round of 16 First Leg match between Newcastle United FC and FC Barcelona at St James’ Park on March 10, 2026 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Manchester City Are Facing Stiff Competition For Tonali: Is He Worth The Fight?

Tonali is a solid tackler of the ball and can sense the danger well to secure the ball back for his team inside his half. He doesn’t mind putting his foot through the ball when needed and is a tidy passer as well.

The Italian sensation can even contribute by scoring and creating a few important goals for his team from midfield. Tonali is primarily a defensive midfielder but can also operate as a box-to-box midfielder if needed. He is already quite familiar with the Premier League and won’t take much time to adjust to life at Man City.

Tonali would undoubtedly enhance the quality of Pep Guardiola’s midfield department. He is good enough to nail down a regular starting spot at the Etihad Stadium next season.

At 25, Tonali has his peak years ahead of him, which makes him a decent choice for Man City to consider in the summer transfer period. He might even help the Mancunian outfit challenge for some major honours over the next few years. All in all, he would be well-worth the fight, so Man City should focus on recruiting him soon.

Luciano Spalletti warns against Juventus getting ‘arrogant’ due to the Sassuolo whooping cough crisis, while he welcomes back Dusan Vlahovic and trusts Jeremie Boga in a new role.

It kicks off at the Allianz Juventus Stadium at 19.45 GMT (20.45 CET).

You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens from today’s three Serie A games on the Liveblog.

Sassuolo are in a very strange situation, as there is one confirmed case of whooping cough in the squad, and another four players who have been isolated after showing symptoms.

Although the club has not named any of them due to privacy concerns, notably Nemanja Matic, Kristian Thorstvedt, Woyo Coulibaly and Stefano Turati are not here today.

The Neroverdi were already without injured Fali Candé, Alieu Fadera, Daniel Boloca and Edoardo Pieragnolo, but Spalletti refuses to see this as an advantage.

Spalletti does not expect struggling Sassuolo

UDINE, ITALY – MARCH 14: Luciano Spalletti, Juventus manager, reacts during the Serie A match between Udinese Calcio and Juventus FC at Stadio Friuli on March 14, 2026 in Udine, Italy. (Photo by Timothy Rogers/Getty Images)

“Any team usually has 15-16 first choice players, naturally there are some who play more, but that doesn’t mean the others aren’t valid,” Spalletti told Sky Sport Italia.

“I remember during the Covid era when there were only 13 players who came here with Napoli, we got a draw with a wonderful Mertens goal. So this sort of thing can create a bit of arrogance if you are not intelligent enough to handle the news, or on the other side gives you extra motivation to give something more and help your teammates out.”

The Bianconeri got themselves back in the hunt for a Champions League spot thanks to the fightback for a 3-3 draw at Roma, then two consecutive Serie A victories over Pisa and Udinese.

TURIN, ITALY – MARCH 07: Jeremie Boga of Juventus celebrates after scoring the his team’s fourth goal during the Serie A match between Juventus FC and Pisa SC at Juventus Stadium on March 07, 2026 in Turin, Italy. (Photo by Giuseppe Cottini/Getty Images)

Among the keys to the turnaround was the move to a 4-3-3 formation, with Jeremie Boga as the centre-forward this time from the start rather than at half-time, sending Jonathan David to the bench.

“I asked all those who worked with Boga, they said he has to play on the left, but when I put him in the centre, he proved that he knows how to hurt the opposition centre-backs,” explained Spalletti.

“If he has 10 metres behind him, he can use that with a lethal change of pace, it’s impossible to keep up with him. So we’ll try to make the most of that, as well as his technique, as he does well with the ball at his feet.”

PARMA, ITALY – FEBRUARY 01: Luciano Spalletti, Head Coach of Juventus, reacts during the Serie A match between Parma Calcio 1913 and Juventus FC at Stadio Ennio Tardini on February 01, 2026 in Parma, Italy. (Photo by Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images)

Dusan Vlahovic is back on the bench for the first time since November 29, when he suffered a serious thigh injury, and his future at the club remains to be seen with a contract that expires on June 30.

“Arek Milik is on the bench too, so we’ve got four centre-forwards on the bench. Vlahovic is doing well, naturally he has different characteristics, he had a lot of difficulty sticking to the rules after a very serious injury, but seeing as we are at the end of that process now, we will try not to do any more damage.”

After having gone through a difficult patch, due to continued fitness issues, Antonio Rudiger appears to be back to his best at Real Madrid.

The veteran defender has put in some extremely solid displays in recent games, particularly against Manchester City, with his form leading to a return to the Germany national team setup.

However, question marks linger over his future at the Santiago Bernabeu beyond this season, given that his contract expires on 30 June.

Juventus ready to move in on Rudiger

And, according to Tuttosport (h/t SPORT), Juventus have made Rudiger a priority target as they aim to compete again for the Serie A title. His candidacy has gained strength due to his strong relationship with head coach Luciano Spalletti.

The two previously worked together at AS Roma, where Spalletti played a key role in elevating the German defender after his early years in Italy.

Rudiger has recently added agent Hasan Cetinkaya to his representation, a figure who also maintains strong connections in Italy.

Rudiger is a target for Juventus. (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)

As such, the report states that initial contacts have already taken place regarding a potential deal that could deprive Real Madrid of a player who has become increasingly important under Alvaro Arbeloa.

Real Madrid had initially planned to part ways with Rudiger at the end of his contract, but Arbeloa is keen for him to remain at the club.

But Juventus’ unexpected interest could alter the situation significantly, as they are offering a him two-year contract, compared to the one-year extension Los Blancos are willing to propose.

What has Rudiger said on his future?

Speaking to the media about his contract situation earlier this week, Rudiger had said: “For me, the most important thing is to be healthy. I feel fine. As for the rest… I’m sure we’ll reach an agreement. Now is not the time to talk about it.”

“I feel good here. I notice the respect of the people and I appreciate it a lot.But sometimes you can’t just think about the emotional side; I also have to think about the fact that I feel good and I have a job to do. But I love Real Madrid.”

It now remains to be seen which way the German veteran leans amid growing interest from Juventus.

Incidents: The story of the match

1':

The match begins

1':

The match begins

6':

Opportunity wasted. Moisés Caicedo of Chelsea attempted a right-footed shot from outside the penalty area but sent it wide to the left. The assist came from Marc Cucurella.

Everton takes the lead with a score of 1-0 against Chelsea. Beto scores for Everton with a right-footed shot from inside the penalty area.Everton takes the lead with a score of 1-0 against Chelsea. Beto scores with a right-footed shot from the center of the box, finding the bottom right corner. The assist comes from James Garner, who delivered a precise through ball.Everton takes the lead with a score of 1-0 against Chelsea. Beto finds the back of the net with a right-footed shot from the center of the box, placing it into the bottom right corner. The assist comes from James Garner, who delivered a perfectly timed through ball.

33':

GOAL Everton: Beto (Everton) scores!

Beto scores goal number 5 in the competition (31 matches)

33':

GOAL Everton: Beto (Everton) scores!

Liam Delap makes appearance number 22 in the competition - used as a sub on 13 occasions. Beto scores goal number 5 in the competition (31 matches)

37':

Missed opportunity! Roméo Lavia from Chelsea attempted a header from the right side of the six-yard box but failed to score. The chance was set up by Enzo Fernández, who delivered a cross following a corner kick.

Everton leads Chelsea 2-0. Beto scores for Everton with a right-footed shot from the center of the box after a quick counterattack.Everton leads Chelsea 2-0. Beto scores with a right-footed shot from the middle of the box, finding the center of the net. The assist comes from Idrissa Gueye after a quick counterattack.

62':

GOAL Everton: Beto (Everton) scores!

Beto scores goal number 6 in the competition (31 matches)

62':

GOAL Everton: Beto (Everton) scores!

Beto scores goal number 6 in the competition (31 matches)

Everton leads Chelsea 3-0. Iliman Ndiaye scores with a right-footed shot from the center of the penalty area.

76':

GOAL Everton: Iliman Ndiaye (Everton) scores!

Iliman Ndiaye scores goal number 6 in the competition (25 matches)

76':

GOAL Everton: Iliman Ndiaye (Everton) scores!

Iliman Ndiaye scores goal number 6 in the competition (25 matches)

The No. 10 Florida State Seminoles softball team beat the Cal Golden Bears 9-0 on Saturday at JoAnne Graf Field in Tallahassee, Florida. FSU won the series with the victory and is now 27-4 overall and 5-0 in ACC play, winning their last 16 games.

Isa Torres' hit streak came to an end in the game, she recorded a hit in 16 consecutive at-bats, setting a new NCAA record. She finished the game 2-3 with a double and an RBI.

The Seminoles took control of the game with seven runs in the bottom of the first inning. Torres doubled before Beachum walked, and Shelby McKenzie scored one run with a single. A sacrifice fly scored another run before Makenna Sturgis drove in two more runs with a double, and Bella Ruggiero scored on a wild pitch.

Hayley Griggs drove in Sturgis with a single before scoring on a single by Torres, giving them a 7-0 lead.

Bella Dimitrijevic got the start for FSU and allowed two hits and a walk in three innings, striking out four. Makenna Reid pitched the final two innings, allowing one hit and striking out two.

Ruggiero made it an 8-0 game with a single, driving in Ashtyn Danley in the second inning. Danley doubled in Madi Frey in the fourth, giving FSU a 9-0 lead.

The Seminoles will go for the sweep against Cal on Sunday at noon ET. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.

Contact/Follow us @FSUWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of FSU news, notes, and opinions.

This article originally appeared on FSU Wire: FSU softball run-rules Cal

El.

Oh.

ELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL

It took Chelsea some 20 minutes to wake up and start playing, and by that time we had gifted at least two prime opportunities to Everton.

Ironically, they didn’t take advantage of those, instead taking advantage of some lazy play in midfield and defense to take the lead through Beto.

Chelsea huffed and puffed but couldn’t really do anything. The few times we did, Pickford pulled off a great save. Goalkeeping can be important, it turns out.

Set pieces seemed like our most likely avenue to a goal, but our luck was not in today in that regard either.

Beto would make his a brace halfway through the second half, then a lovely strike into the top corner from Ndiaye would put us out of our misery with 15 minutes still to go.

Carefree.

• Hato-Fofana pairing at center back
• Back-to-back 3-0 defeats obviously building the best team in the world
• Will we ever win a game again?
• Chelsea stay sixth and in the mix for top five, but our prospects of Europe are as dim as they’ve ever been
• KTBFFH

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PLAYER RATINGS:

Pirates' Spencer Horwitz primed for post-Blue Jays lift off originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Spencer Horwitz was sent from the Toronto Blue Jays to the Pittsburgh Pirates midway through last season.

And no, none of us noticed how good he was after the move.

"Here is perhaps our favorite fun fact of the 2025 season: Which team had the best offensive production out of first base over the final two months of the season?" MLB.com's Mike Petriello wrote in a new article on Saturday. "You’re thinking maybe the Blue Jays (Vladimir Guererro Jr.) or Dodgers (Freddie Freeman) or A’s (Nick Kurtz) or any of the other clubs with stars at first and … well, no. It was the Pirates. Yes, really. Horwitz still counts as a breakout possibility because you absolutely did not notice this while it was happening."

Horwitz always had some promising hitting metrics as he rose through the minor leagues.

But to be that good isn't necessarily someone would've seen coming.

"He reached the All-Star break hitting only .232/.298/.329," Petriello wrote. "But the rest of July into August was very good (.833 OPS), and September was fantastic (1.089 OPS), and all of a sudden, Horwitz has gone from an afterthought to a particularly interesting piece in what Pittsburgh hopes is a revitalized lineup."

MORE: Big Papi's son has a special moment for the Red Sox

The Pirates made a bunch of additions this offseason, which isn't normally their way of operating, so that has created plenty of excitement already.

If Horwitz's improvements are real, then that's almost like another addition, too.

Keep an eye on him. This could be one of the biggest X-factors in the Pirates chasing a surprise division title in 2026.

More MLB news:

• Aaron Judge confirms Yankees fans' worst fears in WBC
• Bryce Harper had his crowning WBC moment, at least for a few minutes
• This Yankees hitter uses more than 100 bottles of cologne
• Mariners may have no choice but to promote top prospect
• Jose Altuve is making things tough on the Astros
• Cubs' Daniel Palencia completes improbable rise for Venezuela

New York Yankees fans, annoyed about Netflix being the home for the team’s Opening Day game against the San Francisco Giants, are sure to give a face palm following the announcement of a new addition for the historic broadcast.

If you haven’t noticed yet, streaming giant Netflix has made a concerted effort in recent years to get live sports content. They now have the NFL’s games on Christmas Day. Weekly content from WWE, and are the home for Jake Paul’s circus fights.

Well, beginning next week, they will officially add a slice of the MLB regular season schedule to their portfolio of live sports when they broadcast the first game of the year, the March 25 matchup between the Yankees and Giants.

The game not being on the regional networks for the legendary franchises has annoyed diehard and old school fans for the clubs. Well, those folks are sure to dislike the news about a “special guest” for the historic broadcast.

Jameis Winston will join the NY Yankees vs. SF Giants Opening Day broadcast

JAMEIS WINSTON ON OPENING NIGHT!

The NY Giants quarterback will be a special guest for Yankees vs. Giants on #OpeningNight — the first-ever MLB game on Netflix.

LIVE on Netflix March 25. Special coverage starts at 7PM ET | 4PM PT. pic.twitter.com/rTX2CGMJpm

— Netflix Sports (@netflixsports) March 20, 2026

This week, Netflix announced that New York Giants backup quarterback Jameis Winston will make an appearance during Wednesday’s broadcast. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft played baseball while at Florida State, and is a fun and energetic personality, but the addition simply makes no sense.

This will be the first MLB game ever broadcast on Netflix. Considering the service’s massive reach and wealth, you would expect them to bring in a guest with ties to the NY Yankees or Giants. Or at least to MLB. Even if they didn’t want to have an old timer, they could have still brought in a popular social media influencer who focuses on baseball.

Winston is not even a great player in the sport he plays, which isn’t baseball. The old-timer fans are sure to give an eye roll when the veteran QB makes his appearance during the game next week.

Related Headlines

• NY Mets Unveil 2026 Starting Rotation: Where Does McLean Land & Who Was Left Out?
• Is Blue Jays Rotation in Trouble After Yesavage IL News?
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Joe Burrow and Alix Earle dating rumors appeared out of nowhere after the Cincinnati Bengals QB was seen going to an Oscars afterparty with her, influencer Stassie Karanikolaou, and musician Tate McRae. Just days after the photos were released, Tom Brady seemingly took a dig at Burrow at a Fanatics event.

For the uninitiated, Brady and Earle are reportedly a thing. They’ve also been seen alongside each other on several different occasions. Earle describes their relationship as “casual.”

Casual or not, analyst Skip Bayless thinks that Brady is starting to become jealous of Burrow after he was seen partying with Earle at an Oscars afterparty.

“Tom Brady is jealous,” Bayless stated on The Arena. “I never thought I would see the day that Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr., at age 48, would be obviously, publicly jealous of a Joe Burrow over a 25-year-old influencer named Alix Earle.”

It’s quite a time that we’re living in. Ever since Brady retired, he’s continued to remain media-relevant and not just by being a color commentator for Fox on Sundays. He’s also stirred up some drama with his love life quite a bit.

Bayless referenced the story of Brady and Earle allegedly hooking up at the Super Bowl as ammo for why he thinks the GOAT is jealous of Burrow.

“People reported at the Super Bowl that Tom Brady and Alix Earle were ‘Hooking up.’ So, that got reported. And then we saw the picture on Oscar night in Los Angeles of Joe Burrow riding in a car, a black SUV, with Alix Earle, and two friends of hers,” Bayless detailed.

“We saw that, and then up on stage, Tom just takes a shot, ‘Oh, he’s the wildcat at Oscar parties.’ It’s just clear to me it’s because he’s hanging out with Tom’s girl. I’m sorry, that’s what I see,” he added.

It’s certainly been a wild and unexpected series of events. At the Fanatics Flag Football event, just days after Burrow was seen at the Oscars alongside Earle, Brady took a clear dig at the Bengals QB.

“That’s what they call Joe [Burrow] at those Oscar parties. Wildcat! At least he’s here. No fashion shows to attend to,” Brady said towards Burrow on stage via People.

The comment prompted a sheepish grin and side eye from Burrow. It’s almost as though he knew that he’s been up to something that he shouldn’t be.

However, just four days after the Oscars, Burrow squashed his romance rumors with Earle. The QB was seen attending the Fanatics Flag Football Classic party with supermodel Olivia Ponton. The two have been linked since rumors first sparked in December 2024 even though neither of them has ever confirmed or denied their relationship status.

All in all, Burrow has been creating a lot of chaos in the media lately for the women he’s been seen alongside. Brady could be legitimately upset at him for partying with his supposed girlfriend. But it’s more than likely that he was just talking some trash to ruffle some feathers ahead of the flag football game.

As analyst Kyle Brandt said about Brady recently, he’s becoming a bit of a “promoter” like a WWE superstar. He’s talking trash to Logan Paul, sparking love interests with 20-year-old models, and now talking smack to Burrow. It’s hard to decipher if he really means what he’s saying, or if he’s playing things up to get a reaction from the media. Either way, it’s working.

The post “Tom Brady Is Jealous”: Skip Bayless Drops Hot Take on Joe Burrow–Alix Earle Rumors appeared first on The SportsRush.

SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Veteran reliever Ryan Brasier has been released by the Texas Rangers.

The Rangers announced Saturday they had granted the 38-year-old right-hander his release.

Brasier went 0-1 with a 4.50 ERA in 28 appearances with the Chicago Cubs last season. He owns a 10-9 record with a 3.90 ERA and 10 saves in his nine year career.

His career has included stints with the Los Angeles Angels (2013), Boston Red Sox (2018-23), Los Angeles Dodgers (2023-24) and Cubs (2025).

___

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

New Auburn head coach Alex Golesh and his staff have lined up an impressive list of visitors for spring practice this weekend. One of the top visitors on The Plains is an elite trench monster.

Gilmer (Texas) four-star interior offensive lineman Ismael Camara is being heavily-courted by a slew of SEC programs and the Tigers are trying to up their standing with the 6-foot-6, 335-pounder.

@AuburnFootballpic.twitter.com/mRlf0w5iYa

— 5Ismael’’FREAKISH’’Camara (@Only1_iscamara) March 21, 2026

It’s the third spring SEC trip for Camara, who’s also recently gotten a look at Kentucky and Alabama. The blue-chipper isn’t going to be short-changed with his recruitment and intends on giving plenty of schools a really hard look. Auburn has piqued his interest.

“Coach Golesh and I have a lot in common,” Camara previously posted when offered by AU. “We were not born here. We found our calling a world away in a sport that is our mutual obsession. Now Auburn football intersects our American journeys.

“I am told Auburn is a special place. I want to thank Coach Golesh and Coach Hoodie for building the bridge there. I’ll build from my side too and look forward to where it leads.”

Camara is the No. 36 overall prospect and No. 4 IOL in the 2027 cycle, according to the Rivals Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all major recruiting media companies. He’s also the No. 5 player in Texas.

Thus far, SMU, Texas A&M, LSU and Texas have locked in official visits with Camara. Oregon and Tennessee are among the other programs looking to get more involved in his process. There’s still plenty of visits to be taken and programs to be sifted through before Camara comes to a decision.

Auburn landed a massive commitment last month

Golesh and Co. now have a pair of commits in their 2027 class early on. In February, the Tigers won out for Bessemer City (Ala.) four-star defensive lineman Donivan Moore.

The 6-foot-4, 280-pounder is the No. 85 overall prospect and No. 8 DL in the nation. He was trending toward AU for some time and pulled the trigger on his pledge leading into the spring.

“This is like a dream coming true for me,” Moore told Rivals’ Chad Simmons about his decision. “I’ve been an Auburn fan growing up. I watched the Iron Bowl and told myself as a kid that I wanted to play in that game. I never imagined things would happen this fast. To get the offer from Auburn and now be committed — it’s shocking.”

“Every time I go to Auburn, it feels like home,” he added. “Everyone welcomes me, and the love from Auburn’s coaches is real. It just feels right — like another home.”

Plantation (Fla.) American Heritage three-star tight end Tank Proctor is also committed to the Tigers very early on. He’s currently the No. 36 TE in the cycle.

Jets urged to consider wild George Pickens roster move with big Cowboys risk originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

This offseason, the New York Jets have been spending on their roster to build a far-better team than what they had a year ago in a disastrous season.

While there is a bit more optimism for the 2026 season, there are a few positions and roster moves the Jets need to make. One of those moves is at their number two wide receiver spot. Garrett Wilson needs a better No. 2 than Adonai Mithcell.

And to fill such a need, Bleacher Report's Kristopher Knox linked the Jets to a wild move involving George Pickens that would come with a massive risk from the Dallas Cowboys.

Jets linked to wild George Pickens decision

This idea from Knox would have the Jets using the offer sheet on Pickens, offering him a massive contract despite the Cowboys using a non-exclusive tag on the star WR.

Teams can give Pickens an offer sheet that, if the Cowboys do not match, would allow Pickens to head to a new team at the cost of two first-rounders. That's a lot to spend on a wide receiver.

"However, it could be worth considering for teams with a surplus of cap space and a need at receiver, like the New York Jets and the New England Patriots," Knox writes.

In theory, the Jets adding Pickens seems like a great idea. Because it would be. Last year for the Cowboys, Pickens had 1,429 receiving yards and nine touchdowns on 93 receptions, earning a second-team All-Pro nod and his first Pro Bowl.

However, there is a major issue with this kind of move for the Jets. They would be spending not just the massive contract that the Cowboys wouldn't match, but they would be losing two first-round picks as well.

More: Jets get bad news as Jaguars don’t look poised to trade Brian Thomas Jr. despite trade rumors

Considering that they've built up a lot of draft capital, in the form of two firsts in 2026 and three in 2027 (including what could be the Cowboys' pick), they have the draft capital and cap space to make such a stunning trade work.

However, the Jets might be better off trying to trade for Pickens instead of trying to get him to sign an offer sheet. And if the trade talks don't work, then they should use one of their first-rounders the next two years on a top WR.

As good as Pickens is, spending what would likely be around $100 million and two first-rounders on a WR on a team without a quarterback doesn't make much sense.

In theory, adding Pickens to the offense would be a fun move. But the ridiculous cost to acquire him in this proposed offer sheet idea from Knox would be far too much to give up. Only Ja'Marr Chase or Justin Jefferson would make such a cost worth it.

More Jets news:

• Breece Hall breaks silence on franchise tag
• Aaron Glenn predicted to add three QBs to NFL roster this offseason
• Jets deny Aaron Glenn was asleep at NFL Combine
• Geno Smith returning to Jets is ‘full circle’ moment for veteran QB
• Nahshon Wright agrees to $5.5 million deal with Jets in steal by Darren Mougey
• Jets traded for Geno Smith instead of signing him in free agency to avoid worst-case-scenario
• Jets predicted to draft David Bailey No. 2 overall after offseason spending

When Jalen Suggs tossed his mouthpiece off the court after he was bumped by LaMelo Ball roughly halfway through the first quarter of Thursday’s game at Charlotte, the Magic guard was quickly assessed a technical fine from official Scott Foster. What Suggs didn’t know at the time was that his wallet would take a hit, too. Suggs was fined $25,000 for “throwing his mouthpiece in the direction of the spectator stands,” the NBA announced Saturday afternoon.

Orlando Sentinel

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Jalen Suggs fined $25,000

The Utah Jazz announced today that the team has signed guard Kennedy Chandler to a 10-day contract. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not released. Chandler (6-0, 170, Tennessee) has appeared in 42 games (41 starts) for the Delaware Blue Coats of the NBA G League during the 2025-26 season, averaging 17.0 points, 9.0 assists, 2.7 rebounds, and 1.9 steals in 34.7 minutes per game.

NBA.com

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: The Utah Jazz announced today that the team has signed …

With reports the NBA may be exploring expansion for the 2028-29 season, everyone has a take on the top cities as rumors were rampant. Some basketball pundits have suggested Nashville as a franchise location. However, Nashville Predators majority owner Bill Haslam has no immediate plans to make that happen. "We're not actively bidding on anything," Predators CEO Sean Henry, speaking on behalf of Haslam, told The Tennesseean on March 19. "Those are just rumors."

The Tennessean

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Some basketball pundits have suggested Nashville as a …

Henry said there hasn't been talks between Haslam and the Grizzlies. "As far as any conversations with Memphis or the Grizzlies, that's not happened," Henry said. "I think Memphis is the right place for the Grizzlies to play and I hope they stay there forever."

The Tennessean

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Henry said there hasn't been talks between Haslam and …

Well, this team is never boring…

I had nearly finished an article about the Vikings’ quarterback situation, considering the Kyler Murray signing and the idea of a Murray-McCarthy-Brosmer/other quarterback room for 2026. Then, the Vikings unexpectedly re-signed Carson Wentz out of nowhere.

Now I don’t know what the heck is going on. Well, a bit more than usual for me, anyway.

Let’s go over the options, shall we?

It’s the Kyler Murray Show: Like those before it, featuring stars such as Jim McMahon, Warren Moon, Randall Cunningham, Jeff George, Brett Favre, Sam Bradford, Kirk Cousins, Sam Darnold, and others, it’s a reboot.

Those had varying levels of success. Heck, some even achieved an impressive number here and there. But none managed to top the Nielsen ratings, let alone build a streak of seasons at or near the top of the heap.

And so, we’re back at it in 2026. Is it finally our moment? I’ve spent the past week or so getting familiar with Murray’s time in Arizona, including its ups and downs and the main reasons for the split. This includes Warren Ludford’s in-depth look at his career to date. There is a compelling argument that the situation was more the result of a poor organization failing a talented quarterback than the other way around. Even the much-discussed schematic issues within KOC’s offense seem greatly exaggerated and overblown. Will KOC need to make some adjustments to fit Murray’s strengths? Certainly. Will it require a complete overhaul of his offensive approach? Not at all.

To no one’s surprise, Murray played well when his supporting cast was at its best. I’ve always believed that quarterbacks often get too much credit when things go well and too much blame when they don’t. That’s a discussion for another time, but for now, the 2026 Vikings’ overall roster, offensive weapons, elite defense, and coaching staff will be the best Murray has had in the NFL. If he shows anything close to his best play in Arizona, it’ll be hard to argue against 10 wins as the floor for this team. However, as mentioned, this upcoming season will primarily focus on what happens in the playoffs.

Indeed, the relatively cautious approach Rob Brzezinski and his team have taken in free agency so far could have as much to do with preparing for a potential Murray extension, if everything goes as planned, as with balancing the financial ledger after some costly free-agent contracts. Before the Wentz signing, the Vikings had around $68 million in cap space next season. A significant number could also be carried over from this year if Brian O’Neill is extended (which is good) or if Jonathan Greenard is traded (which is bad). This could hypothetically enable a heavily front-loaded extension for Murray. Also, hitting on some of our early draft picks this year could reduce the need for future free-agent spending. That would be nice, wouldn’t it?

Wentz as insurance for Murray (and McCarthy): Everything is on the line for KOC in 2026. Playoff success is essential. Despite a promising final stretch, J.J. McCarthy finished the season ranked 35th in PFF overall grade, 38th in quarterback EPA/Play, 45th in completion percentage, and had a league-high 11% sack rate. The risk is too high, and the unknowns too great, to simply hand him the starting job again without additional security.

Enter Wentz, whose last season must be viewed through the lens of a shoulder injury that would land most of us in the hospital rather than starting behind center in an NFL game. Before sustaining the injury, Wentz executed KOC’s offense efficiently. He had two games with a QB rating over 100, completed nearly 70% of his passes, averaged 253 yards passing per game, and threw five touchdowns against two interceptions. With a full offseason back at 100% health, there’s reason to be optimistic about Wentz guiding the team if needed.

J.J. McCarthy is the Vikings’ Jordan Love: Just as Love sat three full seasons behind Aaron Rodgers before being handed the starting job in 2023, another full season behind Murray (and possibly) Wentz would amount to nearly two-and-a-half seasons not starting an NFL game. An additional year to work on his mechanics, on top of the 10 starts he had in 2025, will then make him QB1 in 2027 if Murray thrives and the Vikings get outbid, or if his season is underwhelming due to an unfortunate injury or performance. I’m fairly certain Wentz is not the long-term answer.

J.J. McCarthy’s time in Minnesota is over: As much as I hate this option, denying it isn’t a realistic choice. Denial isn’t just a river in Egypt. I remain unconvinced, but if the decision has been made to move on, it would contradict KOC’s often-repeated quote: “I believe that organizations fail young quarterbacks before young quarterbacks fail organizations.” Again, proceeding with a healthy dose of skepticism, but if the whispers and rumors about KOC preferring to go with Sam Darnold or Daniel Jones last year—or even signing Aaron Rodgers—are true, and if his heart was never fully in making McCarthy the guy for 2025, then the pieces of this puzzle start to align.

I mentioned this in my last article, and it’s worth repeating. Why? Because nothing has changed in my mind.

All I know is this: I’m a huge fan of J.J. McCarthy and believe he’s still our QBOTF. Giving up after 10 starts would be incredibly misguided. I hate it with the intensity of a thousand suns. And if he goes on to be a great quarterback for another team and we’re back to square one in five years with no Super Bowl appearances, it could break a large part of the long-time fan base. That could be the final straw for those whose scars go back several decades. How much suffering can the human spirit endure? The Vikings seem to exist to answer that question.

There will be a genuine competition for the starting QB position in training camp. I saved this one for last because it’s the least likely scenario, though anything is possible. The Cubs finally won a World Series, and I actually recognized a new song on SiriusXM’s Hits 1 while in the car the other day. But the chances of J.J. McCarthy starting under center in Week 1 are probably less than 20%.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter noted earlier this week that he feels the starting quarterback job is still “fairly wide open,” but that seems to be the unconventional view. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero said that Wentz would have remained the starter if he hadn’t gotten hurt last year. While The Athletic’s Alec Lewis added that many inside the Vikings organization believed the Vikings would have indeed made the playoffs if Wentz hadn’t suffered the season-ending injury.

So what does this likely mean? Murray is #1, with the real competition between McCarthy and Wentz for the backup spot. Unfortunately, it’s too early to guarantee McCarthy at #2. He’s probably the favorite, but he’ll need to prove himself in training camp. Based on what we know, Wentz won’t make it easy.

Yes, folks, not only is there no guarantee that a healthy McCarthy won’t be the emergency quarterback when the season starts, there’s even a chance he won’t be on the roster at all.

If you’d have told me this on draft night in 2024, I’d look at you quizzically before laughing. Then I’d quickly realize I do, in fact, root for the Minnesota Vikings, shake my head, and concede: “Yeah, that checks out.”

On a related note, it’s been 9,834 days since Daunte Culpepper was drafted. For those keeping track, that’s not in the current century, you know, because it’s 2026.

But at least it won’t be boring.  

Romeo Doubs' Patriots Contract Incentives Revealed originally appeared on NESN. Add NESN as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The New England Patriots signed Romeo Doubs this offseason, and his contract has some financial incentives he can reach.

Doubs' contract with the Patriots is a four-year, $68 million pact. However, it has up to $3 million in incentives each season, which pushes the maximum total value to $80 million. He also has $31 million guaranteed over the first two seasons. 

The Boston Globe's Ben Volin revealed what the actual incentives in Doubs' contract are. He will receive $750,000 for reaching each of the following benchmarks:

• 70 receptions
• 80 receptions
• 1,000 yards
• 1,200 yards

Doubs career high for receptions is 59 and his career high for yards is 724. Reaching any of his benchmarks would mean he had a career year. However, reaching the milestones is not far-fetched.

Unlike with the Green Bay Packers, Doubs will not simply be another name in a loaded wide receiver room. Additionally, the Patriots' offensive philosophy saw Stefon Diggs record 1,000 yards last season. The Packers' philosophy is based on running the ball and spreading the wealth in the passing attack.

Doubs now joins the MVP runner-up in Drake Maye on a team that needs a new No. 1 receiver. Douvbs is very talented, and after the season, there is a chance his contract looks like a bargain.

More NFL: Patriots Reportedly Among Top-3 Teams Interested In Electrifying College QB

On an episode of Yahoo Sports’ “Football 301” podcast, host Nate Tice and NBC’s Connor Rogers examined the most intriguing and debated positions in the 2026 NFL Draft: tight end.

They dove deep into their rankings, discussed key traits that separate top prospects from the rest, and highlighted some of their favorite names that might surprise NFL teams and fans alike.

Draft your Yahoo Fantasy Baseball team for the 2026 MLB Season

Below, we recap some of the most notable tight ends — both consensus favorites and potential hidden gems — from their discussion.

The tight end class is deeper than it may appear at first glance. While Sadiq stands alone atop most boards, teams looking for role players, big-bodied blockers, or developmental freaks have options deep into Day 3.

Tice and Rogers emphasized the importance of two traits: versatility (run, catch, block) and willingness to contribute on special teams. In today’s NFL, one-trick tight ends struggle to earn roster spots. Those who can check multiple boxes, or who showcase grit, athletic potential, and a unique body type, will always have a suitor.

When draft day comes, don’t be surprised if a few of these names outside the consensus rankings end up carving out meaningful roles in the league.

No. 1 TE: Kenyon Sadiq

Tice and Rogers are in agreement: Kenyon Sadiq stands as the consensus No. 1 tight end in this draft class. While not a “perfect” prospect, Sadiq’s athletic upside and unique skills put him in his own tier. According to Tice, Sadiq’s explosiveness, willingness as a blocker, and ability to stretch the field make him a dynamic piece for a creative NFL offense— “somewhere in that archetype between Tommy Tremble and Vernon Davis.”

Rogers ranked Sadiq 14th overall on his big board. He pointed out that while Sadiq isn’t a typical 260-pound inline monster, his toughness and versatility — lining up in the backfield, blocking on the perimeter and making plays as a receiver — make him “a very, very unique player.”

Both analysts agree that Sadiq's landing spot will be huge for his development and usage.

Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Sam Roush: The pro-ready all-rounder

Stanford’s Sam Roush is the name to circle for any team that plays a lot of 12 personnel and values versatility.

Rogers raved about Roush’s “big body” (6-foot-6, 267 pounds) and readiness for the pro game, noting he’s played over 1,000 inline snaps the past two years. Roush’s blend of contact courage as a blocker and surprising yards-after-catch ability shows up on tape. While his arm length is on the shorter side, both analysts agree he’s a tough and savvy player who can contribute immediately as a role player in the NFL.

Rising stock: Eli Raridan

One of the most intriguing stories comes from Eli Raridan, who has overcome two ACL tears and is still climbing up draft boards. Rogers loves how Raridan “just climbs over linebackers,” plays with impressive receiving efficiency, and has handled heavy blocking assignments at Notre Dame. The size, the hands and the flashes are there; if Raridan can stay healthy, he's a high-upside pick with real “every-down” potential.

Max Klare and the receiving-only type

Max Klare drew “summer darling” status for both hosts — especially after flashing at Purdue. They noted his fluidity and hands as a receiver, but admitted he struggled to develop further after transferring to Ohio State. Still, as a receiving-only type, Klare could contribute as a Day 3 or fringe Day 2 selection if an NFL team uncovers untapped playmaking.

Day 3 options with upside on their development

• Dae’Quan Wright (Ole Miss): Tice and Rogers called Wright a “moose in the open field” with real pop as a blocker and after the catch. He’s imperfect, but could carve out an NFL role if asked to do what he does best: stretch the field and provide a physical presence.

• Justin Joly (NC State): Excellent hands and contested-catch ability, though both had questions about his speed and separation against higher-level competition.

• Michael Trigg (Baylor): Rogers described him as a high-variance, highlight-friendly prospect with incredible length (“inspector gadget arms”) but an inconsistent game and blocking effort.

• Carsen Ryan (BYU): A former 4-star recruit, Ryan didn’t get a scouting combine invite but put up big numbers and played with a high-effort, aggressive style. Both analysts expressed surprise at his lack of buzz
  

West Virginia's WVSSAC boys basketball Class AA championship: live updates from Wheeling Central vs. Wyoming East originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

CHARLESTON, West Virginia, March 21 — West Virginia's WVSSAC boys basketball championships take place Saturday in Charleston, West Virginia.

The second game of the day will feature the Wheeling [WV] Central Catholic Maroon Knights against the Wyoming East [New Richmond, WV] Warriors in the Class AA title tilt.

The game will tip off after the Class A title game with a tentative start set for 12:30 p.m. EST local.

STREAM:Watch Wheeling Central Catholic vs. Wyoming East on the NFHS Network

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Refresh for updates

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FOURTH QUARTER

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54.7 to play, and Wheeling Central Catholic leads 54-39.

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1:40 to play, it's still Wheeling Catholic Central up big, 51-39.

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3:30, it's 47-33, Wheeling Central Catholic in control.

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5:30 to play, it's Wheeling Central Catholic up, 45-33.

__________

At the 6:00 mark, it's suddenly up to 45-30 in Wheeling Central Catholic's favor.

__________

The fourth quarter is under way!

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END OF THIRD QUARTER — Wheeling Central Catholic 38, Wyoming East 28

__________

At the 2:10 mark, it's Wheeling Central Catholic, 38-28.

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Under three to play, it's Wheeling Central Catholic, 35-28.

__________

4:11 to play, and W/heeling Central Catholic has its largest lead of the game at 35-25.

__________

5:07 to play, Wheeling Central Catholic up, 31-25.

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At the 6:10 mark, it's 29-23, Wheeling Central Catholic.

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The third quarter is under way!

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END OF SECOND QUARTER — Wheeling Central Catholic 24, Wyoming East 23

__________

Under two, it's Wheeling Central Catholic up 22-20.

__________

Just inside five minutes, it's 19-16 Wheeling Central Catholic.

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The second quarter is under way!

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END OF FIRST QUARTER — Wheeling Central Catholic 15, Wyoming East 13

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It's 10-all with two to play.

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At the 3:30 mark, it's Wheeling Central Catholic up, 10-8.

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At the 5:00 minute mark, it's Wheeling Central Catholic up, 7-5.

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They're off and running!

__________

They're about to get under way in at the Charleston Coliseum!

__________

Tip is about 20 minutes away, roughly 12:45 p.m. estimated time for this game to get under way.

__________

Coming soon! Game time is set for 12:30 p.m. EST local!

__________

How can I watch Wheeling Central Catholic vs. Wyoming East?

• Date: 12:30 p.m. EST local, Saturday, March 21
• STREAM:Watch Wheeling Central Catholic vs. Wyoming East on the NFHS Network

MORE HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL

• The latest SN High School Girls Basketball Top 25
• The Sporting News High School Boys Basketball Top 25
• South Carolina's SCHSL boys basketball state champions
• Mississippi's MHSAA boys basketball state champions
• Washington D.C.'s DCSAA boys basketball champions

Seahawks make expected decisions on Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Devon Witherspoon originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The reigning Super Bowl champions have made an expected decision regarding two key contributors.

The Seattle Seahawksofficially announced that they have exercised the fifth-year options on wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba and cornerback Devon Witherspoon.

Seahawks pick up fifth-year options for Smith-Njigba, Witherspoon

By exercising the options, the Seahawks keep both players under contract through the 2027 season. Both players are now also extension eligible and Seattle is expected to pursue long-term extensions with both players.

According to ESPN's Bill Barnwell, the combined annual salaries for Smith-Njigba and Witherspoon on new deals could be in the ballpark of $76 million. 

Seattle selected both players in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft. Witherspoon was the No. 5 overall pick, while Smith-Njigba was the No. 20 overall selection.

Witherspoon was named a Pro Bowler in each of his first three seasons in Seattle and he was already named one of the 50 best players in Seahawks franchise history. Smith-Njigba was named to the Pro Bowl in each of the last two seasons and he led the entire NFL in receiving in 2025.

Smith-Njigba was recently named Seattle's most underpaid player by Bleacher Report. While that may be true for now, that will no longer be the case once that extension hits. 

More NFL news: 

• Updated Minnesota Vikings QB depth chart after Carson Wentz signing
• Jerry Jones won't rule out a Maxx Crosby trade for Cowboys
• Trey Hendrickson breaks silence on leaving Bengals for Ravens in free agency
• Commanders bringing back familiar face to serve as Jayden Daniels insurance
• Travis Kelce makes final decision regarding retirement, NFL future

Bayern Munich continue their conquest of the Bundesliga. Coming off their 10-2 aggregate scoreline against Atalanta in the Champions League, Bayern were a side thriving at home against Union Berlin. The opposition were mercilessly beaten 4-0, as Bayern finally pick up a long overdue clean sheet. Here are the standout performers from tonight’s game.

Jersey Swap: Frederik Rønnow

Rule #1 of the Bundesliga rulebook for players states that every goalkeeper, when facing Bayern, is obligated to turn into prime Manuel Neuer.

Union are perhaps my second favorite team in the league and with good reason — they perfected the art of being an utter nuisance to the opposition. They play a low-block, extremely compact, and will not let you complete your passes. Their counter-attacking playing style worked because they were ruthless to pounce upon loose balls, extremely fast and fluid and had the right man at the right place to finish.

However, this Union performance was totally unlike anything I have ever seen from them. They were compact, but they were also slow. Their pace (or lack thereof) let them down as several chances were taken away by Bayern’s timely defensive interventions. Crucial figures like captain Christopher Trimmel and Rani Khedira showed clear signs of aging. It was in this setting that Frederik Rønnow’s performance mattered the most.

Six extremely crucial saves easily altered the course of tonight’s game, all made by the Dane. Bayern’s players may have lacked clinical edge tonight — several attempts going wide, far and hitting the crossbar, but the ones on target? Rønnow saved all variants — distant shots, ones in point-blank range, mid-range, you name it. His team was sinking and yet, he held their dignity together and saved them from what could have been a much worse score line. In a game when Bayern had no one to stop them, Rønnow single-handedly challenged them, making them work harder to own for their goals. And that is why he deserves the Swap.

Der Kaiser: Josip Stanišić

Earlier this season, in the Hinrunde Wrapped that our writer LoneStar hosted, I said that Serge Gnabry was the biggest surprise of the season. I believe now that laurel goes to Josip Stanišić.

The Croatian fullback has somehow completely turned his game around and the credit must go to Vincent Kompany. From the guy who was just “not bad” at both his defensive and offensive duties to a defender reborn, greedy for the ball, fighting for goals and assists, this is the version of Stanišić I always hoped would show up.

The first half featured what could have been one of the game’s biggest moments — a phenomenal cross to Lennart Karl. However, this proved to be a bust as Karl missed the shot. Within just the last three months, the Croatian has secured two goals and two assists in the league.

Stanišić had some of the highest number of touches in the opposition’s half and a majority of his touches were either the middle or the final third. A staggering 91 percent pass accuracy coupled with the fact that this was one of his most impactful games this season makes him the most deserving candidate for Der Kaiser.

Der Fussballgott: Harry Kane

This is either very disrespectful to Joshua Kimmich and Leon Goretzka, or insanely respectful to Harry Kane.To be completely fair, Kimmich had an excellent game, but Kane’s impact as the ‘quarterback’ really needs to be spoken about.

A striker whose heatmap looks more like Andrea Pirlo than a classic number 9, Harry Kane redefined what it meant to be a striker. The term quarterback is often used, but really there is no term good enough for Kane who has somehow partially filled the shoes of a certain Thomas Müller.

53 goals, 5 assists with 58 G/A in all three competitions this season — these are clearly the numbers of a striker, so what is he getting Der Fussballgott for?

Most strikers wait to be supplied. Harry Kane IS the supply.

Any striker at his level could easily complain about the nature of tonight’s game — claim the low block kept him from getting the ball, the crowded box kept him from scoring and that his teammates would not pass him the ball. But not the English talisman — he dropped into the deep-lying playmaker’s spot. He played several crucial long balls to the overload created by the full-backs, the wingers and everyone’s progressed far enough. He was the initiator of the counter-press as and when needed and most importantly, he drew the defenders ont0 him so that whoever progressed into the final third could do so uninterrupted.

The only player in the world who can both be the best defensive midfielder in the game AND bag a brace like it’s that easy.

Der Bomber: Michael Olise

What’s a Muller_Era article these days without a story or too many references?

Back in the 1800s, Paris was a city that resembled a maze, as supposed to the boulevards we now see. This irked the then-Emperor Napolean III for several reasons. As we know, France was a boiling pot, a country in constant rebellion. The width of these lanes made it easier for rebels to block it and restrict the military’s entry. Additionally, disease ran rampant in Europe back then and Napolean intended to change this too. Last but not least, Napolean cared deeply about image and wanted to be remembered as the man who made Paris a modern architectural wonder.

The solution to all his problems lay in the hands of an architect, Baron Haussmann, who executed the Emperor’s will. Haussmann constructed wide boulevards, implemented a standard template to Parisian buildings and created the modern sewer systems — all of which dramatically changed the landscape of the city.

Perhaps the French make the best architects — for the architect of Bayern’s attack is none other than Michael Olise.

This game could have easily turned into an affair where Bayern were congested, unable to move from Union’s low block. A team that thrived on suffocating their opponents in narrow lanes was met with the Haussmann of Bayern, who wielded a sledgehammer that utterly destroyed Union’s attempts at choking Bayern. Olise flowed, creating space for Bayern magic. He worked in the tiniest of spaces and created magic.

Referencing SofaScore for his passing map, because this is perhaps the best form of evidence.

To further cement his impact, let me bring his goal into picture. Nearing half-time, Goretzka played a long ball from behind, that reached Olise. Olise took a stunning first touch on the ball, and then cuts in to make a lethal finish. Olise breaking the deadlock with this goal was the most important factor behind Bayern’s extraordinary display that followed.

(Historical note: Haussmann is also widely criticized for displacing several people from their homes and for destroying old Parisian architecture. Olise has no such flaws to his credit.)

Meister of the Match: Chef Serge Gnabry

Serge Gnabry had his best performance of the season tonight and we absolutely need to talk about it.

Dear Serge, if you are reading this, I am truly sorry. I said I preferred Lennart Karl on the left wing over you but my god, you made me eat my words and for that I am both deeply sorry and extremely happy.

I worried about Gnabry’s pace and passing accuracy. I was happily proven wrong on both accounts — as he finished his stint with a 96% accuracy. He was absolutely on fire — his flank passed a whopping 42% of the attack through it. Gnabry’s finishing needs no introduction and it should come as no surprise that both his shots on target were converted into goals. But, additionally, his goals tonight were special and definitely need to be a part of the discussion.

Gnabry’s first goal can made me chuckle. Stanišić gets a fantastic ball to Olise, who then shoots it. It barely misses the entire Union defense and goalkeeper Rønnow barely gets a touch on it an. This ball then lands at Gnabry’s feet. Poor Rønnow’s life flashed in front of his eyes perhaps, as Gnabry pounced upon that poorly saved ball and smashed a volley into the net.

The second goal came from some fantastic teamwork. Olise does this gorgeous spin first to get off the two defenders on him, and then does a little one-one with Konrad Laimer (that partnership is sorely missed) and gets it to Gnabry who does a stunning close-range finish.

No Lucho? No problem. Bayern Munich’s chef is home.

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What do you think about the awards? Who else do you think deserved a shout? Let us know in the comments!

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If you are looking for more Bayern Munich and German national team coverage, check out the latest episodes of Bavarian Podcast Works, which you can get on Acast, Spotify, Apple, or any leading podcast distributor…

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Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is live TODAY (Sat., March 21, 2026)with UFC London, streaming live online via Paramount+. The event is happening inside O2 Arena, at 1 p.m. ET this afternoon (start time details here). The main event is Movsar Evloev vs. Lerone Murphy in what should be a Featherweight title eliminator match-up.

UFC London Preview

UFC London’s main event pits two undefeated fighters against each other for a likely shot at a belt (right?!?!?). The problem is, these are two of the least hyped and discussed undefeated fighters we’ve ever seen in UFC.

Evloev has dominated everyone he’s faced. However, because of always taking them to decisions, he’s not exactly got fans clamoring for him to get a title shot. Don’t call him boring, though … he hates that.

Murphy has been a little more exciting than Evloev, finishing Aaron Pico with a spinning elbow in his last fight. However, he’s not really captured much attention (unlike a few select others in the Featherweight rankings).

It seems likely that the winner of this will get a title shot. However, it wouldn’t be too surprising if either got passed over in favor of someone else who gets a big win and captures a lot of attention while doing so.

The co-main for this one is Luke Riley vs. Michael Aswell Jr. Riley is undefeated, too. He’s a highly-touted prospect out of Paddy Pimblett’s gym who fight fans must keep their eyes on.

The main card also has Michael ‘Venom’ Page vs. Sam Patterson, which might be a bit of a spite booking for Page (who is not very pleased with the state of UFC right now).

The main card also has Iwo Baraniewski, who was part of one of the wildest rounds in UFC history last year. He’s taking on human heavy bag, Austen Lane. The streaking Christian Leroy Duncan also meets the slumping Roman Dolidze, while up-and-comer Kurtis Campbell will be tested by Danny Silva.

The “Prelims” have a lot of interesting prospects, including former OKTAGON double champ, Losene Keita (who fights Nathaniel Wood), and Mario Pinto (whose got Felipe Franco).

UFC London Start Date and Time

We’re doing things a little different this weekend.

This event is airing during primetime in the United Kingdom. That means an earlier start for us on this side of the Atlantic.

• UFC London’s “Prelims” will begin at 1 p.m. ET.
• UFC London’s main card is scheduled to start at 4 p.m. ET.
• All of UFC London airs on Paramount+, which you can stream here.

The live blog here starts rolling at 1 p.m. ET. Join us and chat it up in the comments below.

UFC LONDON QUICK RESULTS

Main card

• 145 lbs.: Movsar Evloev vs. Lerone Murphy
• 145 lbs.: Luke Riley vs. Michael Aswell
• 170 lbs.: Michael Page vs. Sam Patterson
• 205 lbs.: Ibo Baraniewski vs. Austen Lane
• 185 lbs.: Roman Dolidze vs. Christian Leroy Duncan
• 145 lbs.: Kurtis Campbell vs. Danny Silva

Prelims

• 155 lbs.: Mason Jones vs. Axel Sola
• 145 lbs.: Nathaniel Wood def. Losene Keita by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• 265 lbs.: Mario Pinto def. Felipe Franco by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• 185 lbs.: Mantas Kondratavicius def. Antonio Trocoli by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-27, 29-27)
• 265 lbs.: Brando Pericic def. Louie Sutherland by TKO (punches), round 1 (1:48)
• 155 lbs.: Abdul Kareem Al-Selwady def. Shem Rock by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• 115 lbs.: Shanelle Dyer def. Ravenna Oliveira by TKO (head kick and punches), round 2 (1:17)
• 135 lbs.: Melissa Mullins vs. Luana Carolina – CANCELED (details here)

UFC LONDON PLAY-BY-PLAY UPDATES

Prelims

Nathaniel Wood vs. Losene Keita: These two put on a close and highly technical fight. There weren’t many big moments, though. That’s the norm with a Nathaniel Wood fight. Keita looked very good, but just didn’t do enough to stop Wood from coming forwards and implementing his cautious yet effective game.

Official decision: Nathaniel Wood def. Losene Keita by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

Mario Pinto vs. Felipe Franco: Pinto failed to live up to his hype in this one. He looked patient at first, but that soon drifted into looking passive. Franco looked good in his short notice debut and was able to stifle and ware out Pinto. Pinto ended up doing just enough to earn the decision, but the fight was a dud.

Official decision: Mario Pinto def. Felipe Franco by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Mantas Kondratavicius vs. Antonio Trocoli: Trocoli’s anti-fighting made this a bit of a slog to get through. Kondratavicius, after being held against the fence in the first, almost got a finish in the second. He was tired in the third, though. Kondratavicius is the obvious winner in his debut here and that’s first time he’s ever gone the distance.

Mantas Kondratavičius with a slick elbow in RD2 👀

[ #UFCLondon | LIVE NOW on @ParamountPlus ] pic.twitter.com/9LW0TAVGKo

— UFC (@ufc) March 21, 2026

Official result: Mantas Kondratavicius def. Antonio Trocoli by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-27, 29-27)

Louie Sutherland vs. Brnado Pericic: Percic continued to look like a very interesting prospect at Heavyweight. He and Sutherland threw heavy shots at each other, but his landed with far more power. Sutherland eventually crumbled under that pressure, including some nasty clinch knees and uppercuts.

Back-to-back victory for him 👏

Brando Peričić earns the RD1 TKO win in dominant fashion!

[ #UFCLondon | LIVE NOW on @ParamountPlus ] pic.twitter.com/2Tro9Q1Vii

— UFC (@ufc) March 21, 2026

Official decision: Brando Pericic def. Louie Sutherland by TKO (punches), round 1 (1:48)

Shem Rock vs. Abdul Kareem Al-Selwady: Rock started well, but after he got stung be Al-Selwady half-way through the first he got shy. Rock was very tentative from that point on and that meant Al-Selwady was able to come on and land lots of offense across the rest of the fight. As things went longer Rock locked to have less and less ideas.

They're trading early 👀@ShemrockUFC vs @SelwadyMMA

[ #UFCLondon | LIVE NOW on @ParamountPlus ] pic.twitter.com/M9spfrMgwU

— UFC (@ufc) March 21, 2026

Official decision: Abdul Kareem Al-Selwady def. Shem Rock by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Shanelle Dyer vs. Ravenna Oliveira: Oliveira looked very game in the first round, throwing lots of punches but not handing very efficiently. Dyer was landing, especially to the legs. In the second round she went upstairs and hurt Oliveira with a head kick before finishing her on the ground. That’s an impressive debut for the Contender Series grad.

WHAT A DEBUT WIN 😮‍💨

Shanelle Dyer earns the TKO victory in RD2!

[ #UFCLondon | LIVE NOW on @ParamountPlus ] pic.twitter.com/uPnmuwGwIM

— UFC (@ufc) March 21, 2026

Official decision: Shanelle Dyer def. Ravenna Oliveira by TKO (head kick and punches), round 2 (1:17)

Live stream begins at 1 p.m. ET. …

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For more UFC London: “Murphy vs. Evloev” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.

Bragantino and Botafogo are set for the clash this Saturday (21) in the Brasileirão.

The match opens the eighth round of the championship and takes place at the Cícero de Souza Marques stadium in Bragança Paulista.

Both teams take the field looking to end bad streaks this season.

Massa Bruta hasn't won in five rounds, while Glorioso has lost the last four matches in the competition.

Check out the starting lineups below:

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Bragantino

Vagner Mancini returns to using his main players after resting part of the team in the last round.

Left-back Juninho Capixaba and forward Lucas Barbosa return to the starting lineup after serving suspensions.

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Botafogo

Defender Barboza and midfielder Allan are available again after serving suspensions in the last round.

Only the Argentine regains his position in the starting lineup.

Santi Rodríguez, Joaquín Correa, Matheus Martins, and Júnior Santos form the offensive sector.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.

SAN DIEGO—Getting into March Madness is nothing new for Utah State, which is in the NCAA Tournament for the 26^th time including six of the last seven tourneys. But winning a game has been far more rare.

Friday’s victory over Villanova was just the third time in the last 50 years the 9th-seeded Aggies (29-6) made the second round. Their last trip to the Sweet 16 was in 1970, when the tourney only had 25 entries.

Utah State won the Mountain West regular season and conference tournament titles, though Villanova was only the third NCAA tourney opponent it played this season. That likely contributed to it getting a No. 9 seed despite being ranked in the Top 30 by KenPom.com.

To better understand the Aggies, we reached out to Matt Hanifan from SB Nation sister site MW Connection for some insight and a score prediction. Below are his simple answers to our convoluted questions:

AZ Desert Swarm: Utah State shot 62.5 percent in the second half against Villanova and only missed two shots in the final 12 minutes. What has been the key to the Aggies’ offensive success this season?

Matt Hanifan: “Aggies head coach Jerrod Calhoun is one of the more innovative minds in the country with how his offenses have multiple layers to their actions. Their offense is driven by ball and player movement. Rarely will you see Utah State’s offense completely stagnate in the halfcourt, where it ranks in the top 35 nationally in assist percentage. Mason Falslev and MJ Collins (as well as point guard Drake Allen) are the drivers behind that.”

Leading scorers Mason Falslev and MJ Collins combined for 42 points in the first round. What are their best skills, and where do they struggle?

“Collins is a flat-out bucket getter. That’s his MO. He can score from all three levels and is a very good off movement as a secondary creator. He’s also one of Utah State’s more athletic play finishers in transition. Falslev is Utah State’s Swiss Army knife. He’s not as dynamic a scorer, and he’s not very athletic. But he’s an outstanding processor on both ends of the floor. His superpower is his brain, where he’s oftentimes a few steps ahead of his opponent. Both players are pretty savvy in the passing lanes as well, especially Falslev.”

The Aggies made the most of the eight turnovers they forced on Friday, scoring 18 points off them, and for the season they get a takeaway on more than 20 percent of possessions. How have they been so successful in this area?

“Utah State primarily utilizes a shape-shifting matchup zone that will throw the rhythm of opposing offenses off. One second, they’ll be in a 2-3 zone. The next? Well, they’re in man. There’s no true shape to its zone; it’s amoebic. The Aggies have good ball pressure and do an excellent job forcing deflections/turnovers on the defensive end, allowing them to get out in transition for easy opportunities.

Arizona dominates teams in the paint, both by getting to the rim and drawing fouls to go to the line. How do you expect Utah State to handle this from a defensive standpoint?

“On paper, Motiejus Krivas will be a handful for Utah State. And it’s not just him; Brayden Burries and Koa Peat will be, too. I expect Utah State to do its best to congest the paint in its zone to try and force Arizona to beat them from deep. Utah State’s also going to have to buckle down on the defensive glass against Arizona, too, which is a tall task (figuratively and literally).”

Jerrod Calhoun has continued the trend of Utah State coaches to have instant success, and rumors are he could also be the latest to quickly move to another job. Could Sunday be his last game with the Aggies?

“Understandably, Calhoun has been linked to the Cincinnati job, his alma mater. Though his buyout is $4 million after this season, and the program will be transitioning into a better, more powerful Pac-12 next season, so I think there’s less than a 50 percent chance that Sunday is his last game (should USU lose). But anything is possible in the coaching carousel at this time of year. Money talks.”

Prediction time. Does Utah State make it to the second weekend for the first time, knocking off a title contender in the process, or does Arizona make a third straight Sweet 16 and fourth in five seasons under Tommy Lloyd? Give us a score prediction.

“I think Arizona wins 82-66. The Wildcats are too talented, point blank.”

Yesterday, facing off against Nick Pivetta and what may well have been a preview of the Padres Opening Day lineup, the Rockies managed a convincing 9-3 victory. Combining 14 hits across ten different batters, the offensive outburst was a team effort. Similarly, on the pitching side, six different pitchers combined to only allow four hits and two walks while striking out seven.

Today, the Rockies take on the Kansas City Royals at Surprise Stadium in a duel between both teams Opening Day starters.

For the Royals, that means Cole Ragans will be on the mound. After a fourth place finish in the AL Cy Young race in 2024, shoulder problems limited Ragans to 61.2 innings last year.

So far this spring Ragans has struggled to keep runs off the board and enters todays contest with an 8.44 ERA. That can largely be attributed to his second start of the spring in which he allowed six runs in fewer than two innings.

Opposing him will be Kyle Freeland in his final tune up before his franchise record fifth Opening Day start. Between his two other spring training starts and his exhibition game against team USA, Freeland has looked sharp (two runs/seven strikeouts) in limited innings (six).

He has yet to exceed a pitch count of 43 this spring, so how high he’s able to push that number in this final outing will inform how long Warren Schaeffer will be able to use him on Opening Day.

First Pitch: 1:05 pm MDT

TV: None

Radio: ALT 96.5 (Royals)

MLB Gameday: Live Box Score

Lineups:

Saturday sun ☀️ pic.twitter.com/uOkCpJaASE

— Colorado Rockies (@Rockies) March 21, 2026

One more time from the Valley. pic.twitter.com/eU3ofbQbBq

— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) March 21, 2026

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Please keep in mind our Purple Row Community Guidelines when you’re commenting. Thanks!

Manchester United Women star Hinata Miyazawa has won the Asian Cup with Japan.

Fantastic season

The Japanese international signed for Manchester United in 2023 from MyNavi Sendai.

She has played 77 times for the Red Devils, scoring three goals.

Miyazawa has truly become a crucial first-team option this season, and Manchester United have missed her since she has been away at the cup.

Head coach Marc Skinner has previously described her as “one of the most intelligent midfielders” he has ever seen.

United will hope that she will be available as soon as possible, as the Red Devils will take on Bayern Munich in the Champions League and runaway leaders Manchester City in the league before the end of the month.

Asian Cup

The midfielder has been wonderful for her country once again, as they came out on top in the tournament.

She scored a hat-trick in an 11-0 romp over India in the group stage and played in every other match of the cup.

The diminutive midfielder also grabbed an assist in the 4-0 win over Vietnam.

Miyazawa also played a decisive role in the 7-0 destruction of the Philippines and the 4-1 win over South Korea in the semi-final.

She played the entire 90 minutes of the final against Australia, as they ran out 1-0 winners after an early goal from Maika Hamano.

The club’s website reported on the victory by commenting, “United midfielder Hinata Miyazawa will return to Manchester as an Asian Cup winner, following Japan’s 1-0 victory over holders Australia on Saturday.”

She played in every match for the Japanese side, just like she had for Manchester United in all 32 matches they had played up to the beginning of the tournament in Australia.

The club also stated, “congratulations, Hini – we look forward to welcoming you back soon!”

Hinata Miyazawa Asia Cup stats

Featured Image Molly Darlington via Getty Images

online polls

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The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social

Superlatives abound

The math is officially over. With Marcus Blaze’s Consi-Semi Tech paired with Oklahoma State’s Troy Spratley falling to Vince Robinson, Penn State mathematically clinched the 2026 NCAA Team Championship—It’s 5th straight, 13th in 15 years with Cael Sanderson as Head Coach, and 14th in program history. It is another “That’s What We Do” party in Cleveland as Cael Sanderson adds more hardware to the trophy case before the finals even begin. Speaking of the finals—if the favored Lions win tonight, the team is on pace to break the all time scoring record at the tournament for the 3rd consecutive year.

Recap

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Consolation SemiFinals

133 lbs – (3) Marcus Blaze, Penn State TF (15) Tyler Knox, Stanford, 20-4

Marcus Blaze used his elite snap, go-behind series for his first takedown. After conceding a quick escape, Blaze went back to the well with an underhook-to-snap transition, eventually chasing down both legs to extend the lead. By the time he finished a single leg at the 1:17 mark of the first, the rout was on.

Knox proved sticky on top in the second, but Blaze remained composed. He fought through a five-count stalling warning on Knox before getting a reversal. In typical Penn State fashion, Blaze looked for the bonus points, utilizing an optional start to get back to neutral where he converted a takedown right at the buzzer. He finished the job in the third with another reversal and an ankle pick to seal the 20-4 Technical Fall in 5:45.

157 lbs – (1) PJ Duke, Penn State DEC (7) Kannan Webster, Illinois, 7-3

Duke misdirected to an outside step single and, despite Webster’s world-class balance, finished the sequence with a back trip for the opening takedown. Duke’s heavy hands and relentless snaps dictated the pace for the remainder of the first period.

In the second, Duke stayed aggressive with a sharp re-attack takedown that pushed the riding time over the minute mark. Webster rode tough in the third, killing riding time and Before PJ escaped—ending in a comfortable 7-3 Decision. It was a professional win against a Big Ten foe that kept Duke’s momentum rolling toward the top of the podium.

3rd Place Matches

133 lbs – (3) Marcus Blaze, Penn State LOST (4) Aaron Seidel, Virginia Tech, 5-0 Dec

3rd Place between Marcus Blaze and Aaron Seidel was a tactical stalemate that didn’t go the Nittany Lions’ way. After a scoreless first period defined by heavy hand fighting, Seidel showed Pennsylvania-grade top chops in riding Blaze for the entire second period. That three-minute ride proved to be the difference-maker, as it gave Seidel the riding time advantage and forced Blaze to create action in the third.

Blaze opted for an optional release to start the final frame, trailing 1-0. While hunting for the winning takedown, Seidel countered a Blaze shot into a neutral danger takedown. Seidel rode out the remainder of the match to secure the 5-0 Decision.

157 lbs – (1) PJ Duke, Penn State Teched (8) Brandon Cannon, Ohio State, 20-4 TF

Duke went to work immediately with a 2-on-1 to a knee pick, doubling off for a powerful takedown. He followed that up with a slick underhook throw-by that sent Cannon to his back for a takedown and two near-fall points. By the end of the first, Duke held a commanding 8-1 lead.

The match paused in the second as Cannon went through concussion protocol following an escape. On the resumption of action, Duke pounced for a go-behind takedown to push the lead to 11-2. Duke’s third-period pace was relentless, scoring on another throw-by and a scrambled single leg. After a fast mercy escape to a broken Cannon, Duke pounced one last time to secure the 20-4 technical fall in 6:36.

Team Race

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The Team Trophies are likely allocated before the Finals, with the Buckeyes having a chance to bonus their way onto the podium with Mendez and Davino wrestling.

Schedule

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Upcoming Penn State Bouts

Session VI (National Finals)

#b1g-widget{max-width:600px;margin:0 auto;font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;border:1px solid #e2e8f0;border-radius:4px;background-color:#fff;overflow:hidden}#b1g-widget-header{background-color:rgb(22,11,90);color:#fff;padding:15px 15px 12px}#b1g-widget table{width:100%;border-collapse:collapse;font-size:15px;text-align:left}#b1g-widget th{background-color:#f8f9fa;border-bottom:2px solid rgb(22,11,90);color:#111;font-weight:700;padding:12px 15px}#b1g-widget td{padding:12px 15px;border-bottom:1px solid #edf2f7;vertical-align:top}#b1g-widget tr:nth-child(even){background-color:#f8f9fa}.psu-wrestler{font-weight:800;color:#000;display:block}.opp-wrestler{font-weight:600;color:#2d3748}.mobile-vs{display:none}#b1g-widget-footer{padding:20px 15px;border-top:2px solid rgb(22,11,90);background-color:#f8f9fa}.btn-primary{display:inline-block;padding:10px 16px;background-color:rgb(22,11,90);color:#fff!important;text-decoration:none;border-radius:4px;font-size:14px;font-weight:700}.btn-secondary{display:inline-block;padding:10px 16px;background-color:transparent;border:1px solid rgb(22,11,90);color:rgb(22,11,90)!important;text-decoration:none;border-radius:4px;font-size:14px;font-weight:700}.attribution{font-size:12px;color:#718096;text-align:center;border-top:1px solid #edf2f7;padding-top:15px;margin-top:20px}@media (max-width:480px){#b1g-widget th,#b1g-widget td{padding:8px 6px; font-size:13px;}.hide-mobile{display:none}.mobile-vs{display:block;margin-top:6px;font-size:14px;color:#2d3748;font-weight:600}}

Helpful Resources

Bubbaland.net aka the “BubbaPage”

BSDWrestle’s play-by-play maestro Bubba has a ton of great stuff on his site; some features:

• It auto-refreshes every 30 seconds so you don’t have to
• It’s got a bunch of tabs at the bottom: be sure to navigate to them!
• Session Tabs (e.g. “Sat Morn”) include bout info like Round, Penn State wrestlers & their opponents with seeds—and mat assignments!
• Streaming Tab: has hyperlinks for days.
• Data Tab: for new wrestling fans & diehards. Here are a few tables, but there are more in there: take a look!

BSD Tourney Pool on WrestleStat

Bubba set this up for us: Learn More

On Wrestling & the Penn State Team

• So, You Want To Check Out That Wrestling Thing… (’25–‘26 edition)
  A primer on the positions, scoring, and rules of NCAA (folkstyle) Wrestling
• Cleveland-Bound: Profiles and Scoring Stats for the Nittany Lion Ten
  Learn more about the 10 Penn State Wrestlers competing at the championships

BSD 2026 NCAA Wrestling Championships Hub

Links to all our coverage this year.

When Liverpool came to Brighton last May, the away end was in party mode at the full-time whistle despite the defeat as they sang and celebrated with inflatables and balloons.

By then, Arne Slot's side had won the Premier League title and a trip to the south coast was another excuse to enjoy themselves. And rightly so.

Ten months on, Liverpool tasted defeat against Fabian Hurzeler's side again but this time the away end was half empty by the time Slot made his way over to the travelling supporters.

Their latest defeat is the 10th in the league this season, making it only the seventh time the reigning Premier League champions have lost 10 or more games during their title defence.

Since starting the campaign with five wins on the trot, Slot's side have won just nine of their next 26 games in the league. With that kind of form, Liverpool do not look like a team that has it in them to qualify for the Champions League.

It is all but certain that the Premier League will get an extra place in the Champions League and Liverpool currently occupy that fifth spot, though they have a game in hand on sixth-placed Chelsea who play later on Saturday.

Much had been made in the build-up about the 62 hours Liverpool had to prepare between their Champions League win over Galatasaray at Anfield and this trip to Brighton.

With Alisson and Mohamed Salah forced out with injuries, Liverpool's situation worsened when striker Hugo Ekitike was forced off early on.

"What went wrong started off with the lead up to this game," Slot said.

"As so many times has happened this season, when we played a very good game [against Galatasaray] and we thought we could bring that level to the next game, or even better, we had Mo Salah injured, we had Alisson injured and, after two minutes, Hugo Ekitike out.

"That has happened to us so many times this season and what happened to us a lot this season is that the first chance of the other team immediately went in.

"But in the second half Brighton were the better team and deserved to win."

Slot was the first to say that his side deserved to lose here and it would hardly have surprised him. Of their 10 Premier League games this season following a Champions League fixture, Liverpool have lost five of them.

Questions have to be asked about fitness and, despite spending £450m in the summer, Liverpool lack proper squad depth.

"It makes complete sense if you win the league last season and you spent £450m that the expectations are high, and those expectations were high for the pundits, for the media, for me, for the fans," said Slot.

"At our club we're also looking at the situation and the challenge we had during this season, and then we might be a bit more realistic [about] why the season has gone why it is gone.

"But still it's not good enough no matter how much excuses I can come up with - it's still not good enough for the position we're in right now."

'A backwards step for Liverpool'

Liverpool's only goal at the Amex came from a Brighton mistake and, even after going behind again in the second half, Slot said that the Seagulls were more likely to make it 3-1 rather than his side earning a draw.

"This is a backwards step for Liverpool," said former Premier League goalkeeper Rob Green on 5 Live. "You just don't know what you are getting from this team. The spine of the team is not there. They are looking around saying 'what's going on?'. They can't find an answer."

As ever, it would be hard to pin the blame entirely on the manager but, ultimately, it is his team that are regularly underperforming.

For a man who has always emphasised his desire to play good football, he cannot have enjoyed what he has seen for bulks of this season.

Liverpool were superb in midweek against Galatasaray but have been woeful in their past three Premier League games picking up just one point against Wolves, Tottenham and Brighton.

Those 62 hours between Galatasaray and Brighton are gone and it is now about the next fortnight, where most of the Liverpool players will be on international duty. Slot will know that it may well go a long way to defining his future.

"Let's hope the national team coaches help us out by not playing 180 minutes over two games," he pleaded on Match of The Day.

When they come back, Liverpool travel to Manchester City for their FA Cup quarter-final against Pep Guardiola's side before a trip to Paris to take on Paris St-Germain in the same stage of the Champions League. The return leg at Anfield is six days later.

"If they go and play like that in Paris it could be 10-0," said former Liverpool left-back Stephen Warnock on 5 Live.

"That's how bad Liverpool were today. Brighton weren't clinical and tried to walk it in, but PSG will be clinical. It's very, very worrying for Liverpool"

With seven top-flight games left, Liverpool's tally of 10 Premier League defeats this season is already their most since 2015-16.

When BBC Sport asked Slot if it was a worry that his side is making the wrong kind of records, he responded: "Of course. It says a few things.

"First of all, it says what a great team Liverpool have had in the last 10 years and a great manager as well. I could come and tell you all the reasons why we've lost this season 10 times.

"One of them is late goals. Today sums it all up in terms of our injury problems - to go without three great goalscorers [Ekitike, Isak and Salah] is never helpful for any team.

"But it's not my job to make excuses. My job is to find answers and that's what I tried to do again today.

Slot has already conceded that it would be unacceptable if Liverpool are not playing Champions League football next season, even if he stays in the job.

And the reality is that he needs answers quickly or else those unwanted records may no longer be his only worry.

• Latest Liverpool news, analysis and fan views
• Ask about Liverpool - what do you want to know?

Bayern Munich head coach Vincent Kompany said that he will talk to Germany national team boss Julian Nagelsmann regarding his players, especially as midfielder Aleksandar Pavlović is battling an undisclosed injury.

“I’ll speak to Julian [Nagelsmann] again. We’re always in close exchange. There’s no big difference between what the national team wants and what we want. They have two friendlies, they want to keep the players fit for the World Cup. It’s our goal as well. We’ll speak to the doctors and then make the right decision,” Kompany said (as captured by @iMiaSanMia).

There is definitely concern as Bayern Munich is attempting to prepare for a serious run at a treble. The Bavarians can ill afford any serious injuries to key players — or even subs. Depth will be key in helping Kompany manage the daunting schedule ahead.

For Pavlović, a conservative approach will be key. No one wants to see the youngster at risk in two (essentially) meaningless games for Germany.

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If you are looking for more Bayern Munich and German national team coverage, check out the latest episodes of Bavarian Podcast Works, which you can get on Acast, Spotify, Apple, or any leading podcast distributor…

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Jersey Bulls remain in play-off contention in Isthmian League South East after a 2-0 win over nine-man Eastbourne Town at Springfield.

The win means they are level on points with fifth-placed Faversham Town and are only below them on goals scored.

Rai Dos Santos, who scored a hat-trick in Bulls' last home game, was again in fine form as he forced an excellent save from the visiting goalkeeper in the first half.

He gave the islanders the lead 30 seconds after the break as he slotted home after a good pass from Miguel Carvalho.

JJ Walker was sent off three minutes later for a second booking before teammate Eliot Jenks followed him after a straight red card.

With the extra space and men Bulls took control - Carvalho hit the crossbar while Dos Santos saw another effort saved.

But Adam Trotter made the game safe with 15 minutes left as he curled an effort into the net.

Eastbourne defended well to keep the score down as Bulls kept up their unbeaten run in 2026.

Related internet links

• Jersey Bulls

There are hardly any away trips in the Bundesliga more awesome than to the Signal Iduna Park, which holds over 80,000 spectators. And there are hardly any better opportunities to score your first Bundesliga goal.

That’s exactly the dream Philip Otele is living right now. The Nigerian, whom HSV signed from FC Basel in the winter, has just scored a surprising 1-0 lead for the visitors in the top match against BVB.

The left winger, who has often been a bit unlucky in recent weeks, was brilliantly set up by William Mikelbrencis and only had to tap the ball over the line from close range.

Before that, Mikelbrencis had won the ball in a spirited duel against Daniel Svensson.

Will HSV really pull off the sensation in Dortmund and thus almost certainly secure their place in the league?

Hamburg managed to provide another argument for that still in the first half. After a flawless assist from HSV ace Fabio Vieira, Lokonga increased the lead to 2-0 for the visitors. 

So far, Kovac’s team seems to have few answers to this surprising turn of events. 

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.

Guardians fans will see Gabriel Arias as the team’s starting shortstop to begin 2026. How long will he stay there?

Readers of this blog may recall that I have been staunchly of the opinion that the Guardians should start Brayan Rocchio at short and let Travis Bazzana or Juan Brito try their hand at second base to begin 2026, allowing Arias and Daniel Schneemann to compete for the utility role. In over 1,000 major league plate appearances, Arias has a 76 wRC+. His defense at short – especially his bazooka of an arm – has been good. But Arias is 342nd in wRC+ out of 360 MLB hitters with 1,000 plate appearances or more since 2021. That is simply not good enough to hold a place in a major league lineup.

However, Arias is about to get one more shot at proving a Guardians’ front office that apparently loves him like I love Matt Festa a chance to show their unreasonable faith is justified. Partially this is because Juan Brito did not do anything to win the second base job this Spring, and partially it is because Bazzana has not quite been busting down the door to make his ML debut. But, I genuinely think the Guardians still have a sliver of hope for Arias to become a valuable major league. Let’s look at what reasons for hope they may have:

–Arias is only 26 years old.

This is, reasonably, the last year an Arias defender can point to his youth. 27 is generally acknowledged as the peak age for the average major league player and by 1,200 plate appearances, the conclusions to be drawn about the average major league hitter are pretty sticky. There are always exceptions and late breakouts. But, within the general bounds of logic, the team shouldn’t have any doubts about what kind of player Arias is by the end of May, if he is given regular plate appearances and doesn’t show marked improvement. Arias will be handed the full-time shortstop job and all the runway needed to keep it. So, he will have no excuse of having to fight for playing time.

–Arias has shown an improved ability to avoid chasing.

It is hard to know what to make of Spring Training stats, but Arias has always had three primary flaws as a hitter: 1. He chases bad pitches, 2. He hits too many groundballs, and 3. He whiffs too much in the zone. Numbers 2 and 3 on this list have remained true in Spring Training so far, but Arias has cut his chase rate 15% from his career average and his overall whiff rate by 3%, while hitting the ball as hard as he ever has (his only skill as a hitter). Can he sustain this? Very probably not. But if he can make a significant cut in chase and a minor cut in whiff, he would give himself a chance at a 90 wRC+, which would make him a roughly 3-win player with his fielding skills at short.

–Arias was an incredibly clutch hitter last season.

It is useless to read much into one season’s worth of situational data. With that said, Arias had a 182 wRC+ in high leverage situations last season. For a player whose attention has often seemed to wander, he showed the ability to lock in at crucial moments last year. It’s not repeatable but it can give players a sense of confidence and calm at the plate that can carry over. Arias has tried to move his hand position and stand closer to the plate this spring. Perhaps the adjustments and confidence can provide some intangibles to give him slight improvements to inch his offensive output up.

-Arias’s glove at short has the potential to be GOLD.

When Arias is focused, he is a great defender at short. When he isn’t focused, his arm is still strong enough to cover over a multitude of sins. Arias and Rocchio provided great defense for the Guardians down the stretch in 2025 and they will get a chance to do the same to begin 2026. Perhaps that familiarity and trust will enable Arias to grow into the potential we have all seen in him since day one.

I believe by June, we will see Brayan Rocchio at short and Travis Bazzana at second base. But, I’ll be rooting for Arias to prove me wrong and make the team look like geniuses for sticking with him this long. Either way, we are about to find out the answer to “how do you solve a problem like Gabriel?” very soon.

Through the 2024-25 season, the Los Angeles Lakers have had a total of 506 players suit up for them, going back to their days in Minneapolis. Some were forgettable, some were serviceable, some were good and a select few were flat-out legendary.

During the Lakers' 80th season of existence (they were founded back in 1946 as the Detroit Gems in the National Basketball League), LeBron Wire is taking a look at each player who has worn their jersey, whether it has been a purple and gold one or the ones they donned back in the Midwest during their early years.

Brad Davis, a 6-foot-3 point guard, came into the NBA as the No. 15 overall pick in the 1977 draft by the Lakers. He spent his first season and change with the Lakers and averaged 2.7 points and 2.4 assists in 10.5 minutes a game during that time.

He was waived early in the 1978-79 season, and he would eventually find his way to the Dallas Mavericks for the 1980-81 season. It was in Dallas where Davis found a long-term home. He remained there for 12 seasons until his retirement, and he played a key role in the expansion Mavericks eventually becoming a quality team by mid-decade.

He retired with career averages of 8.2 points and 4.9 assists in 23.2 minutes a game.

This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Lakers jersey history No. 30 — Brad Davis

JuJu Watkins is one of the most electrifying talents in college basketball.

Around this time last year, Watkins' dominance had the Trojans heading toward a potential Final Four run. But a torn ACL in the second round forced Watkins to miss the rest of the tournament, and the Trojans fell to eventual champion UConn in the Elite Eight.

USC is back in the NCAA Tournament as a No. 9 seed. Jazzy Davidson has been the driving force as she leads the Trojans in points (17.6), rebounds (5.7), assists (4.2), steals (2) and blocks (2).

So, with just under a year removed from Watkins' injury, will she return for the Trojans during March Madness?

The answer is no. Watkins announced in September she'd be sitting out the entire season to focus on making a full recovery.

"JuJu's health and well-being are our top priority, and we fully support her decision to focus on recovery this season," USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb said in a statement at the time. "While we will certainly miss her impact on the court, she continues to play a vital role in our program as a leader and teammate. The strength and maturity she has shown through this process is a reflection of who she is, and we know the Trojan Family will continue to rally behind her. We look forward to the day she returns to competition stronger than ever."

With Watkins sidelined, the Trojans start March Madness against No. 8 seed Clemson on Saturday.

This article originally appeared on For The Win: Is JuJu Watkins playing in 2026 March Madness?

Last weekend Mike Tyson conspicuously wore a cast on his right arm the Mike Tyson Invitational, a three-day amateur boxing event. Naturally, that has fueled some doubt about his exhibition fight scheduled with Floyd Mayweather Jr. for April 25 in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

This week, during Tyson’s trip to Thailand, there was no sign of the cast in videos and photos of Tyson. So what does it all mean?

Let’s start with Tyson’s interview on "The Ariel Helwani Show" on March 11. Tyson, 59, said he injured himself boxing.

“Training, punching stuff,’’ Tyson said. “Just a little sprain, I have to go hard, it’s the only way I’ve got to go.’’

Initially, Tyson seemed to suggest the fight take place as planned. But when Helwani asked if the injury would affect the exhibition, Tyson replied, “We'll see.’’

A representative for Tyson did not immediately respond to a request for information about Tyson's injury and the fight.

CSI Sports, the group that announced the fight in September, did not immediately respond to a USA TODAY Sports request for comment.

This may conjure up memories of the ulcer flare-up Tyson had that postponed his fight with Jake Paul for four months. And remember, the erstwhile Baddest Man on the Planet will turn 60 in June.

Tyson vs Mayweather: What else is up on the air?

Longtime boxing writer Dan Rafael reported early this month that the fight still is in the works but it won’t take place April 25 and might not be held in the Congo.

“Been much discussion about the Mike Tyson – Floyd Mayweather exhibition taking place April 25 in Congo,” Rafael wrote, according to SB Nation. “But, per source with knowledge of the plans, it definitely won’t be that date. It will move to a later date and while it might be in Congo, no site is set.”

CSI Sports, the group that announced the fight, still has the original information on its website – that includes no date.

Tyson-Mayweather fight: What do we know for sure?

The men agreed to fight. Well, according to a news release.

The announcement of the proposed fight came by news release issued in September. Since then, Tyson has reaffirmed his commitment to fight, said there won't be a weight limit and said the fight is scheduled for eight rounds. But Mayweather has made no such public proclamations.

Meanwhile, Mayweather has committed to a rematch with Manny Pacquiao Sept. 19 at The Sphere in Las Vegas, according to a news release issued in February by Netflix, which plans to livestream the fight.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Tyson-Mayweather fight: What we know amid injury, schedule concerns

Injury report: Austin Reaves, Anthony Black and more ahead of Lakers vs. Magic originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Los Angeles Lakers enter Saturday's road matchup against the Orlando Magic in search of their ninth consecutive victory.

During their current eight-game win streak, the Lakers have defeated six playoff teams, including the Houston Rockets twice.

After sitting in the middle of the Western Conference standings for the majority of the season, the Lakers are peaking at the right time, now third in the West.

That said, there's a chance they'll be without one of their main contributors Saturday, as Austin Reaves has been added to the injury report.

Reaves is listed as questionable due to left heel soreness, according to NBA insider Benjamin Royer.

Maxi Kleber remains sidelined due to a lumbar strain in his back.

As for the Magic, they're currently dealing with a plethora of injuries.

For starters, Franz Wagner remains out due to an ankle injury. Wagner has now missed over a month, sidelined since early February.

Jonathan Isaac is also listed as out due to a knee injury.

15.3 point per game scorer, Anthony Black will miss Saturday's game due to injury as well.

Lastly, Wendell Carter Jr. is listed as questionable due to a rib injury.

Slipping in a tightly contested Eastern Conference pack, the Magic will be eager to earn a win and stop their current three-game skid.

Following Saturday's game, Orlando will host the Indiana Pacers Monday.

In regards to Los Angeles, they'll have two more road games against the Detroit Pistons and Indiana Pacers before returning home to host the Brooklyn Nets.

More NBA news:

• Luka and LeBron make Lakers history last achieved by Wilt Chamberlain/Elgin Baylor
• JJ Redick has hilarious comment after LeBron's incredible night
• De'Aaron Fox sheds light on Victor Wembanyama's competitiveness
• Kenny Atkinson on Max Strus: 'He's such a clutch player'
• Jose Alvarado jokes around with Josh Hart after his season-high 33 points
• Hornets near attendance record in blowout win vs. Heat

In celebration of March Madness, WCG is bringing Chicago Bears fans a special kind of bracket. Drawing on the Consensus Board at Mock Draft Database and looking at other individual boards for perspective, we are going to present 16 different 2-round mock drafts for the Chicago Bears. These 16 mocks are divided into four groups: the Defensive Tackle group, the Edge group, the Safety group, and the Offensive Tackle group. In round one, for each group, we will be asking of these choices, which pair of options fans prefer for Chicago. 

We wrap up the opening round with offensive tackle.

#1 vs #4

#1 Seed. Caleb Lomu (OT, Utah) + Gabe Jacas (ED, Illinois) + Zakee Wheatley (SF, Penn State)

The middle of the trenches still need love, but otherwise the major boxes are checked with the picks Chicago currently owns.

VS

#4 Seed. Blake Miller (OT, Clemson) + Malachi Lawrence (ED, UCF)+ Sam Hecht (C, Kansas State) + 2027 R2 Indianapolis + 2027 R3 Indianapolis

Here, Poles was tempted to move back to #47 by the promise of a future windfall but needed to pivot to offense when the defensive prospects were sniped in front of him. Blake Miller might have been a right tackle in college, but so was Ozzy Trapilo.

Which of these two round mocks for the #Bears do you like?

A) 25: Caleb Lomu (OT, Utah), 57: Gabe Jacas (ED, Illini), 60: Zakee Wheatley (S, Penn State)

B) Trade – 47: Blake Miller (OT, Clemson), 57: Malachi Lawrence (ED, UCF), 60: Sam Hecht (C, Kansas State), IND '27 R2 & R3

— Windy City Gridiron (@WCGridiron) March 21, 2026

#2 vs #3

#2 Seed. Monroe Freeling (LT, Georgia) + Kamari Ramsey (SF, USC)

If Freeling fell to 15, where he could be picked up in exchange for only #57, would Poles make the move? This option assumes so and that Tampa Bay was willing to deal.

VS

#3 Seed. Kadyn Proctor (LT, Alabama) + A.J. Haulcy (SF, LSU) + Gracen Halton (DL, Oklahoma)

Proctor poses an interesting addition to an offensive line that lacks a player of his proportions, but he would undoubtedly vie for the starter position quickly. Again, no trades were made.

Our Mock Madness Tourney continues with the OT bracket. Which of these two round mocks for the #Bears do you like?

A) Trade up 15: Monroe Freeling (LT, Georgia), 60: Kamari Ramsey (S, USC)

B) 25: Kadyn Proctor (LT, Alabama), 57: A.J. Haulcy (S, LSU), 60: Gracen Halton (DL, OK)

— Windy City Gridiron (@WCGridiron) March 21, 2026

Choices

#1 Lomu + Jacas + Wheatley and #2 Freeling + Ramsey

#1 Lomu + Jacas + Wheatley and #3 Proctor + Haulcy + Halton

#4 Miller + Lawrence + Hecht + future picks and #2 Freeling + Ramsey

#4 Miller + Lawrence + Hecht + future picks and #3 Proctor + Haulcy + Halton

Leonardo Spinazzola is almost certain to leave Napoli at the end of the current season, with Juventus eager to secure his signature on a free transfer.

The defender has been one of the standout performers in Napoli’s first team, yet his contract is nearing its expiry, and no agreement has been reached over an extension. Napoli remain keen to retain their key players, and Spinazzola is firmly among those they would prefer to keep. However, Juventus are working to persuade him to reject Napoli’s proposal and make the move to Turin instead.

Contract Situation

Recent developments suggest that Juventus may hold the advantage in negotiations. A report from Tuttojuve indicates that Napoli have offered Spinazzola a one-year contract, while Juventus have proposed a two-year deal. This difference is significant, as the longer contract aligns more closely with the player’s preferences and provides greater security.

Such terms could prove decisive, particularly for a player considering his long-term future. Juventus are aware of this and appear to be leveraging their offer to strengthen their position in the race for his signature.

Potential Return to Turin

Juventus view Spinazzola as an experienced and high-quality addition who could enhance their squad in the upcoming transfer window. His familiarity with the club, having previously represented the Old Lady, could further encourage a return.

From the player’s perspective, a move back to Turin may offer both stability and a chance to continue competing at a high level. The prospect of a more favourable contract, combined with a familiar environment, makes Juventus an appealing option.

This situation has provided Juventus with a significant boost as they aim to finalise a deal. While Napoli remains hopeful of retaining him, the balance currently appears to be shifting towards the Bianconeri as they push to secure Spinazzola’s services for the 2026 to 2027 season.

Arsenal could still achieve a remarkable quadruple by the end of this season, with their pursuit beginning in earnest in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday against Manchester City. The Gunners have shown strong belief in their ability to compete across all competitions and have made consistent progress in recent seasons.

Focus Remains on Immediate Challenge

While the prospect of winning four trophies is an exciting one, Arsenal understand that any such ambition depends on taking each step as it comes. Failure to secure victory in the Carabao Cup would immediately end their hopes of completing a quadruple, making this weekend’s fixture particularly significant.

Manager Mikel Arteta would undoubtedly take pride in leading his side to silverware, especially given the steady development the team has demonstrated under his guidance. However, the emphasis within the squad remains firmly on maintaining focus rather than looking too far ahead.

Arteta Plays Down Quadruple Talk

As reported by Arsenal Media, Arteta addressed whether his players have discussed the possibility of winning all four competitions. He said:

“No, because we know that we need to go game by game and trophy by trophy.”

His comments reflect a disciplined mindset within the squad, prioritising immediate objectives over long-term speculation. Arsenal’s performances this season suggest they possess the quality required to challenge for major honours, but those ambitions must be realised through results on the pitch.

The upcoming final will provide a stern test of their credentials. City remains one of the strongest sides in Europe, and overcoming them will require a composed and determined display. Nevertheless, Arsenal have consistently demonstrated resilience and high-level form throughout the campaign, indicating they are capable of rising to the occasion.

Ultimately, success at the highest level demands overcoming difficult challenges rather than seeking comfortable fixtures. If Arsenal are to fulfil their ambitions this season, they must prove their quality in matches of this magnitude, starting with Sunday’s decisive encounter.

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After advancing through the first round, Louisville faces Michigan State on Saturday in the 2026 NCAA Tournament with a trip to the Sweet 16 on the line.

MORE:5 bold March Madness predictions for 2026 NCAA Tournament

How to Watch Louisville vs Michigan State

• Date: Saturday, March 21, 2026
• Time: 2:45 PM ET
• TV Channel: CBS
• Live Stream: Fubo (try for free)

The NCAA Tournament continues on Saturday, as teams look to advance to the Sweet 16, setting the stage for another day of dramatic finishes. With eyes set on a national title, the tournament always promises the chaos and excitement that make March Madness one of the best events to follow in sports.

– Watch Louisville vs Michigan State on Fubo –

In this East Region second‑round matchup, No. 6 Louisville Cardinals advance after an 83–79 win over No. 11 South Florida in the first round, earning their first NCAA Tournament victory in nine years behind 23 points from Isaac McKneely and clutch scoring down the stretch.

They now face No. 3 Michigan State Spartans, who dominated No. 14 North Dakota State 92–67 to reach the Round of 32, paced by a 20‑point, 10‑rebound performance from Carson Cooper and strong shooting from deep.

With Louisville’s outside shooting and late‑game poise up against Michigan State’s length, rebounding, and disciplined execution under Tom Izzo, this game will be a contrast of tempo and physicality as both look to reach the Sweet 16.

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MARCH MADNESS: 5 bold March Madness predictions for 2026 NCAA Tournament

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A Celtic title win would be the sweetest, but it would be far from our greatest…

Martin O’Neill applauds the Celtic support. theRangers v Celtic. 1st March 2026. Photograph by Vagelis Georgariou

It’s fair to say that if we manage to win this year’s title, and there’s still a great chance that we will, then it will be one of the sweetest moments in the club’s history.

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Considering everything that’s happened in these last few months, from our incompetent dealings in the transfer market, to losing Brendan Rodgers, then turning to Martin O’Neill, then being lumbered with the inept Wilfried Nancy, before Martin rescued us in our hour of need yet again. So to still be in touching distance of top spot is absolutely tremendous, ridiculously so.

Tomas Cvancara of Celtic celebrates after scoring his team’s second goal during the Scottish Premiership match between Celtic and Motherwell at Celtic Park on March 14, 2026 . (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

We’ve also suffered the blow of losing several key first team players for a lengthy period, players who are mainstays of the side. This campaign is on a par with the infamous COVID campaign, although remarkably the current crop of players are in a much worse position than Neil Lennon’s side of that period, so to still be in contention is quite frankly astonishing.

That’s in a big way down to our Glasgow rivals having just a poor a campaign as ourselves, something that Heart of Midlothian have taking full advantage of, although it seems that the wheels might be starting to fall off the Gorgie bandwagon, although a late winner at Tynecastle today gave them a hard fought 1-0 victory over Dundee.

Tomorrow Celtic has a chance to bring the gap back to two points and also to add to our own goals for column, because that may well be significant.  We had been there before.

Hyunjun Yang of Celtic celebrates scoring his team’s third goal during the Scottish Premiership match between Celtic and Motherwell at Celtic Park on March 14, 2026. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

A terrific comeback to rescue a point at Ibrox, plus a battling win over Aberdeen at Pittodrie, and a spirited home win over an inform Motherwell have rejuvenated our title hopes, not to mention the dramatic penalty shootout win at Ibrox has raised the confidence and spirit of the entire squad and support, giving us some much needed hope in the run in for a dream league and Scottish Cup double.

Three of our games after the split are also at home, so the possibility of securing five in a row is a lot more likelier than it was a month ago. We have to win all our games of course, but our destiny is firmly in our own hands, and confidence is high that the players under the guidance of Martin O’Neill can do just that.

Tomas Cvancara celebrates scoring the penalty that takes Celtic into the semi-finals. Scottish Cup quarter final on Sunday 8 March 2026. Photograph by Vagelis Georgariou

Will it be the greatest title win ever? No I wouldn’t go that far as we’ve been shockingly poor for a the entirety of this campaign, but it will be one of the sweetest, that’s for sure.

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NFL free agency is well underway with the Philadelphia Eagles making quite a few critical moves to add and retain impact players. Here is how the 2026 NFL Draft could shake out considering their needs right now. Simulation run using the Pro Football Focus Mock Draft Simulation. No trades made. 

Pick 1.23: Omar Cooper Junior, Wide Receiver, Indiana

Don’t overthink this. Even with the Hollywood Brown addition, the Eagles need a long term receiver to pair with DeVonta Smith. That player is not on the roster. Even in a world where AJ Brown plays one more year in Philly, the Eagles should not pass up on the opportunity to draft a player like Omar Cooper.

Cooper would give the Eagles an inside/outside receiver with playmaking speed and a great toughness on the field. He would be a dynamic addition to what will be a very different looking offense in 2026. In my opinion, the Eagles should be loading up on weapons to give Jalen Hurts and Sean Mannion maximum firepower in this do or die season. 

Pick 2.54: Eli Stowers, Tight End, Vanderbilt

Dallas Goedert returning does not change the long-term outlook for this team. 

Passing on Eli Stowers would be stupid, straight up. Stowers can be TE2 in his rookie year, learning critical skills and bulking up to become a more reliable blocker. In the long term, he can be a multi-faceted weapon for this offense to move around and create mismatches. 

Pick 3.68: Dani Dennis-Sutton, Edge, Penn State

Without a slam dunk answer at edge rusher, the Eagles can take a big swing on a high upside player here. Dani Dennis-Sutton is raw in many ways, but is physically gifted through the roots and flashes legit dominance as an edge rusher. Let Coach Fangio show this young man some things and watch him grow!

Pick 3.98:Dametrious Crownover, Offensive Tackle, Texas A&M

The Eagles should also be taking big swings at tackle in this draft. Crownover is a big bodied athlete who could get coached up into being a difference making blocker in the NFL. He is raw, but he would also have the benefit of sitting behind Lane Johnson for a year. 

Pick 4.114: Brian Parker II, Offensive Tackle, Duke

While Brian Parker II could also compete for a tackle spot, he could also be an interesting fit at guard. He is a smart, physical, high effort player who might be a better NFL guard than tackle. With a gap at right guard staring the Eagles in the face, Parker would be a great addition. 

Pick 4.137:Devon Marshall, Cornerback, NC State

With the addition of Riq Woolen, the Eagles have reduced the urgency for cornerback help. However, with Woolen only being on a one year deal it makes sense to bring in some high upside depth. 

Devon Marshall was excellent during his one year at NC State and could develop into a solid boundary cornerback for the Eagles.  

Pick 5.153: Kaytron Allen, Running Back, Penn State

I have a hard time getting away from this fit. Even with the Dameon Pierce signing, the Eagles still could use more competition in their backfield. Pierce has struggled to stay healthy in the NFL and even when on the field, he has struggled to be consistent. 

Allen is a player who could eventually step up in two seasons and be a quality starter and that warrants consideration to draft him this late.  

Pick 5.178: Jalen Stroman, Safety, Notre Dame

The Eagles are really hurting at safety. Even before the Sydney Brown trade, it was a glaring need. It’s possible they target the position much higher, but they can take some late round swings too. 

Jalen Stroman is a physically gifted player who didn’t see the field a ton at Notre Dame. He’d be more of a project player, but a offers versatility, athleticism, and physicality. 

Pick 6.197: Lorenzo Styles Junior, Safety, Ohio State

This is a fun late round pick. A former offensive player, Lorenzo Styles is an absurd athlete who lit up the combine with a 4.27 40-yard dash. While his fit on an NFL defense is less clear, his upside at safety is obvious. 

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National League

Forest Green Rovers 2 - 0 Wealdstone FT

Neil Kengni scored his first goal for Forest Green and Gabe Kircough added a second as the hosts secured a 2-0 victory over Wealdstone at the New Lawn.

Wealdstone goalkeeper Dante Baptiste saved attempts from Laurent Mendy and Kircough before Jayden Clarke sent a huge chance just wide.

The hosts finally broke through in the 41st minute when Kyle McAllister flicked the ball on to Kengni, who applied the finish to open his Rovers account.

Kircough would not be denied a second time, adding a cushion three minutes after the hour.

Report supplied by PA Media.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — The Washington Nationals released right-handed pitcher Drew Smith on Saturday.

Smith, 32, had signed a minor league deal with an invitation to major league camp after missing the entire 2025 season to recover from Tommy John surgery. He went 1-1 with a 3.06 ERA and two saves in 19 relief appearances with the New York Mets in 2024.

Smith has gone 12-13 with a 3.48 ERA and five saves in 191 career games, all with the Mets.

___

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Betfred Super League

Warrington (32) 72

Tries: Ashton 3, Currie 2, Tanginoa 4, Hopoate, Stone, Harrison Goals: Irwin 12

Castleford (6) 6

Try: Valemei Goal: Weaver

Kelepi Tanginoa scored four tries as rampant Warrington Wolves thrashed Castleford Tigers to keep their 100% Super League record intact.

The big Australian forward had previously not scored a hat-trick in his senior career, and his quadruple came after Matty Ashton marked his return from a long-term injury lay-off with the first two tries before completing his own hat-trick late in the game.

Wolves were irresistible at the Halliwell Jones Stadium as Ben Currie (two), Albert Hopoate, Sam Stone and James Harrison also went over and 18-year-old half-back Ewan Irwin, preferred to veteran Marc Sneyd, kicked 12 out of 14 attempts.

The win takes Warrington second in the table behind leaders Wigan Warriors, who have played a game more and are the only other side to have won every game they have played.

Much has been made of the competitive nature of Super League this season, but this was an old-fashioned, one-sided thrashing from start to finish, as Wolves completed their first 36 sets and threw in some moments of real flair.

Cas, who lost Jack Ashworth and Joe Stimson for head injury assessments in the first few minutes - with Stimson staying off for the rest of the game, could not cope with Wire's ruck speed and pace out wide.

Ashton, out for 10 months after damaging anterior cruciate ligaments, added to Irwin's two penalties with two tries inside 15 minutes, leaving Cas wing Mikaele Ravalawa standing for the second.

That left side of the Wire attack was running riot and when the Tigers over-compensated it left Currie with space to go over underneath the posts before Semi Valemei showed a good leap and some strength to score the visitors' only try.

Normal service was quickly resumed as Tanginoa collected a George Williams grubber for his first try and then bounced Tom Weaver to clear a path to the try-line for his second.

Tanginoa, who won three trophies with Hull KR last season, completed his hat-trick three minutes after half-time before Hopoate sprinted 60 metres for another.

Currie raced clear to pile on the misery for Cas, and Tanginoa made it four tries for himself, arriving like a thunderbolt onto Williams' pass after a sublime offload from Jordan Crowther.

The sin-binning of Toby King made no difference to Wolves as Josh Thewlis' break set up Stone for another try while they were down to 12 men.

And, after King returned, Harrison grabbed his first try of the season and Ashton completed his own triumphant return with his third after showing good dribbling skills.

With Irwin, who kept his place after kicking 13 goals last week against Goole Vikings in the Challenge Cup, claiming 24 points of his own, it meant Warrington had recorded the biggest win over Castleford in their history.

'A very polished performance' - reaction

Warrington coach Sam Burgess told BBC Sport:

"It was very clean. Firstly, I liked our physicality early in the game. We were physical when we needed to be and kept hold of the ball - I don't think we made an error until late in the game so it made it very hard for Castleford.

"The ball bounced our way, we had a few calls so it just fell in our lap. You have those days so we'll take them but it was a very polished performance and I'm happy with it.

"At half-time we challenged them as we thought they might be complacent and take our foot off the gas but we were very consistent with who we want to be. Today was a good step forward for us as a group.

"Kelepi was nice for us and George [Williams] prefers playing on the left and Ewan [Irwin] slots on the right so the balance of the team was nice, and the control."

Castleford coach Ryan Carr told BBC Sport:

"It was horrible, not good enough. They played really well, we played really poorly, and that sums it up.

"There are no excuses for it. It hurts you, losing middles to head knocks, but at the end of the day we didn't make the decision to go out, put our bodies on the line and go after it.

"We're not going to skim over it. We're going to have a good look at ourselves. I feel like we have been competing in the last few games but it's a disappointing day for us.

"It's embarrassing and not good enough. I feel sorry for our members and our fans and we have to make sure that we fix it.

"The tries they scored were things we had talked about all week, that we'd worked hard on, specific drills to combat what they're good at, because they're a good footy team.

"But when they're making a line-break straight through your middle third that's nothing to do with personnel, that's just whoever is in that jersey needs to make that tackle."

Warrington: Josh Thewlis; J. Smith, King, Hopoate, Ashton; Williams, Irwin; Yates, Walker, Byrne, Stone, Tanginoa, Currie.

Interchanges: Harrison, Crowther, Philbin, Webster.

Sin-bin: King (60)

Castleford: Cini; Ravalawa, McIntosh, Valemei, Qareqare; Asi, Weaver; Greacen, Lawler, Ashworth, Lane, Hirst, Stimson.

Interchanges: Doolan, Hall, Atoni, Beckett.

Referee: Liam Rush.

NCAA tournament Cinderella team just offered Charles Barkley originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Only a day after his bold statement about his college basketball eligibility, Hall of Famer Charles Barkley received an offer from one of the most talked about team of the 2026 NCAA tournament.

High Point Panthers stunned the #5 Wisconsin 83-82 on Thursday, proving that their 30-win season was no fluke. In the postgame conference, head coach Flynn Clayman said that they aim to win six games. Barkley responded to the comment during ESPN’s March Madness segment.

“I got one year of college eligibility left, I’m going to get there by next game. That guy makes me want to play,” Barkley said.

HPU ready to sign Charles Barkley

After the former NBA forward’s comment went viral, the HPU Men’s Basketball account extended an offer to Barkley.

“Hey Chuck, you are blessed to receive an offer from High Point University! Due to only playing 3 years at Auburn, we feel positive about your waiver for immediate eligibility. Let’s work! -Coach Clayman,” the caption read. 

“Hey Chuck, you are blessed to receive an offer from High Point University!

Due to only playing 3 years at Auburn, we feel positive about your waiver for immediate eligibility. Let’s work!”

-Coach Clayman pic.twitter.com/jY8Q36wXAj

— HPU Men's Basketball (@HPUMBB) March 20, 2026

The graphic featured Barkley in a purple-and-white High Point #34 jersey. The joke, of course, centers on Barkley leaving Auburn early for the NBA Draft in 1984. 

The 11-time NBA All-Star is a close friend of HPU President Dr. Nido Qubein and has been a vocal ambassador for the school’s "Premier Life Skills" philosophy for years. 

The Hall of Famer’s praise didn't stop at the locker room fire. He pointed out that HPU’s success is about a refusal to be intimidated by Power Conference logos. 

“I said earlier, this is going to be a dangerous game for Wisconsin. It was a comfortable matchup, but that team has won 30 games. You win 30 games, you know how to win. You’re probably not intimidated,” Barkley said.

The 1993 NBA MVP went on to give a massive compliment to Flynn Clayman.

“I want to see that coach… you want to play for a coach like that.”

The High Point Panthers are set to go up against the Arkansas Razorbacks on Saturday in the Round of 32 of the 2026 NCAA Tournament. 

More college basketball news:

• Chase Johnston's High Point stats: How 3-point sharpshooter compares to Jack Gohlke in March Madness
• High Point University has insane traditions you must see
• 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

The Arizona Cardinals have been busy in this year’s free agency period. GM Monti Ossenfort needed to get down and dirty while finding new talent to replace the ones who weren’t getting it done.

Maybe the Cardinals will be able to compete in the ultra-competitive NFC West Division this year instead of being the ones who have to sweep up the parking lot, being in the basement position.  

RELATED: ANALYSIS AND GRADING OF THE OFFENSIVE SIGNINGS

Ossenfort has signed 20 players to date. Think about that. That is almost half a roster. The breakdown is nine players on offense, four on special teams, and seven on defense. And that’s just the first wave from the first two weeks.

Now comes the second wave of free agent signings. Often, players and agents will wait to sign new contracts to see whether the market for a certain position becomes more valuable, so the agent can negotiate a better financial deal for his client instead of inking a deal right out of the gate. Other athletes end up on the second level of signings and are approached later rather than sooner.

Still others sign whatever deal comes their way to ensure they are participating in somebody’s training camp instead of looking for employment in the UFL or CFL, taking a substitute teaching job back home, or working in their dad’s tire store.

Has Ossenfort solved all the issues with the Cardinals?

For the offense, he signed a seasoned backup QB (Minshew), a complement RB (Allgeier) as well as RB3 (Knight), the best interior offensive lineman available on this year’s market in LG Isaac Seumalo, a new RT (Wilkinson), a true WR3 (Bourne), a player to solidify the fourth receiver position (Fehoko), quality offensive line depth (Pryor and Udoh), and a blocking tight end (Quitoriano).

What’s left to accomplish?

Right guard.

This may not be solved in free agency, as Ossenfort has with other positions. Right now, the depth chart has Isaiah Adams as the starter and Matt Pryor as his backup. This may become the problem area that is not resolved going into April.

Adams (6’-4”, 315 pounds) was selected in the third round of the 2024 NFL draft and the 71^st player taken after a great career at several colleges: Illinois, Garden City Community College, and Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario. He was drafted as a future player on the interior of the offensive line. And he has played and started games.

As a rookie, he played in 15 games with five starts. This past season, he played in all 17 contests with 11 starts. But the Cardinals’ offensive line was constant agony for most of the year, and at season’s end, it was ranked #26. The run game was abysmal after both starting backs ended up on IR, and career backups and practice squad guys carried the remainder of the season.  

The term “underperforming” was putting it nicely. This was a dumpster fire all season.

Adams and LG Evan Brown were blamed for most of the issues along the offensive line. Add another problem area in OT Kelvin Beachum, and the line suffered from a lack of consistency. Smartly, Ossenfort dumped Evans and signed Seumalo (6’-4”, 303 pounds), which solved that side of the interior, then allowed Beachum to test the free agent waters, which he remains unsigned.

C Hjalte Froholdt (6’-5”, 310 pounds) is a very good player and deserves more attention than he receives. LT Paris Johnson (6’-6”, 325 pounds) was injured last year, but when healthy, is one of the best. In free agency, Ossenfort signed Wilkinson (6’-6”, 310 pounds), who manned the right tackle spot for the Atlanta Falcons for the past two seasons.   

That leaves right guard.

The solution?

Coming out of training camp last year, Adams was praised for his improvement since his rookie campaign with the belief that drafting him was exactly what Arizona needed. However, in live games, it was obvious he was out of his league. He struggled early and by Week 5 was benched for the veteran Will Hernandez.

Then Hernandez became injured, so the coaching staff had no other choice but to put Adams back into the lineup at right guard. But he continued to struggle and often could not manhandle meatier defensive tackles. Adams can hold his own on passing downs, but his run blocking isn’t good. Not good at all. In most games, he appeared overwhelmed. His Pro Football Focus grade for 2025 is a disappointing 57.2. In just 11 games, he had seven penalties and allowed 23 pressures.

If Adams struggles in training camp this year when he lines up in actual games, the new coaching staff will need to re-evaluate where they are with Adams and see if their plans include him. But for now, he is in the mix for the starting right guard spot.

Hernandez (6’-2”, 332 pounds) is another option. Currently, he remains unsigned as an unrestricted free agent but could be re-signed to a lesser deal. Last year, he dealt with hip and knee injuries.

Currently listed on the depth chart behind Adams is Pryor (6’-7”, 332 pounds). He is a huge man, and last year his PFF grade was a healthy 71.6. He only allowed three sacks, had one penalty, and just four pressures. He has plenty of game experience with 109 NFL games played with 40 starts. He may come out of training camp as the new starter, or he may compete with Wilkinson for the right tackle job and could very well become the starter there instead.

Olisaemeka Udoh (6’-6”, 320 pounds) is another option. He has just 22 NFL starts, but has played in 74 games. Of his 22 career starts, 14 have come at RG. 

Maybe Ossenfort isn’t done with his free agent signings. Perhaps, he is still looking for the answer at right guard and in negotiations with some player’s agent as we speak. But remember, the list has been cherry-picked. Many times, the second wave is guys nobody wants.

Kevin Zeitler (6’-4”, 332 pounds) of the Tennessee Titans is a seasoned veteran, is 36, but he’s still capable of blocking at a high level. James Daniels (6’-4”, 320 pounds) of the Miami Dolphins is a tremendous talent when he is on the field and just 28 years old, but he is injury-prone and has only played five games in the last two seasons, rehabbing from an Achilles tear plus a pectoral injury.  

Then, there’s the NFL draft coming up in a month. The Cardinals own the #3 pick, but does a team select an offensive guard with the third overall slot? If they trade down a bit, they can grab OG Francis Mauigoa out of Miami or Penn State OG Vega Ioane. Or perhaps Gennings Dunker high in the second round or Georgia Tech OG Keylan Rutledge in the third round.

Has Ossenfort done a good job with his free agent signings? Is he finished, or just pausing between tee times?

One thing is certain: If the offense fails again this year, it won’t be because the offensive line has played horribly. Nope. This group has been transformed, and it is exactly what was needed to happen.

Now, where is that box of Wilson Staff Model X balls? 

Boca Juniors has confirmed the call-up of Claudio Úbeda for the match against Instituto on Sunday, March 22 at La Bombonera.

The injury to Santiago Ascacíbar, who will be out of action for 21 days, opens the door for Gelini.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.

The tiniest of twigs caused Englishman Matt Wallace considerable bother in the second round of the Valspar Championship. Thankfully for him, his honesty about the rules was matched by his own resilience.

Wallace was playing the par-5 11th hole of Innisbrook’s Copperhead Course on Friday when he drove into pine straw and leaves. As he readied for his shot, he saw his ball move ever so slightly.

“This one twig was sticking out, and I think when I was waggling the ball definitely moved,” Wallace recalled after the round. “Didn’t know whether it was in the action of my swing or anything, but I definitely touched it, and then the ball moved from that.

“So, I had to replace it … didn’t think I would be standing here making the cut after that. But a good bit of karma and managed to make some birdies coming in.”

Yet again we have an example of a player calling a penalty on himself when no one else would have had a clue what happened. Wallace couldn’t remember if he’d ever needed to take such an action.

“I was thinking back after, from the time I did it to walking to the next shot, I was like, ‘Has that ever happened?’ I don’t think it’s ever happened,” he said.

Impressively, Wallace recovered on the 11th to make a par, and then he made birdies at 14, 15 and 17 to shoot 68 and make the weekend. On Saturday, he double bogeyed the par-5 fifth, but bounced back with three birdies on the back nine and was tied for 20th as play continued.

Wallace, 35, missed the cut at the Valspar last year, but he previously finished T-7 in 2023 and T-17 in ’24. A solid finish this week would be big for him, since the one-time tour winner had missed the cut in three of his first four starts. 

“It’s one of my favorite courses that we play. It’s so hard,” Wallace said. “No one’s going to get away from you. You need to play well no matter what. You’re not going to breathe around here. So I still feel like I’ve got a chance to make a run at this weekend. ... That’s the big part for me is not just about this week, it’s about playing well. I’ve got three events coming up now that I like, so carry that on and hopefully get in contention at the weekend at some point.”

Caroline Harvey's list of accolades keeps growing.

The MVP of the Milano Cortina Olympic tournament was named the Patty Kazmaier Award winner on Saturday, March 21. The award recognizes the best player in women's college hockey, and Harvey is only the third defender to win it.

The Salem, New Hampshire native, is the seventh Wisconsin player to win and second in a row, following last year's winner Casey O'Brien.

Harvey beat out U.S. Olympic teammates Tessa Janecke of Penn State and Abbey Murphy of Minnesota for "the Kaz."

Harvey was a favorite to win the award. Despite being a defender, the Wisconsin senior ranks first in the nation with 1.40 assists per game and second with 1.97 points per game.

Harvey's 63 points in just 32 games — she missed eight games for the Olympics — was more than 20 points ahead of the next defender on the scoring list.

Harvey also has led the Badgers to the NCAA title game for a second year in a row. The defending champions will play Ohio State on Sunday.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Olympic MVP Caroline Harvey wins college hockey's Kazmaier Award

An Iain Robinson hat-trick without reply from hosts Skye kept Newtonmore on 100% in the Mowi Premiership after three games.

Fort William made it back to back victories, 2-1 against Kyles at An Aird.

Champions Kingussie came from behind to defeat Caberfeidh 2-1 at The Dell for their second victory and there was yet another 2-1, this time for Kinlochshiel away to Lochaber.

In the South derby, Oban Camanachd had a 3-1 success over Col Glen at Mossfield.

Robinson scored his first before half-time and completed his treble, including a penalty, after the interval.

Archie MacKinnon struck for Fort after just three minutes and Mark Fraser made it 2-0 by half time, before Roan MacVicar's reply for Kyles in the penultimate minute.

Caberfeidh's Logan Beaton shocked Kingussie with an opener early in the second half but Roddy Young grabbed an equaliser and Alexander Michie won it for the champions with a late penalty.

John MacRae and Oliver MacRae put Shiel 2-0 up and Lochaber's Fin MacDonald scored the game's final goal after just half an hour.

Daniel MacVicar in the first half and a Lewis Cameron double in the second secured the points for Oban Camanachd before Cally McNaughton scored Col Glen's first-ever Premiership goal.

A 3-1 home win over Kilmallie kept Glenurquhart top of the National Division. Lovat defeated Bute 3-1 at Balgate, helped by a penalty double in two minutes from Greg Matheson.

Struggling Oban Celtic followed up two 10-0 wipeouts with a heavy 7-1 defeat by Glasgow Mid Argyll who produced seven different scorers at Yoker.

The other pointless second tier side are newly relegated Beauly who went down 4-1 at Inveraray.

The 2026 NFL Draft is fastly approaching.

The NFL combine came and went. Free agency is in full swing. The New England Patriots have evaluated top prospects in the lead-up to the draft, while also making additions to their roster in the open market. With just over five weeks to go until the draft commences on April 23, the Patriots are widely projected to address their pass rush with the No. 31 overall pick.

According to Fox Sports’ Joel Klatt, the Patriots select Texas A&M defensive end Cashius Howell at No. 31 overall in his 2026 NFL mock draft 2.0.

“Howell’s gotten this knock for short arms,” Klatt said. “Just watch his tape, man. The guy was one of the more productive pass rushers in all of college football in a tough league. So, Howell for me makes a lot of sense with the Patriots, and in particular, with Vrabel, who is gonna like a guy like Howell. So Howell to the Patriots at 31.”

Howell went for 11.5 sacks as well as 14 tackles for loss in 2025. The Missouri native is one of the top prospects at defensive end in the 2026 NFL Draft class.

Follow Patriots Wire on Twitter and Facebook.

This article originally appeared on Patriots Wire: Patriots take potential defensive game-wrecker in 2026 NFL mock draft

49ers 'really like' UTSA kicker who made a 70-yard FG and ran a 4.47 40-yard dash originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The San Francisco 49ers have one of the NFL's best coaches in Kyle Shanahan. Through the first two weeks of the NFL offseason, the 49ers have already made a few moves to help their offense going forward.

Mike Evans and Christian Kirk are quality receiver additions, and with Eddy Pineiro coming back as well, the 49ers offense and field goal/extra-point units are in good shape.

However, according to Arye Pulli of Sports Illustrated and Sleeper, the 49ers "really liked" what a UTSA kicker did at his pro day. This kicker, Jaffer Murphy, put up some truly ridiculous numbers with a 70-yard field goal and a 4.47 40-yard dash.

49ers 'really liked' UTSA kicker Jaffer Murphy

"Kicker (!!) Jaffer Murphy clocked as low as 4.47 in the 40-yard dash and made a 70-yard FG," Pulli shared. "He also made 12 of his 13 attempts. Murphy spoke with over a dozen teams, I'm told."

With more than a third of the NFL showing interest in this kicker, the 49ers' interest that Pulli shared is noteworthy.

"From what I've heard, the 49ers were one of the teams in attendance and really liked what they saw," Pulli shared on Twitter/x.

While the 49ers already brought Pineiro back on a multi-year deal, they could still look to take a chance on Murphy as a depth option or practice squad player.

And if he wins a camp battle with Pineiro, or takes over in case of an injury, he could be a fun option for the 49ers on special teams.

More: Mac Jones trade demand from 49ers is ‘astronomical’ price

After such an outstanding pro day, the analysis of his 2025 season production is important context to recognize. Last year for UTSA, Murphy only attempted one kick, which was an extra point. He made it, but that was all he tried for UTSA last year.

That lone extra-point was his only kick in his collegiate career. He did play all season for the Roadrunners, but he was strictly handling kickoff duties.

He wasn't a bad kickoff specialist, but he never actually got much of a chance to kick field goals or extra points in his collegiate career.

That's a good reason to pause on whether he's worth adding this spring. But, for a rookie kicker who will likely be an undrafted free agent of seventh round pick at best, this athleticism and range is the exact kind of player worth taking a flier on.

More 49ers news:

• 49ers meet all 4 of Mike Evans' free agent criteria
• Mike Evans would be perfect free agent for 49ers
• Trent Williams could be Patriots trade target with shaky 49ers future
• Vederian Lowe to sign with 49ers on $12M max value deal
• 49ers were interested in Alex Pierce before $114M Colts deal
• 49ers sign Mike Evans away from Buccaneers after 12 years

Broncos predicted to select player who could steal a starting job in draft's second round originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Denver Broncos no longer have a pick in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft, but that should not faze the fanbase. General manager George Paton has been in this position before. 

After trading for Russell Wilson during the 2022 offseason, Paton dealt the team's first-round picks in 2022 and 2023. He still found Nik Bonitto and Marvin Mims Jr. with his second-round picks in those drafts. In both cases, those picks were made near the end of the second round, much like he will be doing this year. 

Bonitto and Mims have each made the Pro Bowl, so Paton should be trusted with his first pick in this spring's draft, which will come at No. 62 overall. 

The Athletic recently put together a mock draft made up of its beat writers and Nick Kosmider has the Broncos making a selection that fans will greatly enjoy should it come to fruition. He has the Broncos grabbing Texas Tech linebacker Jacob Rodriguez.

Rodriguez is a popular mock draft selection for the Broncos due to the team's need at the inside linebacker position. The team chose to re-sign both Alex Singleton and Justin Strnad in free agency and they are the presumed starters as the roster sits right now. But it's clear that more depth, and perhaps an upgrade, is necessary.

Rodriguez could be that upgrade. Here is Kosmider's analysis:

"The Broncos are in familiar territory after trading their first-round pick to acquire Waddle. Denver did not make its first selections in the 2022 and 2023 drafts until the 60s after surrendering a combined three first-round picks to acquire QB Russell Wilson and coach Sean Payton. The Broncos came away from those drafts with pass rusher Nik Bonitto (2022) and receiver/returner Marvin Mims Jr. (2023), who have since made a combined four Pro Bowls. Only time will tell whether Rodriguez will have that kind of impact in the NFL, but his ball production for the Red Raiders (four interceptions, seven forced fumbles last season) could be appealing for a Denver defense intent on creating more takeaways in 2026."

Rodriguez could come in and take a starting job from either Singleton or Strnad based largely on his ability in one area... pass defense. That is an area where the Broncos have struggled, particularly in Singleton's case, and Rodriguez could help the team improve in that area while also being a tackling machine who is in on nearly every play. 

HOT READ: Broncos should target one of these players with No. 62 overall pick in 2026 NFL Draft

Rodriguez ran a 4.57-second 40-yard dash at last month's combine and he led the country with seven forced fumbles last year. He is a player who is always looking to make a play for the defense by forcing a turnover. If he is still on the board at No. 62, there might not be a better pick that the team can make. 

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Getaway day for the Dodgers on Saturday morning in Arizona. Emmet Sheehan is on the mound, Will Klein is also scheduled to pitch, and the starting lineup has four players who will be on the opening day roster.

Today’s #DodgersST lineup vs. Athletics: pic.twitter.com/qHv9t01ubZ

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) March 21, 2026

Saturday game info

• Teams: Dodgers vs. Athletics
• Ballpark: Camelback Ranch
• Time: 11:05 a.m. PT
• TV: SportsNet LA
• Radio: A’s Cast

Best penalty takers in the Premier League: How Raul Jimenez record compares with greats of EPL era originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Penalties are some of the most intense moments in a football player's career.

The pressure from the spot is ramped up, with players knowing they are expected to score with every effort, even if that's unrealistic over the course of a long career.

Well, unrealistic for most, but not all. Some players simply have ice in their veins.

The Sporting News details the most successful players in Premier League history from 12 yards.

MORE:Top goal scorers across the 2025/26 Premier League season

Which player has the best penalty record in the Premier League?

The best record for penalties taken in Premier League history is Raul Jimenez, whose 100% record through 14 penalties is the best in the league's history. No player has attempted as many spot kicks as the Mexico international across his stints with Wolves and Fulham and scored every time.

Jimenez's 14 from 14 in Premier League action is three more than the 100% record of Yaya Toure, who was perfect across his 11 penalties in league play.

He has scored his 14 penalties against 13 different goalkeepers, only doubling up on Christian Walton of Ipswich Town by bagging two in the same match.

Number	Date	Match	Goalkeeper	Result
1.	Nov. 3, 2018	Wolves 2-3 Tottenham	Hugo Lloris	Scored
2.	Feb. 23, 2019	Bournemouth 1-1 Wolves	Artur Boruc	Scored
3.	Aug. 25, 2019	Wolves 1-1 Burnley	Nick Pope	Scored
4.	Oct. 19, 2019	Wolves 1-1 Southampton	Angus Gunn	Scored
5.	Jan. 18, 2020	Southampton 2-3 Wolves	Alex McCarthy	Scored
6.	Jul. 12, 2020	Wolves 3-0 Everton	Jordan Pickford	Scored
7.	Jan. 15, 2022	Wolves 3-1 Southampton	Fraser Forster	Scored
8.	Sep. 28, 2024	Nottingham Forest 0-1 Fulham	Matz Sels	Scored
9.	Jan. 5, 2025	Fulham 2-2 Ipswich Town	Christian Walton	Scored
10.	Jan. 5, 2025	Fulham 2-2 Ipswich Town	Christian Walton	Scored
11.	Dec. 22, 2025	Fulham 1-0 Nottingham Forest	John Victor	Scored
12.	Feb. 1, 2026	Man United 3-2 Fulham	Senne Lammens	Scored
13.	Feb. 22, 2026	Sunderland 1-3 Fulham	Robin Roefs	Scored
14.	Mar. 21, 2026	Fulham 2-1 Burnley	Martin Dubravka	Scored

Best penalty takers in Premier League history

Only two players in Premier League history have a perfect record through double-digit attempts: Raul Jimenez and Yaya Toure.

Behind them, Dimitar Berbatov was nine-for-nine, but does not make the volume cut.

The record was held by Toure until his 11-of-11 record was surpassed by Jimenez who scored against Manchester United on February 1, 2026 to put himself at the top of the list. Cole Palmer had a chance to tie Toure, but missed with his 11th effort against Leeds in March, 2025.

Best penalty record by percentage in Premier League history

Minimum 11 penalties taken

Player	Scored/Taken	Record	Active/Retired
Raul Jimenez	14/14	100%	Active
Yaya Toure	11/11	100%	2019
Matt Le Tissier	25/26	96.2%	2002
Danny Murphy	18/19	94.7%	2013
Callum Wilson	16/17	94.1%	Active
James Beattie	16/17	94.1%	2013
Julian Dicks	15/16	93.8%	2002
Cole Palmer	18/19	94.7%	Active
Bukayo Saka	12/13	92.3%	Active
Thierry Henry	23/25	92%	2014

Who has scored the most penalties in Premier League history?

Alan Shearer holds the record for most Premier League penalties scored with 56.

Most penalties scored in Premier League history

Player	Scored/Taken	Record	Active/Retired
Alan Shearer	56/67	83.6%	2006
Frank Lampard	43/50	86%	2017
Mohamed Salah	35/41	85.4%	Active
Harry Kane	33/37	89.2%	Active*
Steven Gerrard	32/39	82%	2017

*Active but not currently contracted to a Premier League club

Who has the worst penalty record in the Premier League?

Alan Shearer has missed the most Premier League penalties of any player with 11, but it's hard to call the league's all-time top taker as the "worst" given the misses are more of a volume than anything. He is tied with Wayne Rooney, who took 33 across his career.

In fact, this is an extremely difficult question, because for the most part, if a player is a poor penalty taker, they would not be given more opportunities to take penalties.

As a result, it's exceedingly hard to quantify, as shown above where those who have missed the most are also legends of the game.

Rooney is probably a candidate for the answer, with his 67% success rate well below the traditional expectation. Others who boast low score records with a fair amount of attempts include Juan Pablo Angel (5/10), Steed Malbranque (6/10), and Dwight Yorke (6/10), but all were eventually yanked from spot-kick duties due to their failures. Raheem Sterling (4/10) fares even worse, although his attempts for Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal and England are spread across all competitions.

One player who displayed a poor return from a sizable volume was Michael Owen who struck just 14 times from his 21 attempts for a 67% success rate, similar to Rooney's.

Who is the best penalty taker ever?

Given the vastness of competitions across the world, this is an exceedingly difficult metric to quantify, but there are a few candidates.

GiveMeSport ranked the best penalty takers in football history from available data, identifying Cuauhtemoc Blanco as the best ever, with a 95% success rate across 73 attempts, with just two misses in his entire career which spanned 1998 to 2015.

Another candidate is Dutch star Ronald Koeman, who holds the record for most consecutive penalties scored in the Spanish top flight with 25, and finished his career with an astonishing 94% success rate from 103 attempts (97 scored, 6 missed).

The individual with the best record in England would be Rickie Lambert, who played multiple years with Southampton, Liverpool, West Brom, and Cardiff City. Lambert scored 48 of his 51 career penalty attempts, but he does not appear on the Premier League's all-time greats because he only attempted seven (without a single miss) in the top flight.

Southampton is something of a hotbed for English greats from 12 yards. Club legend Matt Le Tissier's 25/26 put him on the list of the best Premier League takers. Across all competitions, his record was a remarkable 43/44, with only Nottingham Forest goalkeeper Mark Crossley able to deny him in a March 1993 Premier League match. Le Tissier then strung together a run of 27 perfect penalties.

National League

Braintree Town 2 - 3 Scunthorpe United FT

Callum Roberts' late penalty earned Scunthorpe a 3-2 win at struggling Braintree and strengthened their grip on a play-off place.

It took the home side just 49 seconds to open the scoring when a ball over the top from Ben Drake set John Akinde free and he slotted past the goalkeeper.

Scunthorpe equalised in the 38th minute when Pat Jones' low cross was turned in by Leo Farrell.

Callum Roberts hit a post for the Iron, while Louis Jones pulled off a superb save to keep out Akinde's deflected strike at the other end shortly afterwards.

Scunthorpe edged in front in the 58th minute through Oli Ewing's composed finish but Walker hauled Braintree level with a close-range finish three minutes later.

Roberts, who saw a free-kick come back off the crossbar, won and scored a last-gasp penalty to snatch the points.

Report supplied by PA Media.

Ronda Rousey is one of the greatest women’s champions in Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) history, but you wouldn’t know it from the promotion’s recent social media post to celebrate women’s history month. That’s because Rousey was completely left off.

While Rousey hasn’t competed professionally in nearly a decade and walked away from UFC after back-to-back losses, the 39-year-old is widely regarded as one of the best female fighters ever. A case can be that Rousey’s overall skill set isn’t as good as Amanda Nunes or Valentina Shevchenko, but there’s no debating that Rousey is one of the most important trailblazers in the history of the sport. She more or less put women’s MMA on the map when she transitioned to the Octagon.

All of that said, Rousey was left off of UFC’s recent tribute post for women’s history month. Instead of including Rousey, UFC’s media team named Nunes, Shevchenko, Cris Cyborg, and Rose Namajunas as UFC champions who have been “breaking barriers one round at a time.” Rousey is nowhere to be seen, but there may be a reason for that.

Over the past month, Rousey has done her best to besmirch UFC and how they’ve been handling fighter pay under the new Paramount+ model. Rousey was hoping to have her upcoming superfight with Gina Carano take place inside of the Octagon, but UFC wasn’t willing to pay the type of money both sides needed. That forced Rousey and Carano to partner with Jake Paul for a throwdown on Netflix this May. It also cast a shadow over Rousey’s relationship with UFC, even if she had Dana White’s blessing.

Check out UFC’s Rousey-less post below and let us know if you think there’s anything behind it!

Tennessee's TSSAA boys basketball Division I Class 3A championship: live updates from Alcoa vs. Fulton originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

MURFREESBORO, Tennessee, March 21 — Tennessee's TSSAA boys basketball championships are taking place Saturday at The Murphy Center on the campus of Middle Tennessee State University.

The Division I Class 3A championship game will feature a couple of Knoxville-area rivals as the Alcoa [TN] Tornadoes will take on the Fulton [Knoxville, TN] Falcons.

The game will tip off after the conclusion of the Class 2A game with a tentative start time of 2:30 p.m. EST/1:30 p.m. CST local.

STREAM:Watch Alcoa vs. Fulton on the NFHS Network

__________

Refresh for updates

__________

FIRST QUARTER

__________

The Class 2A game has ended so they should probably be able to get this one started on time.

__________

Coming soon! Game time is set for 2:30 p.m. EST local!

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How can I watch Alcoa vs. Fulton?

• Date: 2:30 p.m. EST local, Saturday, March 21
• STREAM:Watch Alcoa vs. Fulton on the NFHS Network

MORE HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL

• The latest SN High School Girls Basketball Top 25
• The Sporting News High School Boys Basketball Top 25
• South Carolina's SCHSL boys basketball state champions
• Mississippi's MHSAA boys basketball state champions
• Washington D.C.'s DCSAA boys basketball champions

Cleveland Browns general manager Andrew Berry has a tall task ahead of him in the 2026 NFL Draft.

The club still needs a starting-caliber left tackle, a wide receiver who can catch the ball and then do something with it, and, if it is not too much trouble, an actual NFL starting quarterback.

Those are just the top-of-mind needs, and they should be taken care of, outside of the quarterback, in the first round, where Cleveland currently holds two selections.

But other parts of the roster need to be addressed, and Berry needs to make the most of the Day 2 selections when the Browns are on the board in the second round (selection No. 39 overall) and third round (selection No. 70 overall).

With that in mind, let’s take a look at what some of the national mock drafts have the Browns doing with their second-round selection.

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SB Nation’s Doug Farrar: Ty Simpson, QB, Alabama

(Head coach Todd) Monken has espoused an open competition for that position, and you know how it is — a new head coach will want at least one quarterback he likes, as opposed to those he may have inherited. Monken was also open to bringing in an outsider to compete for reps, and this is where someone like Alabama’s Ty Simpson could come in.

Because on the surface, Simpson seems to have it all on the ball, especially for a guy who only started one year in college. In 2025 for the Crimson Tide, the 6-foot-1 ⅛”, 211-pound Simpson completed 306 of 474 passes for 3,561 yards, 28 touchdowns, five interceptions, and a passer rating of 102.5. He also ran the ball 70 times for 292 yards and two touchdowns. He completed 26 of 62 passes of 20 or more air yards last season for 784 yards, six touchdowns, three interceptions, and a passer rating of 101.2, and when under pressure, he managed 58 of 111 passes for 703 yards, four touchdowns, one interception, and a passer rating of 75.0. Now, when blitzed, Simpson was amazing — 121 completions in 208 attempts for 1,409 yards, 13 touchdowns, two interceptions, and a passer rating of 95.6. He also adds functionality to one’s offense as a runner on designed runs and scrambles, and he’s very good outside the pocket.

I recently did a longer-form video about my concerns regarding Simpson’s NFL future, but I also don’t think that any of the things he needs to work on are unmanageable — they just require more coaching. And that’s something that Monken can certainly do.

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PFF’s Gordon McGuinness: Zion Young, DE, Missouri

McGuiness did not give a summary of why the Browns should select Young, so let’s turn to NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein for an overview of the 6-foot-6 and 262-pound Young, who Zierlein compares to former Browns defensive end Za’Darius Smith:

Long, well-built edge rusher with the size, strength, and temperament engineered for trench battles at the next level. Young is a fiery alpha who brings immense energy to the field and locker room. He majors in block destruction using base power and aggression to play through opponents. He extends and locks out as an edge-setter and sheds when needed, but his pursuit speed and range are average. He has the power to bull rush or drive through edges, but lacks instincts and variety in his rush approach. His NFL pressure production will lag behind without better go-to moves and counters. Young’s physical tools and rugged demeanor give him a chance to be an instant run-stopping upgrade with average rush.

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CBS Sports Josh Edwards: Chase Bisontis, G, Texas A&M

Likewise, no reasoning from Edwards on the selection, so let’s see what CBS has to say about Bisontis:

Chase Bisontis is a strong, versatile, and dependable three-year starter with more than 1,950 snaps at both guard and center. He was arguably the most consistent performer on a solid Aggies offensive line and has the ability to thrive in both zone and gap schemes. Bisontis shows quick, active feet to cut off backside defenders and climb smoothly to the second level. He plays with a finishing demeanor and excellent functional strength. Still a young prospect, Bisontis has the tools to develop into a starter at either center or guard, and that versatility could help him stick in the league for a long time. The one concern: he committed 16 penalties over the past two seasons.

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A to Z Sports Brandon Little: D’Angelo Ponds, CB, Indiana

I keep coming back to Ponds being the pick here for the Browns in a best player available situation. Ponds’ height may end up limiting him to the slot, which is fine because it’s an increasingly important position in the NFL. The Browns adding a potentially elite nickel to an already very good defense only takes the unit to another level. 

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NFL.com’s Chad Reuter: Avieon Terrell, CB, Clemson

Reuter does not provide a reason, but here is the draft profile on the 5-foot-11 and 186-pound Terrell from Lance Zierlein at NFL.com:

Avieon shares the same bloodlines and coverage temperament as his brother, A.J., a first-round pick of the Atlanta Falcons in 2020. Avieon Terrell is an athletic, fluid mover with clean transitions and enough speed to stay in phase on most vertical routes. He’s most effective in press-man coverage, where he mirrors releases with timing and discipline, staying crowded to the route. He concedes 50/50s to bigger targets at times, but is a constant catch irritant with good technique on all three levels. He can play wide or inside and is willing in run support, but he lacks ideal size. Terrell projects as an early starter thanks to his polish, ball skills, and coverage versatility.

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What do you think, Browns fans? Would you like to see the Browns select any of these players in Round 2? Or would you go in a different direction? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Day 1 of the 2026 women's NCAA Tournament is in the books.

In the 16 games played on Friday, March 20, all of the lower seeds prevailed, including No. 1 Texas, which picked up a dominant 87-45 win over Missouri State to open March Madness. No. 4 Minnesota and No. 6 Baylor needed huge fourth quarters to advance. 

REQUIRED READING: March Madness games today: Ranking the 16-game Women's NCAA Tournament schedule for Saturday

For women's college basketball fans who filled out brackets with the expectation that the NCAA Tournament selection committee made the right calls, that decision likely paid off.

However, for the fans who filled out brackets while hoping and praying for upsets, well, sorry. Your bracket is likely busted.

Here's a look at how many perfect brackets remain in women's March Madness, with some opportunities for upsets on the horizon, still:

How many people still have a perfect bracket in women's March Madness?

Last updated Noon ET on March 21

• A little under 1 million (beginning with 5 million)

As of Noon ET on March 21, less than one million perfect brackets remain in either the ESPN or NCAA bracket challenges. The NCAA does not provide the full number of brackets submitted.

Depending on how many perfect brackets under a million are remaining, that means around 20% of the brackets filled out are still perfect.

Of course, with 16 more games scheduled for Saturday, March 21, there's a good chance we see that percentage fall even more by the end of the day.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: How many perfect brackets are left in women's March Madness?

Slovakia coach Francesco Calzona reveals behind the scenes drama during his Napoli experience. ‘Victor Osimhen never trained, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia wasn’t happy, there were problems with the club.’

The Partenopei won the Scudetto in 2023 with Luciano Spalletti, who had Calzona as his assistant manager, but the coach and his staff walked away that summer because they felt it could not be topped.

The general feeling within the group was a negative one, seeing them finish 10^th in Serie A after going through three coaches, culminating with Calzona sharing the Slovakia job with Napoli from February 19 to June 30.

Calzona came to Napoli’s rescue during crisis

EMPOLI, ITALY – APRIL 20: Francesco Calzona manager of SSC Napoli looks on during the Serie A TIM match between Empoli FC and SSC Napoli at Stadio Carlo Castellani on April 20, 2024 in Empoli, Italy.(Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images)

“Napoli remain in my heart and I’d go back tomorrow morning, without the slightest doubt,” Calzona told Radio Kiss Kiss via Tuttomercatoweb.

“Nobody can dare say no to Napoli, it feels like my home.”

When Calzona picked up the pieces at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, he inherited a chaotic situation both on and off the field.

“As what happened later confirms, everyone was already seeing a way out in June and that had a big influence, as well as the other problems.

“There were issues between players and the club, people who just wanted to get to the end of the season and leave. More than anything else, the five or six new signings that were made, none of them were up to the standard of playing in that season, so by the end of that term they were all frozen out.

UDINE, ITALY – MAY 06: Victor Osimhen of SSC Napoli looks on during the Serie A TIM match between Udinese Calcio and SSC Napoli at Dacia Arena on May 06, 2024 in Udine, Italy. (Photo by Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images)

“So that was a fundamental problem at the core of it, but apart from that, there was a general sense of unhappiness and grumbling.

“Osimhen never trained, Kvaratskhelia wasn’t happy, there were so many problems I won’t list here. I didn’t expect to find myself in such a delicate situation, but it was still a wonderful experience,” concluded Calzona.

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia of Napoli shows his disappointment during the Serie A match between Napoli and SS Lazio at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona on December 08, 2024 in Naples, Italy. (Photo by Francesco Pecoraro/Getty Images)

Osimhen had signed a new contract with Napoli, but with the understanding he would be sold that summer, so when several different negotiations collapsed, he was loaned to Galatasaray in September 2024.

Kvaratskhelia had also been pushing for the exit, but was not allowed to leave for Paris Saint-Germain until January 2025.

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (AP) — New York Mets left-hander Sean Manaea will open the season working out of the bullpen rather than having a spot in the starting rotation.

Manager Carlos Mendoza told reporters Saturday that Manaea would have a “piggyback” role in which he immediately follows a starter the first couple of times the team goes through its rotation.

“We have six guys throwing the ball really well,” Mendoza said. “We were pretty honest with all of them at the beginning of camp. If everyone was healthy, we were going to have to make some tough decisions, and one of them was going to be pitching in that type of role.”

The Mets plan to open the season with a starting rotation of Freddy Peralta, David Peterson, Nolan McLean, Clay Holmes and Koda Senga. The Mets had a surplus of candidates after acquiring Peralta from the Milwaukee Brewers in January.

The 34-year-old Manaea has started in 210 of his 243 career regular-season appearances. He signed a $75 million, 3-year contract after going 12-6 with a 3.47 ERA and finishing 11th in the NL Cy Young Award balloting in 2024, but he followed that up by going 2-4 with a 5.64 ERA last season.

Mendoza noted the Mets probably wouldn’t need a sixth starter the first couple of times through their schedule because they have more off days than usual.

“We don’t feel like we need a sixth starter yet,” Mendoza said. “He’s going to make starts for us.”

___

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Here’s the schedule with my picks in Bold:

(all times in CST)

#9 St. Louis vs #1 Michigan – LIVE – CBS

#6 Louisville vs #3 Michigan State – 1:45 – CBS

#9 TCU vs #1 Duke – 4:15 – CBS

#10 Texas A&M vs #2 Houston – 5:10 – TNT

#11 Texas vs #3 Gonzaga – 6:10 – truTV/ CBS

#11 VCU vs #3 Illinois – 6:50 – CBS

#5 Vanderbilt vs #4 Nebraska – 7:45 – TNT

#12 High Point vs #4 Arkansas – 8:45 – truTV/TBS

Further criticism of the BlueCo era at Chelsea may be on the cards today as the Blues travel north to take on Everton at Hill Dickinson Stadium.

Under David Moyes, the Toffees have embarked on a season that has flown under many a radar across the 2025/26 campaign, with the iconic club boss guiding them to within striking distance of the outlying European places.

In contrast, Chelsea have fallen well short of the mark, sitting a whopping 22 points off league-leading rival Arsenal, as questions remain surrounding the stewardship of co-owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali.

Here is how the two sides will line up on what could be an impactful Saturday clash for the pair...

Can Everton once more narrow the gap to the top six places, or will Chelsea put in a much-needed performance as they push for Champions League qualification?

Seahawks get $76 million contract prediction on Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Devon Witherspoon originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Seattle Seahawks dominantly won Super Bowl 60 over the New England Patriots, and this offseason, they have lost a lot of key players.

Kenneth Walker III, Coby Bryant, Riq Woolen, and Boye Mafe have all left for new teams. Part of that is the Super Bowl tax, but there are two other reasons why they aren't bringing everyone back.

With the looming contracts for Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Devon Witherspoon on the horizon, ESPN's Bill Barnwell predicted that the combined value of both players on their new deals will reach around $76 million, or nearly $40 million each.

Seahawks get $76M prediction on Witherspoon, JSN

"The combined going rate for JSN and Witherspoon on their new deals should be something in the ballpark of $76 million per-year," Barnwell predicts.

This $76 million number isn't the total amount of money that Smith-Njigba and Witherspoon will get on their new deals. That's just how much they're likely to make in one season.

Smith-Njigba, coming off an All-Pro and Offensive Player of the Year season for Seattle with 1,793 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns on 119 receptions, is surely looking for top-of-the-market money.

That could look to be around the $40 million per-year range. While cornerback contracts aren't nearly as ridiculously high as the wide receiver contracts, Witherspoon is also sure to land a massive new deal as well.

More: Josh Jobe to re-sign with Seahawks on three-year, $24 million deal

He had a Pro Bowl season once again, making him 3-for-3 in making Pro Bowls in his NFL career so far despite playing just 12 games. He also earned second-team All-Pro honors this year as well.

Trent McDuffie of the Los Angeles Rams signed a $124 million four-year deal, meaning that if Witherspoon want's to reset the market, which he can justify with how good he's been, the Seahawks would need to beat $31 million per-year for their star cornerback.

Combining the two contracts together will have Seattle spending around $76 million per-year on their top wide receiver and cornerback.

That's a ton of money to invest in just two positions. But, with how good both are, and the seasons they're coming off of, it's hard to justify not spending so much on these 2023 first-round draft picks,

More Seahawks news:

• Jake Bobo let go after Super Bowl run
• 49ers WR Jauan Jennings projected to sign with Seahawks
• Rashid Shaheed for $51 million might be an overpay for the Seahawks
• Kenneth Walker III leaving Seahawks for Chiefs in heartbreaking move
• Seahawks predicted to trade for Alvin Kamara to replace Kenneth Walker

Want to get more Covers content? Add us as a preferred source on your Google account here.

The Montreal Canadiens will try to avenge a recent overtime loss to the New York Islanders when the two teams clash tonight.

Each side has leaned into low-scoring, defense-first hockey down the stretch as they prepare for the postseason, and I’m expecting a similar script to play out in my Islanders vs. Canadiens predictions.

Read more in my NHL picks for Saturday, March 21. 

Islanders vs Canadiens prediction

Islanders vs Canadiens best bet: Under 5.5 (+110)

The Montreal Canadiens and New York Islanders are both battling for playoff positioning, and it shows.

Montreal has allowed just 2.71 goals per game over the past two weeks, while New York has been even stingier at 2.17 — the third-best mark in the league over that span.

The Under is 5-1 in each team’s last six games, with the Islanders hitting Under 5.5 in four straight and the Canadiens in two straight.

New York has also cashed the Under in 53.6% of its games this season, the seventh-highest rate in the NHL.

Islanders vs Canadiens same-game parlay

Goals will be hard to come by tonight, but if there’s anyone who can break through, it’s Cole Caufield.

The Habs winger has goals in three of his last four games and six of his last 10, including a tally vs. the Islanders in their last meeting on February 26.

Islanders vs Canadiens SGP

• Under 5.5
• Cole Caufield anytime goalscorer

Islanders vs Canadiens odds

• Moneyline: Islanders +105 | Canadiens -125
• Puck Line: Islanders +1.5 (-230) | Canadiens -1.5 (+190)
• Over/Under: Over 6.5 (+115) | Under 6.5 (-135)

Islanders vs Canadiens trend

The Under is 9-4 in New York’s last 13 road games. Find more NHL betting trends for Islanders vs. Canadiens.

How to watch Islanders vs Canadiens

Islanders vs Canadiens latest injuries

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

North Carolina athletic director Bubba Cunningham has broken his silence on head men’s basketball coach Hubert Davis.

There has been much speculation surrounding Davis’s future after back-to-back first-round exits in the NCAA Tournament.

“Every year at the end of the season, it’s important to evaluate all facets of the program and look for ways to improve,” Cunningham said via text message. “The Chancellor, Steve and I are doing that together now and will continue to have discussions over the coming days.”

North Carolina would owe Davis $5.312 million if it fired him on April 1, according to records reviewed by the New York Post, which also reported the coach’s base salary is $1.25 million. He earned an additional $1.8 million through supplemental income. His contract runs through June 30, 2030.

ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported Saturday that Davis could be ordered to make staff changes following its first-round loss to No. 11 seed VCU on Thursday in which the No. 6 Tar Heels blew a 19-point lead.

Davis struggled to explain what went wrong in the post-game press conference. When asked about it, he said, “What do you mean?”

He was also asked why he went with a six-man rotation in the game.

“’Cause that was my decision,” he said.

The former Knicks guard is 125-54 in five seasons at his alma mater.

In his first year, he led the Tar Heels to the NCAA Championship game, where they blew a 15-point halftime lead against Kansas in the final.

NEED TO KNOW

• Florida Gators basketball player Olivier Rioux, who is 7 feet, 9 inches tall, became the tallest player to appear in a NCAA game on Friday, March 20
• He stepped on the court in the last few minutes of the game and further widened his team's lead over the Prairie View A&M Panthers with a put-back dunk
• Rioux previously earned the Guinness World Record of the tallest male teenager in the world at the age of 16 when he was 7 feet, 5 inches

Basketball player Olivier Rioux is setting a new record thanks to his impressive height.

Rioux, who plays for the Florida Gators men's basketball team, became the tallest player to appear in a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) game after his team took on the Prairie View A&M Panthers on Friday, March 20, according to The Athletic.

The basketball player — who is 7 feet, 9 inches tall, per the Gators website — was brought in to play on the court in the last few minutes of the game and sealed the team’s win with a put-back dunk, according to the outlet. 

A clip of the dunk posted on X by CBS Sports showed him making the two points, with the crowd and his teammates jumping up and going wild right after. His scoring widened the gap over the Panthers and helped the Gators win 114-55.

“It feels amazing,” Rioux said after the game, per The Athletic.

The 20-year-old also broke records earlier in the season after becoming the tallest player to play in a college basketball game, score in a game and make a field goal in a game in November and December 2025, per the outlet.

His height is notable as he towers over the rest of his team. The next tallest player on the Gators roster is Micah Handlogten, who stands 8 inches shorter than Rioux at 7 feet, 1 inch, per The Athletic.

However, Rioux's college career isn’t the first time he’s broken these kinds of records. He previously took the achievement as the tallest male teenager in the world at the age of 16 when he was 7 feet, 5 inches, according to the Guinness World Records.

In his Guinness World Records profile, Rioux shared that his height came with its own pros and cons, which include having to duck under doors and find clothing that fits. He said that his family was “still not 100% sure why I’m so tall.”

“After investigation, doctors could only explain it with the genetics that my family has,” he said. “My father is 6’8, my mom is 6’2 and my older brother is 6’9. So we’re a pretty tall family!”

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“It feels great being the height I am. I love it,” he added. “I was always taller than the rest of my friends at school or teammates. This is what nature planned for me. I learned to be peaceful and happy about it.”

As for what’s next for the basketball player, who hails from Quebec, Canada, he and his team are next scheduled to take on the Iowa Hawkeyes in the NCAA Tournament Round of 32 on Sunday, March 22.

Read the original article on People

Everton and Chelsea face off today with the urgent need to return to winning ways, both being embroiled in the race to play in Europe next season.

Today's match is being played at the Hill Dickinson Stadium in Liverpool with these lineups:

Everton: Pickford; O'Brien, Keane, Tarkowski, Mykolenko; Garner, Gueye; McNeil, Dewsbury-Hall, Ndiaye; Barry.

Beto replaces Barry as the only change in the local lineup.

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Chelsea: Sánchez; Gusto, Fofana, Hato, Cucurella; Santos, Caicedo; Palmer, Fernández, Neto; Pedro.

Lavia comes into the starting eleven in place of Andrey Santos in Rosenior's midfield.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.

Cardinals trade candidate predicted to land with Commanders in blockbuster deal originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Washington Commanders have made some key additions to their defense in 2026, but one position that could use more love is safety.

The signing of Nick Cross should be helpful and he will start at one safety spot, but who starts next to him remains to be seen. Right now, Washington's choices aren't ideal, with guys like Will Harris and Quan Martin set to compete.

One idea floated by FanSided's Wynston Wilcox involves the Commanders pulling off a blockbuster trade for Arizona Cardinals safety Budda Baker, who Wilcox considers a trade candidate.

"Baker is expensive, but he’d be a major veteran asset to this defense. They have had one of the oldest rosters in the NFL the last couple of seasons; why not double down on it and improve the secondary at the same time? They did sign Nick Cross to a two-year deal, but with Baker, this team is that much closer to dethroning the Philadelphia Eagles as the NFC champs," Wilcox wrote.

With the Cardinals in the midst of a rebuild and looking to add more draft capital, it makes sense to deal a 30-year-old safety who will be a free agent after 2027.

The former second-round pick is one of the better safeties in the NFL, as evidenced by his eight Pro Bowl nods, including seven in a row, and four All-Pro selections.

Baker had a down season in coverage in 2025, tallying a Pro Football Focus grade of 35.7 in that area. However, that was an outlier for his career, with Baker routinely being above 60 and posting a career-high 74.7 the year prior.

Where Baker didn't falter was in the pass rush and in run defense, where he notched grades of 83.8 and 76.6, respectively, showing he can be one of the best all-around safeties in the league.

That's exactly what the Commanders need, too, along with Baker's aggressiveness on the field that will make Washington's defense nastier.

Baker has big cap hits in 2026 and 2027, but the Commanders have $49.3 million in cap space and Baker can be cut with very little penalty next year if things don't pan out, so there isn't a ton of risk here.

More NFL News

• Steelers, Raiders rumors could lead to signing of former $180M FA
• Giants rumor could lead to signing of Lions $22 million free agent
• Broncos rumor reveals reason behind Denver's lack of free agent moves
• Commanders rumors could lead to signing of Pats, 49ers, Dolphins FAs
• AJ Brown trade rumor is good news for Patriots, Chiefs and Raiders

The moment that news broke late Friday afternoon that the Yankees would be optioning Jasson Domínguez to Triple-A, it seemed like a cinch that big-league veteran Randal Grichuk would make their Opening Day roster. Although he arrived to camp as a late-signing non-roster invitee and manager Aaron Boone tried to make it sound like it wasn’t a sure thing that be with them at the start of 2026 (even saying so yesterday), Grichuk so clearly seemed to fit what the Yankees claimed they were looking for all winter: a righty-hitting bench outfielder.

As such, it has to come to pass: Grichuk will be on the 2026 Yankees, per Boone’s report on Saturday morning. Domínguez wasn’t the only player who had to make room for Grichuk given the crowded roster situation, and so came the related news that utilityman Oswaldo Cabrera would begin the year in Triple-A:

Randal Grichuk has made the team, Aaron Boone said.

Oswaldo Cabrera is being optioned to Triple-A.

— Greg Joyce (@GJoyce9) March 21, 2026

Cabrera had an option and is coming back from a pretty brutal ankle injury, only making it into seven games thus far in spring training. So for as solid as a bench option as he is at full health, he’s not quite there yet, and he can keep getting regular reps at Scranton rather than rarely playing in the majors. More likely than not, he’ll be needed sooner rather than later given the overall age of the Yankees’ roster.

As for Grichuk, he’s not terribly exciting on the surface, but as Estevão noted earlier in March, there’s a reason why he had the Yankees were interested in him. Is it possible that he was just cooked in his 85 OPS+ age-33 season last year? Sure. However, he has an .819 career OPS against lefties and that figure was .913 as recently as 2024. So it’s worth the flyer to see if he still has that in him, especially when the roster flexibility is available at the moment with Cabrera and Domínguez’s options (and need for playing time).

Just to throw my hat in the ring on Opening Day roster projections, here’s what I think it could be as of now, acknowledging that Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodón, Clarke Schmidt, and Anthony Volpe will all begin the year on the IL:

Catchers (2)
Austin Wells
J.C. Escarra

Infielders (6)
Ben Rice
Jazz Chisholm Jr.
José Caballero
Ryan McMahon
Paul Goldschmidt
Amed Rosario

Outfielders (4)
Cody Bellinger
Trent Grisham
Aaron Judge
Randal Grichuk

Designated Hitter (1)
Giancarlo Stanton

Starting Pitchers (5)
Max Fried
Cam Schlittler
Luis Gil
Ryan Weathers
Will Warren

Bullpen (8)
David Bednar
Camilo Doval
Fernando Cruz
Tim Hill
Ryan Yarbrough
Paul Blackburn
Cade Winquest
Jake Bird

That last spot in the bullpen could go to someone like Brent Headrick rather than Bird, but aside from that, this all seems to be in order. What do you think?

Tennessee's TSSAA boys basketball Division I Class 2A championship: live updates from Chattanooga Prep vs. Westview originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

MURFREESBORO, Tennessee, March 21 — Tennessee's TSSAA boys basketball championships continue Saturday at The Murphy Center on the campus of Middle Tennessee State University.

The day gets started with the Division I Class 2A state title game between the Chattanooga [TN] Prep Sentinels and the Westview [Martin, TN] Chargers.

Game time is set for a 12 p.m. EST local tip.

STREAM:Watch Chattanooga Prep vs. Westview on the NFHS Network

__________

Refresh for updates

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FIRST QUARTER

__________

At the halfway mark of the opening stanza, it's 9-5, Westview.

__________

Approaching the 6:00 mark, it's 5-3, Westview.

__________

They are under way!

__________

They're getting close to tipoff in Murfreesboro!

__________

Coming soon! Game time is set for 11 a.m. EST local!

__________

How can I watch Chattanooga Prep vs. Westview?

• Date: 11 a.m. EST local, Saturday, March 21
• STREAM:Watch Chattanooga Prep vs. Westview on the NFHS Network

MORE HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL

• The latest SN High School Girls Basketball Top 25
• California's CIF girls basketball championships
• South Carolina's SCHSL boys basketball state champions
• Mississippi's MHSAA boys basketball state champions
• Washington D.C.'s DCSAA boys basketball champions

The octagon is in London, England for tonight's UFC Fight Night 270: Evloev vs. Murphy event at the O2 Arena. The fight card is headlined by a featherweight bout between top contender Movsar Evloev (19-0) and No. 3 ranked Lerone Murphy (17-0-1).

UFC Fight Night 270 Official Results

MAIN CARD (Paramount+, 4 p.m. ET)

• Movsar Evloev vs. Lerone Murphy
• Michael Aswell vs. Luke Riley
• Michael Page vs. Sam Patterson
• Iwo Baraniewski vs. Austen Lane
• Roman Dolidze vs. Christian Leroy Dun
• Kurtis Campbell vs. Danny Silva

PRELIMINARY CARD (Paramount+, 1 p.m. ET)

• Mason Jones vs. Axel Sola
• Losene Keitavs. Nathaniel Wood
• Brando Pericic vs. Louie Sutherland
• Mantas Kondratavičiusvs. Antoni Trocoli
• Felipe Franco vs. Mario Pinto
• Abdul-Kareem Al-Selwady vs. Shem Rock
• Shanelle Dyer vs. Ravena Oliveira

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Featherweight standouts Lerone Murphy vs. Movsar Evloev will clash TONIGHT (Sat., March 21, 2026) inside O2 Arena in London, England, for UFC London (live results here).

This is one of the very best Featherweight bookings possible, a collision of undefeated fighters who have repeatedly proven themselves as world-class talent. Murphy didn’t have much hype at the start of his UFC career, but “The Miracle” has improved significantly over the years and developed into a real title contender. Evloev, conversely, made his UFC debut as a decorated M-1 champion with ties to Khabib Nurmagomedov’s fight camp. Expectations were high, and after 10 fights and zero losses, it’s safe to say that Evloev has proven he’s no flash in the pan.

Presumably, this fight will decide the next title challenger to Alexander Volkanovski’s throne … though Jean Silva might argue otherwise. Either way, let’s take a closer look at the betting odds and strategic keys for each athlete:

Murphy vs. Evloev Betting Odds

• Lerone Murphy victory: -250
• Lerone Murphy via TKO/KO/DQ: +800
• Lerone Murphy via submission: +2700
• Lerone Murphy via decision: +950
• Movsar Evloev victory: +198
• Movsar Evloev via TKO/KO/DQ: +110
• Movsar Evloev via submission: +650
• Movsar Evloev via decision: +240
• Odds via FanDuel Sportsbook

How Murphy Wins

Murphy has put together a very well-rounded MMA game. He’s really slick at distance with a wide variety of clinch, definitely has power in the pocket, and does great work with his clinch offense too. His wrestling has come a long way over the years, and he’s quite good at scrambling back to his feet when taken down.

Obviously, Murphy’s takedown defense is going to be seriously tested here. Evloev attacks the shot like a dog with a bone, and it’s ultimately up to Murphy to damage and discourage Evloev. The Russian may show up in incredible physical shape, but he’ll slow down like anybody else if Murphy is able to make him consistently burn gas.

That process begins at range. Murphy has to be kicking safely, targeting the body with snap kicks and outside calf. He has to take the initiative and attack rather than be rendered defensive early. When Evloev does start wrestling, Murphy has to prolong those transitions and really make Evloev work for every successful shot. If Evloev takes a bad shot, Murphy better be on point with his knees and elbows while Evloev recovers his posture.

Murphy is the much sharper striker, and if he plays his cards right, Evloev will find the takedown harder and harder to land as the fight wears on.

How Evloev Wins

I’ll offer a controversial take: I like watching Evloev’s fights against high-level opponents like Aljamain Sterling and Arnold Allen. He has such a deep bag of transitional techniques both to finish takedowns and maintain top control when actually challenged — it’s impressive to watch! On the feet, Evloev has a nice jab but often prefers to swing wide and shoot.

It’s no secret what Evloev wants to do here. He’s a grinder, a nonstop takedown artist who smothers his opposition. He’s not a finisher at the UFC level, but Evloev isn’t just a lay-and-pray fighter either. He’s active, always chipping away at his opponents and making their lives miserable.

Like Allen, Murphy is the kind of range sniper that can make starting that wrestling cycle difficult. Evloev will have to work for his entries, perhaps by extending his combinations or really ramping up the aggression. Another great strategy for Evloev would be to blast kicks and wait for the return. If Murphy kicks back or even just catches Evloev’s kick, that’s the start of a wrestling exchange.

Murphy vs. Evloev Prediction

I’m kind of shocked at the odds here. To my eyes, this is very much a razor-close, coin flip fight. Both men have shown incredible skills in their undefeated runs, but they’ve also been put in bad positions and nearly defeated along the way. It’s part of what makes this fight so interesting: both men can adjust and recover from a bad round, which should produce some fascinating momentum shifts.

Ultimately, my deciding factor is that Evloev has beaten the better competition. Taking out Lopes, Allen, and Sterling in three straight fights is a major statement, and Murphy’s top wins don’t quite compare. Oddly enough, I actually think Murphy has a better shot versus Volkanovski, but in this five-round fight, I’m backing the Russian.

Prediction: Evloev via decision

---

For live UFC London results, including play-by-play updates, click here.

Sylvain Guintoli hasn’t counted Francesco Bagnaia out of the 2026 Brazilian Grand Prix just yet, noting that despite his lack of pace following a qualifying crash, he still provided Ducati with “valuable” data.

Bagnaia was one of several riders to crash during qualifying in Goiania on Saturday, as VR46 ace Fabio Di Giannantonio secured pole position for the Brazilian GP aboard the same Ducati GP26 as the two-time MotoGP champion. Bagnaia ultimately had to settle for just P11 in Q2.

It wasn’t until late in the session that he managed to post a lap time. He had rushed back to the garage after an early crash at Turn 9, where he lost the front while setting up for Turn 10.

Bagnaia will now line up on Sunday from the middle of row four as round two of the season gets underway. But Guintoli said his response after his qualifying incident could help him stay competitive come race day.

Why Bagnaia’s soft tyre runs could pay off for Ducati despite rough Brazil qualifying

Bagnaia’s pace might not have been there in qualifying, but Sylvain Guintoli thinks the laps he put together on the soft tyres in Q2 could still prove useful for Ducati, giving them data to work with as they look to set up a stronger race.

READ MORE: All you need to know about the Brazilian Grand Prix, including Goiania stats

Guintoli said on TNT Sports 2 (21/03, 14:46): “An early mistake. I mean, he went down hard there and really fast as soon as he started trial braking into Turn 9, and all that braking zone through to Turn 10. That was a really fast crash.

The Italian rider will be disappointed with an 11th-place finish in qualifying, especially after seeing both VR46 star Di Giannantonio and teammate Marquez show strong pace with the same GP26 machinery. Bagnaia ended up 0.712s behind pole-sitter Di Giannantonio and 0.631s off Marquez in third.

Only Pramac rookie Toprak Razgatlioglu aboard the Yamaha M1 registered a slower lap time than Bagnaia for their fastest effort in Q2, with the three-time World Superbike champion’s best lap a 1:18.422 compared to the two-time MotoGP champion’s 1:18.122 personal best.

The only Ducati rider below Bagnaia on the timesheets was Franco Morbidelli on last year’s VR46 bike. Morbidelli didn’t make it out of Q1, finishing that session in fifth place and missing out on a chance to join his teammate in Q2.

Read more:

Is Joel Embiid playing tonight vs. Jazz? Final status for 76er star originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Philadelphia 76ers and Utah Jazz will meet for the second and final time of the season on Saturday night. 

The Sixers pulled out a 106-102 victory in the first meeting earlier this month. The Sixers didn't have the services of star center Joel Embiid for that game, and unfortunately, it will be the same story this time around. 

Joel Embiid ruled out vs. Jazz due to right oblique strain 

Embiid has been officially ruled out of the game against Utah due to a right oblique strain. It will be the 12th consecutive game missed by Embiid. His last game action came against the Miami Heat back on Feb. 26.

On the season, Embiid has appeared in just 33 games for Philadelphia and posted averages of 26.6 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.1 blocks per performance. 

Embiid will be just one of many absences in the game on Saturday night. The Sixers will also continue to be without Tyrese Maxey (right finger tendon sprain), Kelly Oubre Jr. (left elbow sprain) and Paul George (suspension). 

Meanwhile, the Jazz have ruled out Isaiah Collier (left hamstring soreness), Keyonte George (right hamstring strain), Jaren Jackson Jr. (left knee injury recovery), Walker Kessler (left shoulder injury recovery) Lauri Markkanen (right hip impingement) and Jusuf Nurkic (nose injury recovery). 

More Philadelphia 76ers news: 

• Former 76ers, Lakers center announces retirement from basketball
• Tyrese Maxey passes Allen Iverson for 76ers franchise record
• Philadelphia 76ers bring back familiar face to bolster guard depth
• Daryl Morey provides insight into 76ers' decision to trade Jared McCain

Saint Louis vs. Michigan 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. 1 seed Michigan Wolverines will battle the 9th-seed Saint Louis Billikens in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday. This is one of the most underrated games in the next round with Michigan 11-1 in non-conference play during the regular season.

The Wolverines are led by Yaxel Lendeborg, who averages 14.4 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game. Saint Louis ranks fifth in the A-10, allowing 69.7 points per game while holding opponents to 37.7% shooting. Robbie Avila is averaging 12.9 points and 4.1 assists for the Billikens

Here is a look at the box score from Saturday's second round Midwest Region in Buffalo.

Saint Louis vs. Michigan March Madness box score

Michigan stats 

STARTERS	MIN	PTS	FG	3PT	REB	AST	PF	FT	STL	BLK
4N. BurnettG	11	3	1-2	1-1	0	1	2	0-2	0	0
3E. CadeauG	19	12	4-9	3-4	3	2	1	1-2	0	1
21M. Johnson Jr.F	12	4	1-2	0-0	3	1	2	2-2	0	1
23Y. LendeborgF	15	11	4-7	1-2	3	1	2	2-2	0	0
15A. MaraC	15	10	4-7	0-0	4	3	1	2-4	0	4

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BENCH	MIN	PTS	FG	3PT	REB	AST	PF	FT	STL	BLK
2L. CasonG	0	0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0-0	0	0
7H. Eisley Jr.G	0	0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0-0	0	0
11R. Gayle Jr.G	10	1	0-0	0-0	5	1	0	1-2	0	0
5O. GoodmanF	0	0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0-0	0	0
10W. GradyG	0	0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0-0	0	0
13H. HochbergF	0	0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0-0	0	0
32M. KordelC	0	0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0-0	0	0
0P. LiburdG	0	0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0-0	0	0
12C. MayG	0	0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0-0	0	0
1T. McKenneyG	11	5	2-3	1-2	2	0	0	0-0	0	0
42W. TschetterF	2	2	1-2	0-1	0	0	0	0-0	0	0

Saint Louis stats 

STARTERS	MIN	PTS	FG	3PT	REB	AST	PF	FT	STL	BLK
21R. AvilaC	13	3	1-6	1-5	0	4	2	0-0	0	0
13D. BrownG	15	7	3-3	1-1	2	2	1	0-0	1	0
3T. GreenG	8	0	0-2	0-2	0	0	1	0-0	0	0
1Q. JonesG	11	0	0-4	0-2	2	1	1	0-0	0	0
4A. McCottryG	13	10	5-8	0-0	3	1	2	0-0	0	0

---

BENCH	MIN	PTS	FG	3PT	REB	AST	PF	FT	STL	BLK
6K. AnyaF	0	0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0-0	0	0
2B. DiakiteF	0	0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0-0	0	0
11B. DunlapF	11	9	3-5	3-5	1	1	0	0-0	0	0
12I. HolmesG	0	0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0-0	0	0
24C. HutsonG	0	0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0-0	0	0
15J. KerrF	0	0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0-0	0	0
14L. LaczkowskiG	0	0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0-0	0	0
25P. OtienoF	6	5	2-2	0-0	2	0	1	1-2	0	0
5J. SchertzG	0	0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0-0	0	0
9I. SharmaF	10	3	1-3	0-2	1	0	0	1-1	2	0
0K. ThamesG	8	2	0-0	0-0	4	0	2	2-4	0	0

More college basketball news:

• Hubert Davis buyout, contract details as UNC Tar Heels coach
• Seven championship worthy teams in 2026 NCAA men’s basketball bracket
• John Calipari says college athletics is broken — Here’s his plan to fix it
• Fact check: AJ Dybantsa was paid $7 million-plus at BYU
• Where Arkansas Darius Acuff Jr. ranks among John Calipari's best NBA guards

After six weeks in Arizona, the Dodgers return home to Southern California to finish up their exhibition season with the Freeway Series against the Angels. First up is a game in Anaheim on Sunday night at Angel Stadium.

Tyler Glasnow takes the hill in his final spring tuneup for the regular season, which for the right-hander likely begins next weekend against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Non-roster right-hander George Klassen starts for the Halos.

Sunday game info

• Teams: Dodgers at Angels
• Ballpark: Angel Stadium, Anaheim
• Time: 6:07 p.m.
• TV: SportsNet LA, MLB Network (out of market)
• Radio: AM 570 (English), KTNQ 1020 AM (Spanish)

Want to get more Covers content? Add us as a preferred source on your Google account here.

There aren't many chances left to find Spring Training betting edges, with today being the final Saturday of exhibition play.

My MLB picks have scoured the board to find the best bets to make on March 21.

See why the White Sox top my trio of road team moneylines for today.

Spring Training predictions for March 21

Pick #1: Rockies moneyline

This is a pitching mismatch based on Cactus League results. 

Colorado Rockies SP Kyle Freeland has bounced back nicely from a dismal 2025, authoring a 1.80 ERA through five innings this spring. He was last seen blanking the Chicago Cubs over three frames.

Cole Ragans counters for the Kansas City Royals, and he enters play with a monstrous 8.44 ERA. He's surrendered 14 hits over 10 2/3 innings, and has allowed at least two ER in three straight appearances.

Pick #2: Padres moneyline

The San Diego Padres bring the better record into this one, sporting a 14-13 mark compared to the Milwaukee Brewers' 11-15 record.

The Padres also have the better of the two starters going for them today in Randy Vasquez. He's pitched to a 4.15 ERA so far, fanning 11 batters over 8 2/3 innings.

Meanwhile, Robert Gasser totes a 9.95 ERA into this one. He's allowed three homers in just 5 1/3 innings of work.

Pick #3: White Sox moneyline

The Chicago White Sox are on the long end of what's arguably the biggest starting pitching mismatch of the day, yet they are underdogs. Sign me up.

Ryan Borucki rocks a 2-0 record with a spotless ERA. He's allowed only four hits and a walk while striking out five batters over four frames.

Cincinnati Reds SP Andrew Abbott looks ready for regression after an incredible 2025 campaign. He's 1-3 with a 13.85 ERA in Cactus League action, allowing 18 ER over 11 frames.

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

The Dodgers finish up the Arizona portion of their spring training by hosting the A’s on getaway day Saturday at Camelback Ranch.

Lineup

Alex Call LF
Santiago Espinal 1B
Dalton Rushing C
Alex Freeland 2B
Nick Senzel 3B
Hyeseong Kim SS
Jack Suwinski RF
Jaron Elkins CF
Kellon Lindsey DH

Elkins (wearing uniform number 88) and Lindsey (89) are up from minor league camp. It’s the first game this spring for Lindsey, the Dodgers’ first-round draft pick in 2024.

Emmet Sheehan starts on the mound.

Other pitchers

Will Klein is also scheduled to pitch on Saturday.

Up from minor league camp are Jerming Rosario (81), Matt Lanzendorfer (87), Christian Suárez (90), Dilan Figueredo (91), Javier Bartolozzi (92), Jacob Frost (94), and Keynan Middleton (98).

Other position players

Non-roster catchers Eliézer Alfonzo and Seby Zavala are active.

Up from minor league camp are infielders Jake Gelof (93), Joe Vetrano (95), Jose Izarra (00), Sean McLain (01), and Austin Gauthier (03), plus outfielders Kole Myers (02), Damon Keith (05), and Samuel Muñoz (06).

The Georgia Bulldogs have landed a massive three-star legacy commit. Offensive lineman Ty Johnson committed to Georgia, according to Hayes Fawcett. Johnson is going to the school his father played in over South Carolina, Tennessee, and North Carolina.

Johnson has a mammoth 6-foot-5, 300-pound frame. The three-star commit from the class of 2027 is playing football for Lucy Beckham High School in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. He is ranked as the No. 62 offensive lineman from the class of 2027.

He continues in his father's footsteps. His dad, Travis Johnson, was an offensive lineman for the Bulldogs. He was on the same team as Georgia head coach Kirby Smart and Georgia offensive coordinator Mike Bobo. He even roomed with Smart during his college football tenure.

The Bulldogs offered Ty Johnson shortly after "Junior Day," and Johnson made a silent commitment a few weeks ago. “It is something that I have had on my mind for a pretty good bit,” he said to Jeff Sentell of Dawg Nation. “I still wanted to go visit some places, but I just feel like I have the best connection there. It is one of the best places to be and I knew I was going to be up there (today), so I thought, why not?”

Johnson looks up to Georgia offensive lineman Monroe Freeling, who grew up 10 minutes away from Johnson's hometown in Charleston, South Carolina. With Freeling becoming a potential first-round pick in the 2026 NFL draft, Johnson believes he can reach that level too.

Johnson is Georgia's seventh commitment in the class of 2027. The Bulldogs have the fourth-ranked recruiting class in the nation.

Follow UGA Wire on Instagram or Threads for more Georgia football coverage!

This article originally appeared on UGA Wire: 3-star OL Ty Johnson announces commitment

The wide receiver position has been one of controversy for the Pittsburgh Steelers for the last number of years. Since 2024, the Steelers have made a notable trade at the position every year.

In March of 2024, they traded Diontae Johnson to the Carolina Panthers, but never replenished the hole he left behind. They did the same in 2025 when they traded George Pickens in May after acquiring DK Metcalf from the Seattle Seahawks.

Now, for the third straight year, the Steelers finally have a capable one-two punch at receiver after trading for Michael Pittman Jr. That said, they are certainly not done making moves at the position, considering they only have four receivers on the roster. Luke Easterling of Athlon Sports believes Pittsburgh will use its first-round pick on the position, taking Omar Cooper out of Indiana.

“Depth was a huge issue for the Steelers last year, and even with the acquisition of Michael Pittman Jr. via trade, they should still look to load up on high-end talent at the position,” Easterling writes. “Cooper’s well-rounded skill set and physical playing style would be an ideal fit, and his knack for making big plays in clutch moments would be a valuable addition, no matter who ends up under center in Pittsburgh next year or beyond.”

Cooper is coming off a tremendous year for the Sooners, hauling in 69 catches for 937 yards and 13 touchdowns en route to helping Indiana win the National Championship.

Let us know what you think in the comments. Be sure to bookmark Behind the Steel Curtain for all the latest news, breakdowns, and more!

• Pittsburgh Steelers sign former Cowboys offensive lineman
• Steelers host fast-rising LB prospect to pre-draft visit
• Pittsburgh schools to close during week of NFL Draft
• Steelers host Pitt linebacker to pre-draft visit
• Ben Roethlisberger implores Aaron Rodgers to make decision on Steelers’ future

BELFAST, Northern Ireland (AP) — Irish boxer Michael Conlan, who famously gestured at 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games judges with his middle fingers, said he plans to retire without achieving his dream of becoming a world champion.

The 34-year-old Belfast featherweight lost a 10-round split decision to undefeated Kevin Walsh at the SSE Arena on Friday night.

Conlan, the favorite, had hoped a victory would get him a shot at WBC featherweight champion Bruce “Shu Shu” Carrington.

“I want to walk away now, my health intact, my family good. I’ve done really well in boxing,” a bruised Conlan told reporters with his wife and two children seated next to him.

“I’ve achieved an awful lot. Did I reach my goal of being a world champion? No. That’s the hardest part about it all.”

One judge scored the bout 97-93 for Conlan (20-4), and the two others scored it 96-94 for Walsh (20-0), a native of Brockton — the same Massachusetts city that produced Rocky Marciano and Marvelous Marvin Hagler.

“I always said the next defeat — no matter the situation or no matter the circumstances — that would be me finished with boxing, and it has come,” Conlan said.

“I thought I won, but listen it is what it is. I don't want to do it no more. It's time to say goodbye to boxing.”

Conlan fought for the IBF world featherweight title in 2023, losing to Luis Alberto Lopez in a fifth-round stoppage.

Bronze in London, rant in Rio

Conlan won a bronze medal for Ireland at the 2012 London Olympics and became an amateur world champion three years later but made bigger headlines at the 2016 Rio Games, where he lost on a controversial split decision in a bantamweight quarterfinal to Russian Vladimir Nikitin.

Conlan went on an expletive-laden rant on live television after the loss, including raising his middle fingers as he faced the judges.

In 2021, an investigator appointed by the International Boxing Association found that medal bouts in boxing at the 2016 Games were fixed by “complicit and compliant” referees and judges. The report didn’t offer a verdict on whether the result of the Conlan-Nikitin fight was fixed.

In the pro ranks, Conlan beat Nikitin by unanimous decision in 2019.

“I’ve done really well but I’ve never achieved the goal of being a world champion,” Conlan said Saturday. “There is relief. Now I get to spend time with my family...

“It’s just not meant to be, and that’s it.”

___

AP boxing: https://apnews.com/boxing

As the Yankees continue camp this spring, here are the latest moves as New York cuts their roster to 26 active players ahead of Opening Day...

---

March 21, 12:10 p.m.

The Yankees are selecting veteran Randall Grichuk's contract, manager Aaron Boonetold reporters Saturday morning.

In a corresponding move, New York will option the versatile Oswaldo Cabrera to Triple-A.

Grichuk, 34, has gone 2-for-16 (.125) at the plate with a double and RBI over this spring over six games. The 27-year-old Cabrera hasn't looked any better offensively, going 2-for-14 (.143) with a double and RBI as well over seven spring games.

The moves come on the heels of optioning Jasson Dominguez to Triple-A on Friday.

March 19, 5:20 p.m.

While the Yankees assigning top pitching prospect Carlos Lagrange to minor league camp is making the headlines, the club also optioned right-hander Angel Chivilli to Triple-A on Thursday.

New York acquired Chivilli in a trade with the Rockies this offseason and the right-hander was in contention for a spot in the bullpen to start the season. 

In eight appearances this spring, Chivilli allowed 11 runs across 7.2 innings pitched but also struck out 10 batters and picked up a save against the Red Sox on Wednesday.

March 18, 10:28 p.m.

The New York Post's Joel Sherman reports that veteran infielder Paul DeJong does not plan to opt out of his minor league contract with the Yankees on Thursday. 

According to Sherman, DeJong is willing to begin the season in Triple-A if he doesn't make the team. 

The starting infield of Ben Rice, Jazz Chisholm Jr., Jose Caballero and Ryan McMahon is set with Paul Goldschmidt and Amed Rosario locks to fill out the bench. The Yankees would need a backup shortstop with Anthony Volpe injured, but it's unclear if that's the direction the Yankees will go. Oswaldo Cabrera is also an option for a bench role.

In 12 games this spring, DeJong is 6-for-31 with two home runs and two doubles. He's slashing .194/.306/.452 with a .758 OPS. 

He played 57 games with the Nationals last season, slashing .228/.269/.373 with six home runs and 10 doubles. 

March 6, 2:37 p.m.

The Yankees have reassigned RHP Adam Kloffenstein to minor league camp. 

The 25-year-old right-hander did not appear in a Grapefruit League game this spring. Kloffenstein has three major league appearances under his belt with the Blue Jays and Cardinals. He allowed two runs on five hits and two walks across 5.0 innings pitched in the bigs.

March 5, 6:30 p.m.

The Yankees announced their second wave of cuts and it includes RHP Chase Hampton.

Hampton, the team's No. 8 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, is coming off Tommy John surgery he had in February 2025. Hampton had not appeared in a Grapefruit League game this spring as he continues his recovery from elbow surgery.

In addition, the Yankees reassigned RHP Travis MacGregor and RHP Drake Fellows to minor league camp. 

Of the two, only Fellows appeared in an actual game. He threw 27 pitches, and allowed a hit and two walks in his one inning of work this spring.

Feb. 17, 4:10 p.m.

The Yankees announced they have reassigned RHP Alexander Cornielle and catcher Abrahan Gutierrez to minor league camp. This comes a day after the Yankees outrighted OF Yanquiel Fernandez off the major league roster and onto the Triple-A roster.

Fernandez had been a non-roster invitee. 

Kentucky's KHSAA boys basketball semifinals: live updates, scores from Grayson County vs. St. Xavier originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

LEXINGTON, Kentucky, March 21 — Kentucky is one of only two states along with Delaware that doesn't split its boys basketball playoffs up by classifications with just one bracket for 16 regions and one state champion.

The Sweet Sixteen in the Bluegrass State has been whittled down to just four teams, and the first or those two semifinals will feature the Grayson County [Leitchfield, KY] Cougars against the St. Xavier [Louisville, KY] Tigers.

Grayson County got here by beating the Taylor County [Campbellsville, KY] Cardinals (73-64) and the Great Crossing [Georgetown, KY] Warhawks (58-50). St. Xavier's path to the semifinals included wins against the Covington Catholic [Park Hills, KY] Colonels (75-61) and the North Laurel [London, KY] Jaguars (46-42).

The winner of this semifinal will advance to take on the winner of the North Oldham [Goshen, KY] Mustangs and the George Rogers Clark [Winchester, KY] Cardinals.

Game time is set for an 11 a.m. EST local tip.

STREAM:Watch Grayson County vs. St. Xavier on the NFHS Network

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Refresh for updates

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FOURTH QUARTER

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The fourth quarter is under way!

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THIRD QUARTER

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A dominant third-period by St. Xavier. They finish the stanza on an 18-0 run to take a commanding 51-26 lead.

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At the 2:54 mark, St. Xavier has built a 41-26 lead.

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Just under the four-minute mark, St. Xavier has stretched their lead to a dozen at 38-26.

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St. Xavier leading 33-26 at the five-minute mark.

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The third quarter is under way!

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END OF SECOND QUARTER — St. Xavier 27, Grayson County 21

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It's down to 23-19. Grayson County on a 17-4 run as St. Xavier enduring their own three-minute scoring drought now.

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At the 2:42 mark, it's 23-17, St. Xavier.

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Under the six-minute mark, Grayson County has clawed their way back to within seven at 21-14.

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The second quarter is under way!

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END OF FIRST QUARTER — St. Xavier 19, Grayson County 6

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At about the 1:30 mark, Grayson County finally ends a 14-0 six-minute run by St. Xavier to trim it to 14-4.

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At the 2:35 mark, it's 10-2 St. Xavier. After that quick opening basket, Grayson County has been admired in a five-minute scoring drought.

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At the 5:02 minute mark, St. Xavier takes a 3-2 lead on a free throw, and then rebounds the miss on the second free throw and scores again. 5-0 run for St. Xavier as we're off to a fairly slow pace.

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Grayson County with the quick basket inside to get the scoring started at 2-0.

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They're under way in Lexington!

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Coming soon! Game time is set for 11 a.m. EST local!

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How can I watch Grayson County vs. St. Xavier?

• Date: 11 a.m. EST local, Saturday, March 21
• STREAM:Watch Grayson County vs. St. Xavier on the NFHS Network

MORE HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL

• The latest SN High School Girls Basketball Top 25
• California's CIF girls basketball championships
• South Carolina's SCHSL boys basketball state champions
• Mississippi's MHSAA boys basketball state champions
• Washington D.C.'s DCSAA boys basketball champions

St. James’ Park will host a high-stakes Tyne-Wear derby on Sunday as Newcastle United look to avenge December’s 1-0 defeat to rivals Sunderland.

While Eddie Howe’s men have secured wins over Manchester United and Chelsea in their last two Premier League outings, they are reeling from a midweek 7-2 Champions League exit to Barcelona.

With local pride on the line and a European finish still in sight, Newcastle must regroup quickly for this weekend’s assignment.

Captain Bruno Guimaraes and Lewis Miley are officially ruled out, while Sandro Tonali is a major doubt after limping off in Catalonia.

This likely forces a makeshift midfield trio of Joelinton, Joe Willock and Jacob Ramsey.

Defensively, the loss of Fabian Schar necessitates a centre-back partnership of Dan Burn and Malick Thiaw, although Sven Botman is also an option.

Tino Livramento is expected to return to the starting XI in place of Kieran Trippier, with Lewis Hall retaining his place at left-back.

Aaron Ramsdale endured a torrid outing against Barcelona, but he is not in any imminent danger of losing his starting spot to Nick Pope.

In attack, Howe has recently favoured Anthony Gordon as the number nine, but Nick Woltemade could be tasked with leading the line here, flanked by Gordon and Anthony Elanga.

Elanga enters the derby on a high after scoring a brace at Camp Nou and should keep Jacob Murphy out of the XI once again.

Jorrel Hato has seen his importance increased under Liam Rosenior, who spoke in glowing terms about the young defender.

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Liam Rosenior had some very nice things to say about Jorrel Hato this week in his press conference.

That prompted a piece from Dom Smith in the Evening Standard, who took a look at the stats behind the former Ajax man’s season.

The £37m summer signing featured in 32% of the games Enzo Maresca was in charge this season. But Liam Rosenior has shown more trust, and an injury to Marc Cucurella helped too – Hato has featured in 89% of Rosenior’s games.

“In my time, he’s been magnificent. I’m so impressed with him. His temperament, his physicality. Technically, he’s a joy to work with every day. And his age is scary, how good he could be,” the new manager said.

Hato prepares for more important role as season reaches climax

There are still mixed feelings about the 20 year old’s ability within the fanbase. He’s clearly got a lot of talent and potential. But there are still very obvious flaws in his game.

We still don’t think Hato will start today – Cucurella will likely be risked again given how important the game is. But we’re sure that we’ll see the Dutchman later on, and he’ll improve that 89% to over 90%.

In other news…

Enzo Fernandez is pushing for an exit from Chelsea, and there’s a rising level of conviction he might actually go this summer.

Our predicted XI for today’s game is out, featuring Enzo and a few others…

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