General Sports 3d Briefing
×Last updated: March 13, 2026, 4:41 PM ET
College Basketball
No. 20 Miami (Ohio) suffered its first defeat espn.com in a stunning 87-83 loss to UMass in the Mid-American Conference tournament, while Hofstra returned to the NCAA tournament espn.com for the first time in 25 years after defeating Monmouth 75-69 in the Coastal Athletic Association championship. In the Big, AJ Dybantsa poured in a freshman-record 40 points espn.com to lead BYU to a 105-91 victory over Kansas State, and Texas Tech guard Christian Anderson strained a muscle espn.com while slipping on the conference's new glass floor during Iowa State's 75-53 win. Syracuse fired men's basketball coach Adrian Autry espn.com after three seasons without an NCAA tournament appearance, while Arizona State will not renew Bobby Hurley's contract espn.com following a 91-42 blowout loss to Iowa State in the Big 12 tournament—the largest margin in conference history.
Football
The Atlanta Falcons are bringing in Tua Tagovailoa espn.com to compete with Michael Penix Jr. for the starting quarterback job, general manager Ian Cunningham confirmed Friday. In conference realignment developments, both Conference USA and the Sun Belt included Louisiana Tech on their 2026 football schedules espn.com amid a standoff over the Bulldogs' league switch. The Big Ten sent a letter to the NCAA espn.com requesting a pause on tampering investigations and enforcement, while Utah Valley settled its $1 million WAC exit fee dispute espn.com that had threatened to exclude the Wolverines from league tournaments.
Horse Racing
Cheltenham Festival concluded with tragedy as two more horses died bbc.com on the final day, including Envoi Allen and Saint Le Fort. The festival saw 2026 marked as the year of the outsider bbc.com, with the average starting price of 28 winners hitting a 10-year high, making it a difficult year for punters. Gaelic Warrior won the Cheltenham Gold Cup bbc.com in supreme fashion, while Heart Wood triumphed in the Ryanair Chase bbc.com to give trainer Willie Mullins his third win of day two. Trainer Paul Nicholls threatened to boycott future festivals bbc.com over concerns about ground quality after Fact To File was withdrawn, and Ben Jones eyes Gold Cup glory aboard The Jukebox Man bbc.com, Harry Redknapp's horse that was confirmed for the race bbc.com.
Rugby Union
Scotland have been "to hell and back" bbc.com to become Six Nations title contenders, according to Sione Tuipulotu, with BBC's Tom English noting they now have the chance to reach "rugby paradise" in Dublin. Ireland named four changes bbc.com for Saturday's Triple Crown decider against Scotland, ruling out lock James Ryan, while flanker Josh van der Flier said recent wins over Scotland have all come when Ireland played "particularly well" bbc.com. Wales named an unchanged side bbc.com for their Six Nations finale against Italy, with record-breaking flanker Alex Mann set to step up bbc.com in Cardiff. France will wear a special edition pale blue shirt bbc.com against England to mark 120 years of rivalry, and uncapped flanker Temo Matiu will make his debut bbc.com in the Paris finale.
Formula One
Lewis Hamilton said Ferrari's gap to Mercedes espn.com is mainly due to power unit performance deficits after qualifying fourth for Saturday's Chinese Grand Prix sprint race. The seven-time champion explored "every way" to attend the Oscars espn.com following the Chinese GP but ultimately decided it was impossible to arrive on time despite "F1" nominations.
Paralympic Sports
Haiti's Ralf Etienne became his nation's first Winter Paralympian bbc.com sixteen years after losing his leg in the devastating earthquake, while cross-country skier Jake Adicoff became the first out gay man to win individual Paralympic gold bbc.com. Great Britain's Hester Poole vowed "redemption" after crashing out bbc.com of the giant slalom on her Winter Paralympic debut, and Neil Simpson was left bitterly disappointed bbc.com after failing to finish his opening giant slalom run in the men's visually impaired event. Austrian siblings Veronika and Johannes Aigner are dominating the Paralympics bbc.com, winning medals while entertaining the athletes' village, and German cross-country skiers turned their backs on Russian gold medallists bbc.com on the podium in protest against Russia's inclusion.
Boxing & MMA
Khamzat Chimaev will defend his UFC middleweight title bbc.com against Sean Strickland in May, while Ronda Rousey wants to "rewrite her ending" bbc.com with a MMA bout against Gina Carano on May 16, her first fight in ten years. Super featherweight Ryan Garner has his eye on the winner bbc.com of Saturday night's world title clash between James Dickens and Anthony Cacace at St Mary's.
Tennis
World number one Aryna Sabalenka beat "future Grand Slam champion" Victoria Mboko bbc.com at Indian Wells, though Iga Swiatek was eliminated. Britain's Sonay Kartal said it was "one match too many" bbc.com as a back injury forced her retirement from a fourth-round match against world number three Elena Rybakina.
Soccer
Team USA won its FIBA World Cup qualifier espn.com with six players making their debuts, including Caitlin Clark, who returned with a double-double espn.com in her first game since July, scoring 17 points and 12 assists in 19 minutes. England head coach Steve Borthwick said the shirt has "weighed heavy" bbc.com on some players during a disappointing Six Nations campaign, while Fin Smith said his on-pitch disagreement with Maro Itoje bbc.com shows the depth of their relationship rather than team disintegration.
Coaching Changes
Saint Louis agreed to a contract extension espn.com with coach Josh Schertz after he led the Billikens to an Atlantic 10 regular-season title, while Casey Alexander is expected to be named Kansas State's new coach espn.com after his success at Belmont. Hofstra returned to the NCAA tournament espn.com for the first time in 25 years under coach Speedy Claxton, and Miami (Ohio) suffered its first defeat espn.com in the MAC tournament.
Other Sports
Graeme McDowell created LIV Golf history bbc.com by becoming the first player to hit a second hole-in-one on the tour in consecutive weeks. Kim English's three-year tenure at Providence ended with his firing espn.com after a loss to St. John's, and Adrian Autry was fired by Syracuse espn.com after three tournament-less seasons. The Big 12 will transition back to hardwood espn.com for the remainder of its conference tournament after the innovative LED glass court caused slipping issues, including an injury to Texas Tech's Christian Anderson.