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👀 5 things you need to know on Friday
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is unstoppable. Records are made to be broken, but most don’t last for 63 years. The Thunder guard and 2025 NBA MVP scored 35 points in a 104-102 win over the Celtics on Thursday night, marking his 127th consecutive NBA game with at least 20 points. Legendary Wilt Chamberlain snaps a mark he’s held since 1963. The four-time All-Star, who started playing on Nov. 1, 2024, joins a very rare breed: the only player this century to reach half of Chamberlain’s record is Kevin Durant, who has scored 20 or more points in 72 consecutive games.
- Kyler Murray is a Minnesota Viking. The Vikings discovered their potential. JJ McCarthy Murray was selected instead, toured the facility on Wednesday and signed with the team. This is a one-year veteran minimum contract; cardinals After Murray was released, he owed $36.8 million. This was the biggest move on Day 4 of free agency, and the quietest so far. packers left tackle Rasheed Walker As the top free agent available. On the other hand, the aftermath of failure max crosby Trades continue, with edge rushers now learning lessons in the league’s dynamics. assailants.
- The Players Championship remains open after the first round. There are five players at the top of the leaderboard (watch live coverage of the second round), and 11 more players are within two strokes of the lead after 18 holes at TPC Sawgrass. However, among the big names who stand outside of that composition, Collin Morikawa. The world No. 5 player injured his lower back during his practice swing and withdrew from the tournament after only the second hole. It may help open the door to the next possibility. Scotty Scheffler But on an even-par basis, he still has work to do over the next three days to break out of his early-season schneider. Rory McIlroy’s His own recovery from a back injury hasn’t been smooth, and that’s one of the biggest takeaways from Round 1.
- Miami (Ohio) suffered its first loss of the season. The Red Hawks are now undefeated. The 87-83 upset was University of Massachusetts He will leave Miami to end a 31-game winning streak and earn a spot in the NCAA Tournament, barring anything else. This is bad news for bubble teams, as the MAC will almost certainly be a two-bid league.
- Khamzat Chimaev will defend his middleweight title at UFC 328. The entire UFC headliner schedule was revealed through a White House event. Last night, the promotion announced that he would be facing Chimaev. Sean Strickland At the main event on May 9th in Newark, New Jersey. This will be Chimaev’s first appearance in the Octagon since winning the title in August, but Strickland will aim for his second straight victory with a knockout. Anthony Hernandez last month. Also, the co-main event Pit Alexander Volkov against Waldo Cortes-Acosta. Watch exclusively on Paramount+.
- A key deadline for the WNBA CBA passed without an agreement. The WNBA previously indicated it needed an agreement with the players’ association by March 10 to start the 2026 season as scheduled. That day has come and gone, but the two teams did not announce an agreement after meeting this week. With the draft just a month away from today, it seems increasingly likely that something (expansion draft, free agency, and possibly Opening Day) will have to be postponed.
🏀 Don’t miss: Pre-selection Sunday Bracketology
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Can you hear me? The March Madness theme plays in the distance, getting louder. There are only two days left until Selection Sunday.
America’s top teams and several of the already-crowned conference champions know they’re in the NCAA Tournament, and most have a pretty good idea where they’ll stand on the seed line when slots are announced Sunday at 6 p.m. ET on CBS. As always, the drama is on the bubble. Things got even more real for those paying attention to last night’s conference tournament games. We crowned our biggest winners and mourned our biggest losers.
David Cobb determined which teams out of all the contenders would qualify for the tournament and which teams would have work to do before the week was over. Below is a ranking of teams teetering on the cut line.
- Almost there: North Carolina, St. Louis, Missouri
- bubble: SMU, VCU, New Mexico, San Diego State, Texas, Auburn, Oklahoma
- Long shot: Virginia Tech, Stanford, California, Seton Hall, Indiana
Matt Norlander in his latest court report. Bubble teams ranked They will be chosen from most likely to least likely to receive enough love from the selection committee.
- missouri
- VCU
- SMU
- texas
- new mexico
- auburn
- san diego state
- oklahoma
It’s not just bubble teams this week. The race for the top seed is often close, and winning the conference tournament means a lot to a team that only needs a couple more quality wins to move up a spot or two. Here’s how the battle for the top two seed lines is shaping up.
📊 NWSL Preseason Power Rankings
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The NWSL season is approaching. The current runner-up is washington spiritwill host portland thorns Tonight at 8pm ET, the campaign kicks off with a head-to-head matchup. This season will be historic for the NWSL with the addition of two expansion clubs. Boston Legacy FC and Denver Summit FC –The number of league members is now 16, the highest ever. Sandra Herrera ranked them all ahead of the opener.
it is kansas city current, Not the defending champion Gotham FC, Those at the top of the power rankings. Herrera explained why.
- Herrera: ”The 2025 NWSL Shield winner will have the honor of starting at the top of the rankings based on a season that set an incredible record for wins (21), points (65) and clean sheets (16). ”
The top five are:
- kansas city current
- Gotham FC
- washington spirit
- portland thorns
- orlando pride
As for expansion teams, they check in at the bottom. We’ll see where they fit into the picture as the first season progresses.
👍👎 The best (and not the best) of the rest
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- team usa face Canada Tonight is the World Baseball Classic quarterfinals. That will happen even without a pitcher. Tariq Skubal, Michael Wacha and Ryan Yarbrough They were among those who were removed from the roster in a series of personnel changes.
- He hasn’t played in the NBA since 2022 but is in the Hall of Fame dwight howard Finally announced his retirement.
- Erik Spoelstra pushed back against criticism of Bam Adebayo’s This historic 83 point game may have laid the blueprint for someone to reach 100 points.
- Many players are not happy with the LED glass courts at the Big 12 Tournament.
- penny hardaway’s Eight seasons in Memphis have come to an end. Will he get another year? After the most disappointing election campaign ever, uncertainty prevails.
- The Big Ten has asked the NCAA to stop enforcing the tampering rule, but the investigation will continue.
- former Michigan assistant coach chris partridge He sued the school for unfair dismissal.
- Half of the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals are over. Here’s what each team needs to advance in the second leg. Some people face a much tougher road than others, and some have a higher panic meter. atalanta, tottenham and Manchester City.
- former duke teammates Can Knuppel do it? and cooper flag He continues to lead the race for NBA Rookie of the Year. Jaime Jaquez Jr. Meanwhile, he is in contention for Sixth Man of the Year.
- Before the MLB season begins, you’ll want to get familiar with these players returning from major injuries.
- Kevin Vallejos One of the most exciting prospects in the UFC, he will compete as the headliner of UFC Fight Night. Josh Emmett tomorrow. Watch at 8pm on Paramount+.
- check out Brazilian Jordan Brand’s first World Cup away kit.
📺 Highlights this weekend
Friday
🏀 Big Ten Tournament, Quarterfinals: Ohio State vs. No. 3 Michigan; Big Ten Network Noon
🏀 SEC Tournament, Quarterfinals: Kentucky vs. No. 4 Florida State; 1pm on ESPN
⛳ Players Championship, 2nd round, on Golf Channel from 1 p.m.
🏀 Big Ten Tournament, Quarterfinals: No. 23 Wisconsin vs. No. 9 Illinois; 2:30 p.m. on Big Ten Network
🏀 SEC Tournament, Quarterfinals: No. 25 Tennessee vs. No. 22 Vanderbilt; 3:30pm on ESPN
⚽ Parma in Turin, 3:45 p.m. on Paramount+
⚾ Spring Training: Padres at Athletics; 4:05 p.m. on MLB Network
⚾ Spring Training: Astros vs. Cardinals, 6:05 p.m. on MLB Network
⚾ World Baseball Classic, Quarterfinals: South Korea vs. Dominican Republic, FS2 6:30pm
🏀 Big Ten Tournament, Quarterfinals: No. 18 Purdue vs. No. 11 Nebraska; On Big Ten Network, 6:30 p.m.
🏀 Big 12 Tournament, Semifinals: No. 7 Iowa State vs. No. 2 Arizona; 7 p.m. on ESPN or ESPN2
🏀 ACC Tournament, Semifinals: Miami vs. No. 10 Virginia; 7 p.m. on ESPN or ESPN2
🏀 Big East Tournament, Semifinals: Georgetown vs. No. 6 UConn; 8pm on FS1
🏀 Mavericks Cavaliers, 7:30pm on Prime Video
⚾ World Baseball Classic, Quarterfinals: USA vs. Canada; 8pm on Fox
⚽ Portland Thorns at Washington Spirit, 8pm on Prime Video
🏀 Big Ten Tournament, Quarterfinals: UCLA vs. No. 8 Michigan State; 9 p.m. on Big Ten Network
🏀 Big 12 Tournament, Semifinals: No. 14 Kansas vs. No. 5 Houston; 9:30pm on ESPN or ESPN2
🏀 ACC Tournament, Semifinals: Clemson vs. No. 1 Duke; 9:30pm on ESPN or ESPN2
🏀 Timberwolves vs. Warriors, 10pm on Prime Video
Saturday
⚽ Atalanta vs. Inter Milan, CBS Sports Golazo Network/Paramount+ 10 a.m.
⚽ Gotham FC vs. Boston Legacy FC, 12:30pm on ABC
🏀 Big Ten Tournament, Semifinals: TBD vs. TBD, 1 p.m. on CBS/Paramount+
🏀 SEC Tournament, Semifinals: TBD vs. TBD, 1pm on ESPN
⚽ Toronto FC vs. New York Red Bulls, 1pm on Apple TV
⚾ Spring Training: Tigers vs. Blue Jays, 1:07 p.m. on MLB Network
⚽ Everton vs Arsenal, 1:30pm on USA Network
⛳ Players Championship, Round 3, 2pm on NBC
🏒 Bruins at Capitals, 3pm on ABC
⚾ World Baseball Classic, Quarterfinals: Puerto Rico vs. Italy; 3pm on FS1
⚽ Atlanta United vs. Philadelphia Union, 3pm on Fox
🏀 Hornets vs. Spurs, 3:30pm on Prime Video
🏀 Big Ten Tournament, Semifinals: TBD vs. TBD, 3:30pm on CBS/Paramount+
🏀 SEC Tournament, Semifinals: TBD vs. TBD, 3:30pm on ESPN
⚽ Utah Royals FC, Kansas City Current, 4pm at Aeon
⚽ Manchester City vs West Ham United, 4pm on USA Network
⚾ Spring Training: Diamondbacks vs. Giants, 4:05 p.m. on MLB Network
🏀 FIBA Women’s World Cup Qualifier: USA vs Italy, Broadcast on truTV at 4:45 p.m.
🏀 Celtics Wizards, on NBA TV starting at 6 p.m.
🏀 Big 12 Tournament, Championship: TBD vs. TBD, 6 p.m. on ESPN
⚽ Columbus Crew of Nashville SC; 6pm on FS1
⚾ Spring Training: Mets at Astros, 6:05 p.m. on MLB Network
🏀 Big East Tournament, Championship: TBD vs. TBD, 6:30pm on Fox
⚽Denver Summit FC at Bay FC, 6:30pm at Aeon
🏒 Sabers Maple Leaf, 7 p.m. on NHL Network
⚽ Charlotte FC, Inter Miami CF, 7:30pm on Apple TV
🤼 UFC Fight Night: Emmett vs. Vallejos, 8pm on Paramount+
🏀 Lakers Nuggets, 8:30pm on ABC
🏀 ACC Tournament, Championship: TBD vs. TBD, 8:30pm on ESPN
⚽ Chicago Fire FC vs DC United, 8:30pm on Apple TV
⚽ Houston Dash at San Diego Wave FC, 8:45pm at Aeon
⚾ World Baseball Classic, Quarterfinals: Venezuela vs. Japan; 9pm on Fox
⚽ Real Salt Lake, Austin FC, 9:30pm on Apple TV
🏀 Kings at Clippers, 10:30pm on ESPN
⚽ Vancouver Whitecaps FC vs. Minnesota United FC, 10:30pm on Apple TV
Sunday
⚽ Genoa of Hellas Verona, CBS Sports Golazo Network/Paramount+ 7:30 a.m.
⚽ Manchester United’s Aston Villa, 10am on USA Network
⚽ Tottenham Hotspur vs Liverpool, 12:30pm on NBC Sports Network
🏀 Timberwolves vs. Thunder, 1pm on ABC
🏀 SEC Tournament, Championship: TBD vs. TBD, 1pm on ESPN
⛳ Players Championship, final round, 1pm on NBC
⚾ Spring Training: Braves vs. Phillies; 1:05 p.m. on MLB Network
🏀 FIBA Women’s World Cup Qualifier: New Zealand vs. USA, Broadcast on truTV at 1:45 p.m.
⚽ New England Revolution at FC Cincinnati, 2:30pm on Apple TV
🏒 Jets Blues, on NHL Network starting at 3 p.m.
🏀 Cavaliers Mavericks, 3:30pm on NBA TV
🏀 Big Ten Tournament, Championship: TBD vs. TBD, 3:30pm on CBS/Paramount+
⚽ AC Milan, Lazio match, 3:45 p.m. on Paramount+
🏁 NASCAR in Las Vegas, FS1 4pm
🏀 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament Selection Show, 6 p.m. on CBS/Paramount+
⚽ San Jose Earthquake at Seattle Sounders FC, From 7pm on Apple TV
🏒 wild maple leaves, TNT 7:30 p.m.
🏀 NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament Selection Show, 8pm on ESPN
🏀 Knicks Warriors, 8pm on NBC
⚾ World Baseball Classic, Semifinals: TBD vs. TBD, 8pm on FS1
