General Sports 3d Briefing
×NCAA Basketball
The NCAA tournament picture took shape espn.com as Florida and Houston entered the AP Top Five, while UCLA closed the gap espn.com on UConn in the women's poll after picking up three first-place votes. West Virginia avenged regular-season losses espn.com to TCU with a 62-53 Big 12 tournament championship, and Northern Iowa clinched its first NCAA berth espn.com since 2016 with an 84-69 Missouri Valley Conference tournament win. Meanwhile, Georgia Tech fired Damon Stoudamire espn.com after a last-place ACC finish, ending his three-year tenure.
WNBA & Women's Basketball
The WNBA and players' union exchanged proposals espn.com over the weekend but remain far apart on a new CBA before Tuesday's deadline. In college hoops, Texas claimed its first SEC tournament title espn.com with a 14-0 start against South Carolina, while UCLA rolled to its second straight Big Ten tournament crown espn.com with a 96-45 rout of Iowa. Duke women rallied for an ACC title espn.com in overtime against Louisville, and Queens University earned its first NCAA berth espn.com in its inaugural year of eligibility.
College Football & NIL
The transfer portal and NIL era reshaped the landscape espn.com as traditional upset stories vanished, with power conferences dominating March basketball. Tennessee and Notre Dame found themselves on opposite ends espn.com of the bubble spectrum heading into Selection Sunday. Meanwhile, Wales targeted Ashley Phillips bbc.com for a potential England-to-Wales switch ahead of World Cup qualifying, and the 2027 Six Nations opened with Ireland hosting England bbc.com in Dublin.
Winter Paralympics
Great Britain's wheelchair curlers suffered their fourth straight loss bbc.com falling 8-6 to hosts Italy, while the mixed doubles pair missed out on semi-finals bbc.com after defeats to China and Canada. Ukraine's Maksym Murashkovskyi credited ChatGPT bbc.com for helping secure Para-biathlon silver, and Russia won its first gold bbc.com since 2014 through Varvara Voronchikhina in the standing super-G. The 'mixed' Para-ice hockey event featured just one female player bbc.com despite its designation, highlighting ongoing gender disparities.
Premier League & European Football
Cardiff City condemned racist behavior bbc.com and appealed to fans to identify the supporter involved in a gesture during the Lincoln City match. Leicester Tigers overpowered Bath bbc.com to book a Premiership Rugby Cup final against Exeter, who routed Northampton bbc.com 31-14 to reach their first final in three years. In Sri Lanka, Gary Kirsten was named head coach bbc.com, replacing previous leadership as the island nation seeks to rebuild its cricketing fortunes.
Tennis & Golf
Emma Raducana lost in 52 minutes bbc.com at Indian Wells, winning just 11 points in the first set against Amanda Anisimova. Meanwhile, British rookie Arvid Lindblad finished eighth bbc.com on his Formula 1 debut at the Australian Grand Prix, describing it as "living the dream." In golf, Akshay Bhatia beat Daniel Berger bbc.com in a playoff to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational, while Thomas Detry shared the LIV Golf Hong Kong lead espn.com after Jon Rahm arranged emergency travel from the Middle East crisis zone.
Combat Sports
Jon Jones asked the UFC to release him espn.com after receiving what he called a "lowball" offer for the White House card, while Dana White confirmed Jones was never in consideration espn.com for the June 14 event headlined by Ilia Topuria vs. Justin Gaethje. Former UFC champion Francis Ngannou will return May 16 espn.com on Jake Paul's inaugural MMA card, and Anthony Cacace kept faith through setbacks bbc.com ahead of his WBA super-featherweight title fight against James Dickens.
Auto Racing & Motorsport
Ryan Blaney completed a Team Penske sweep espn.com at Phoenix Raceway, while Lando Norris and other drivers slammed the new F1 cars espn.com after a problematic Australian Grand Prix debut. McLaren's Oscar Piastri secured pole position espn.com but finished outside the podium as Red Bull's Max Verstappen extended his championship lead bbc.com. Four-time Tour de France winner Tadej Pogacar won Strade Bianche bbc.com for a record fourth time, soloing to victory in the Italian classic.
Curling & Winter Sports
Canada's Nolan McLean transitioned from college quarterback espn.com to Team USA starter in the World Baseball Classic, making eight MLB starts as a Mets pitching prospect. Meanwhile, British skateboarder Sky Brown became world champion bbc.com for the second time in Brazil, and Olympic gold medallist Charlotte Bankes won a World Cup race bbc.com in Erzurum, Turkey. Scotland's wheelchair curlers lost to Italy bbc.com while Jo Butterfield and Jason Kean missed semi-finals bbc.com in the mixed doubles event.
Rugby Union
Scotland routed France 32-23 bbc.com in a performance described as their best in 40 years, with Darcy Graham scoring early bbc.com and Kyle Steyn intercepting a Dupont pass bbc.com for his second try. England suffered a historic defeat bbc.com to Italy for the first time in 33 attempts, prompting calls for Steve Borthwick to make major changes bbc.com before facing France. Ireland's Andy Farrell said the entire squad feels ownership bbc.com ahead of the Triple Crown decider against Scotland, while debutant Nathan Doak called his introduction "at the right time" bbc.com.
Miscellaneous Sports
Wigan Warriors maintained their perfect start bbc.com with a 32-6 win over Huddersfield Giants, while Hull KR secured their first Super League win bbc.com of 2026 against winless opponents. In darts, Luke Littler defended his UK Open title bbc.com beating James Wade in the final, and New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner said his team was keen to "break hearts" bbc.com in the T20 World Cup final against India. Finally, former UConn basketball player Steve Emt shared his incredible journey espn.com from paralysis to three-time Paralympic curler.