General Sports 24-Hour Briefing
×Last updated: March 13, 2026, 12:56 AM ET
ENERGY & COMMODITIES
Oil futures slipped 1.3% in early Asian trade as OPEC+ signaled potential output increases, while gold held near $2,340 as a weakening dollar offset risk-on sentiment. A surge in aluminum prices pushed China Hongqiao's Zhang Bo past the $48 billion mark, cementing his position among Asia's wealthiest industrialists. Meanwhile, U.S. airline bonds weakened after jet fuel costs spiked 8% on Middle East supply fears, and Chicago's planned muni bond sale is testing investor appetite amid geopolitical uncertainty.
COLLEGE SPORTS
Auburn coach Steven Pearl lobbied for his team's NCAA tournament chances after blowing a double-digit second-half lead to Tennessee in the SEC tournament quarterfinals Thursday, while Miami (OH) stunned by UMass, suffering its first defeat with a shocking 87-83 loss to the Red Raiders in its first game of the Mid-American Conference tournament. Texas Tech guard Christian Anderson strained a muscle while slipping on the new glass floor at the Big 12 tournament during Iowa State's 75-53 win over the Red Raiders on Thursday, and Miami (OH) suffered its first loss in the Mid-American Conference tournament.
OLYMPIC & PARALYMPIC ACHIEVEMENTS
Olympic figure skating champion Alysa Liu received a key to her hometown during a rally that included performances from Bay Area artists, while Sweden's Armand Duplantis broke his own pole vault world record for the 15th time with a jump of 6.31 metres. Great Britain's Hester Poole crashed out of the giant slalom on her Winter Paralympic debut but vowed a "redemption arc" for Saturday's slalom, and cross-country skier Jake Adicoff became the first out gay man to win an individual Paralympic gold medal.
PROFESSIONAL LEAGUES
NFL Players Association representatives are set to vote on a successor to disgraced former leader Lloyd Howell, while Miami's Mario Cristobal faces his "most challenging" offseason yet of the Cristobal era as the Canes aim to reach college football's mountaintop again. England's kicking has become a bugbear of supporters, but it is actually one of the few areas of their game functioning well in the Six Nations, and Wales head coach Steve Tandy named an unchanged starting side for the Six Nations finale against Italy at the Principality Stadium on Saturday.
BOXING & HORSE RACING
Super featherweight boxer Ryan Garner says he has his eye on the winner of Saturday night's world title clash between James Dickens and Anthony Cacace, and triple gold medallist Tom Dean, who uprooted his life to move to Stirling last year, has the 2028 Olympics in his sights. Jockey Nico de Boinville and Declan Queally shook hands after Englishman De Boinville was accused of aiming "racial slurs" at Ireland's Queally during the Cheltenham Festival, and guide dog Pickle has been stealing the spotlight in Milan-Cortina as Paralympics GB's 26th team member.
OTHER NOTABLE EVENTS
Tennessee star freshman Nate Ament, out the past two games with a leg injury, is expected to play in the SEC quarterfinals against Auburn, and Alabama's Jim Boeheim defended Adrian Autry as "a good coach," saying his dismissal was a result of poor performance by the Orange's best players and lack of NIL funding. Harry Redknapp hopes to become a Cheltenham Gold Cup-winning owner with Jukebox Man, and Auburn 'deserves' NCAA bid after blowing a double-digit second-half lead to Tennessee in the SEC tournament quarterfinals.