General Sports 3d Briefing
×Last updated: March 14, 2026, 5:51 AM ET
NCAA Basketball
UCLA's Tyler Bilodeau suffered a right leg injury espn.com that will likely sideline him for at least one game, yet the Bruins held off No. 8 Michigan State espn.com 88-84 to advance to the Big Ten tournament semifinals. In the Big, Jaden Bradley hit a fallaway jumper at the buzzer espn.com to send No. 2 Arizona to the finals with an 82-80 win over Iowa State. Meanwhile, Cincinnati fired men's basketball coach Wes Miller espn.com after five seasons, while Kansas State is expected to hire Belmont's Casey Alexander espn.com as its new coach.
Six Nations Rugby
England's Steve Borthwick needs a performance that gives compelling proof bbc.com of his team's direction against France, writes Mike Henson, as England's kicking has become a bugbear of supporters but remains one of their few functioning areas. Scotland, meanwhile, have been "to hell and back" to become Six Nations contenders, says Sione Tuipulotu, as they prepare to face Ireland in a rare meeting where they hope to break their 12-game losing streak espn.com. Wales, having gone three years without a Six Nations win, must beat Italy bbc.com to salvage their campaign, while France will wear a special edition pale blue shirt to mark 120 years of rivalry against England.
Tennis
Aryna Sabalenka beat "future champion" Victoria Mboko bbc.com at Indian Wells but Iga Swiatek was eliminated. Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina will meet in a final for the third time in four months. Britain's Sonay Kartal retired from her fourth-round match bbc.com against world No. 3 Elena Rybakina due to a back injury, calling it "one match too many."
Cricket
England bowler Mark Wood says his injured knee is improving bbc.com but admits he's started thinking about life after cricket for the first time. The Hundred's historic auction saw 89 players picked up, with Sunrisers Leeds buying Abrar Ahmed to allay concerns Pakistan players would be ignored by IPL-affiliated franchises. Coaches of Hundred teams with IPL investment say they have not been directed away from signing Pakistan players.
Horse Racing
Gaelic Warrior won the Cheltenham Gold Cup bbc.com in supreme fashion as Harry Redknapp-owned Jukebox Man finished eighth. Heart Wood triumphed in the Ryanair Chase bbc.com to earn trainer Willie Mullins his third win of day two. However, Envoi Allen and Saint Le Fort both died on the final day bbc.com of the Cheltenham Festival. Trainer Paul Nicholls threatened not to bring horses to future festivals over concerns about ground quality after Fact To File was withdrawn.
Winter Paralympics
Great Britain's Hester Poole vowed a 'redemption arc' bbc.com after crashing out of the giant slalom on her Winter Paralympic debut, setting her sights on Saturday's slalom. Cross-country skier Jake Adicoff became the first out gay man to win an individual Paralympic gold medal. Austrian siblings Veronika and Johannes Aigner continue dominating alpine skiing, winning medals while entertaining the athletes' village.
Motorsport
Lewis Hamilton said Ferrari's gap to Mercedes espn.com is mainly due to a deficit in power unit performance after qualifying fourth for Saturday's Chinese Grand Prix sprint race. Hamilton has explored "every way" to attend Sunday's Oscars ceremony but ultimately decided it was impossible to arrive on time. In golf, Graeme McDowell created LIV Golf history bbc.com by becoming the first player to hit a second hole-in-one on the tour.
Football
The NFL draft order is set for all seven rounds, starting with the Raiders at No. 1 and ending with the Broncos at No. 257. The Falcons are bringing in Tua Tagovailoa espn.com to compete with Michael Penix Jr. for the starting quarterback job. Conference USA and the Sun Belt both included Louisiana Tech on their 2026 football schedules amid a standoff on the Bulldogs' switch between leagues.
Other Sports
UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland will challenge Khamzat Chimaev bbc.com for the title in May. In netball, AO Manchester Thunder beat Lexis Nexis Dragons bbc.com as the latter's winless run in the Super League continues. Connacht beat Scarlets in Galway bbc.com to move within striking distance of the United Rugby Championship play-offs. In the Netball Super League, Loughborough Lightning beat Harlequins 43-33 bbc.com with England internationals Ellie Kildunne and Sadia Kabeya returning for their respective teams.