General Sports 3d Briefing
×Last updated: March 22, 2026, 4:30 PM ET
NCAA Basketball: Men's Tournament Advances
The men's NCAA tournament continued its second round action, seeing a mix of upsets and top seeds overcoming challenges to punch their Sweet 16 tickets espn.com. Purdue advanced 79-69 espn.com over Miami behind Coach Matt Painter securing his 500th win espn.com at the university, while the No. 1 overall seed, Duke, narrowly avoided a major upset espn.com, rallying from 13 points down against 16th-seed Siena to advance espn.com. Elsewhere, Texas completed an improbable run espn.com from the First Four to the Sweet 16 by defeating No. 3 seed Gonzaga 74-68, with coach Sean Miller asserting his team is not a Cinderella despite the feat espn.com. The Midwest Region saw Michigan, the top seed, powering past Saint Louis espn.com thanks to a 25-point performance from Yaxel Lendeborg, setting up a matchup against Dusty May's Florida Atlantic squad espn.com who have been exchanging scouting notes with Michigan's coach Josh Schertz for years espn.com.
Further second-round results included Nebraska surviving a scare against Vanderbilt when a half-court heave rimmed out at the buzzer espn.com, and UConn benefitting from a historic performance by Tarris Reed Jr., who posted 31 points and 27 rebounds in an 82-71 win over Furman espn.com. The coaching carousel continued to spin as Syracuse is working toward hiring Siena’s Gerry McNamara espn.com as its next head coach, while Providence officially hired USF's Bryan Hodgson espn.com. In other collegiate news, Kentucky forward Quaintance is utilizing manga comics espn.com to help pass the time during his injury recovery espn.com.
NCAA Basketball: Women's Tournament Showcases Dominance & Upsets
The women's NCAA field narrowed significantly over the weekend, with No. 1 seed South Carolina beginning its title defense with a commanding 103-34 victory espn.com over Southern, led by Joyce Edwards' 27 points and eight rebounds espn.com. UConn entered the weekend as the odds-on title favorite espn.com, while USC was saved by a review nullifying a buzzer-beater, allowing them to eventually topple Clemson in overtime espn.com and advance to the second round. Initial upsets saw No. 10 seed Virginia author the first major surprise espn.com by defeating No. 7 Georgia 82-73 espn.com. Meanwhile, the NCAA has filed a lawsuit against DraftKings espn.com for trademark infringement related to the use of terms such as "March Madness" espn.com.
Track & Field Dominance at World Indoors
Great Britain achieved a historic haul at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Poland, securing three gold medals in a sensational 28-minute span bbc.com, marking the team’s best-ever performance at the event bbc.com. Keely Hodgkinson captured her first world indoor title bbc.com in the 800m, setting a championship record in a commanding run bbc.com. Adding to the medal count, Josh Kerr reclaimed his world indoor 3,000m title after completing a challenging return from injury to the global podium bbc.com. In the women’s pentathlon, Ireland's Kate O'Connor secured the bronze medal bbc.com, while Jeremiah Azu finished fourth in the 60m dash, a race described as one of the best 60m races of all time bbc.com.
Rugby Union & League Action Across the Atlantic
The United Rugby Championship saw several key results, with the Stormers defeating the Dragons 31-10 bbc.com to move back into second place in the standings fueled by a four-try performance bbc.com. Wales received a boost with the return of players like Taulupe Faletau and Jac Morgan bbc.com amidst a tough weekend overall for the Welsh clubs, while the South Africans maintained their strong form bbc.com. Connacht delivered a statement second-half display to conquer Ulster bbc.com, and Scarlets rallied to sweep aside Zebre with six tries bbc.com in a battle at the bottom of the table. In Rugby League, Hull FC edged out Leeds Rhinos bbc.com in a close Yorkshire derby, securing their second Super League win bbc.com, while Warrington Wolves moved to second place after Kelepi Tanginoa scored four tries bbc.com against Castleford tries*against Castleford bbc.com.
Combat Sports & Snooker Updates
The UFC London event saw Movsar Evloev denting Lerone Murphy’s featherweight title aspirations bbc.com via a majority decision victory bbc.com, sparking renewed debate over fighter pay following the event bbc.com. Paddy Pimblett indicated his desire to return to the Octagon in July bbc.com during the promotion's international fight week. In snooker, Thepchaiya Un-Nooh delivered a stunning performance in the World Open final in Yushan, China, achieving a maximum 147 break en route to a 10-7 victory bbc.com over Ronnie O'Sullivan bbc.com. Meanwhile, in boxing, Costello van Steenis successfully retained his PFL middleweight title bbc.com by stopping Fabian Edwards in the third round bbc.com, and Lewis Crocker stated that a win over Liam Paro should open up further title opportunities bbc.com.
Global Cycling, Golf, & Other Sports Notes
Tadej Pogacar claimed his first Milan-San Remo title bbc.com following a tense final-stretch battle with Britain’s Tom Pidcock bbc.com, though the women's race saw Debora Silvestri suffer a serious crash, resulting in five broken ribs bbc.com. In golf, Hannah Green earned her third consecutive tournament victory bbc.com at the Australian WPGA Championship on the Gold Coast bbc.com. In cycling, Australian Cameron McEvoy shattered the long-standing men's 50m freestyle world record bbc.com, previously held by Cesar Cielo bbc.com. Meanwhile, Rwanda's Fanny Utagushimaninde achieved a major milestone, becoming the youngest woman to score a T20 international century bbc.com at just 15 years and 223 days old bbc.com.
Personnel & Administrative Shifts
In college basketball coaching changes, Georgia Tech officially hired Scott Cross espn.com as its new head coach after his tenure at Troy, while Cal State Bakersfield is reportedly targeting USC assistant Todd Lee espn.com amid internal issues espn.com. South Carolina baseball coach Paul Mainieri has been let go midway through his second season, unable to replicate his prior success at LSU espn.com. In the NBA, the Oklahoma City Thunder will forego a traditional White House visit espn.com during their upcoming trip to the nation's capital, citing scheduling "timing" espn.com. Furthermore, the WNBA’s pending collective bargaining agreement will reportedly expedite the timeline for players espn.com on rookie deals to reach maximum salary tiers espn.com.