General Sports 3d Briefing
×Last updated: March 21, 2026, 10:30 PM ET
NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Shocks & Upsets
The men's NCAA tournament saw remarkable upsets over the weekend as Texas achieved an improbable run espn.com by advancing from the First Four all the way to the Sweet 16 after defeating Gonzaga 74-68 on Saturday. Meanwhile, the No. 1 overall seed, Duke narrowly dodged disaster espn.com, rallying from a 13-point deficit to secure a victory over 16th-seeded Siena, while Michigan, the Midwest Region's top seed, powered past Saint Louis espn.com behind a 25-point effort from Yaxel Lendeborg to also punch their ticket to the Sweet, setting up a matchup where coaches Dusty May and Josh Schertz will meet after years of exchanging scouting notes espn.com. Further first-round drama saw 11th-seeded VCU erasing a 19-point deficit espn.com to stun No. 6 North Carolina in overtime, a loss that has reportedly initiated discussions between UNC officials and coach Hubert Davis regarding his future espn.com.
The first round delivered historic performances and records, as Purdue's Braden Smith broke the NCAA assists record espn.com with 1,077 career assists during his opening game. Elsewhere, No. 7 seed Kentucky required a buzzer-beater from Otega Oweh to finally subdue Santa Clara 89-84 in overtime espn.com, and No. 11 seed Texas managed to knock off No. 6 BYU 79-71, overcoming a 35-point barrage from BYU's AJ Dybantsa espn.com. In other action, Utah State utilized a second-half surge, capped by a 20-point night from MJ Collins, to overcome Villanova 86-76 espn.com, while the reigning NBA champion OKC Thunder confirmed they would skip espn.com a White House visit during their capital trip this weekend.
NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament Dominance & Upsets
The women's tournament featured contrasting outcomes, with top seeds asserting dominance while other matchups provided significant upsets. South Carolina steamrolled Southern espn.com by a 103-34 margin, propelled by Joyce Edwards' 27 points and eight rebounds, as the defending champions began their title defense with the second-largest margin of victory in tournament history espn.com, which included Florida putting up 114 points against Prairie View A&M espn.com. However, the chalk was partially broken when No. 10 seed Virginia secured the first upset espn.com of the weekend, defeating No. 7 Georgia 82-73 on Saturday, while USC advanced to the second round only after a crucial buzzer-beating shot was nullified espn.com by review, allowing them to topple Clemson 71-67 in overtime espn.com.
UConn enters the next phase as the heavy favorite, with odds naming them the odds-on title winner espn.com heading into the weekend's action, though No. 2 seed UConn survived a scare thanks to Tarris Reed Jr.'s monumental 31-point, 27-rebound performance in an 82-71 win over Furman espn.com. Meanwhile, UCLA's Skyy Clark shook off losing a piece of his tooth late in the game to help the Bruins secure a 75-71 victory over UCF espn.com, and No. 4 seed Nebraska captured its first-ever NCAA win espn.com in dominant fashion, beating Troy 76-47 on Thursday espn.com. On the coaching front, Cal State Bakersfield is reportedly targeting USC assistant Todd Lee as its next head coach amid ongoing internal issues espn.com, while Tuskegee coach Benjy Taylor filed a $1 million federal lawsuit stemming from a postgame detainment in January espn.com.
Mixed Results in Combat Sports & Athletics
In the UFC, Movsar Evloev delivered a major blow to Lerone Murphy's title aspirations bbc.com at UFC London, securing a gritty majority decision victory in the featherweight division, although questions about title contention matchmaking persist bbc.com. Separately in combat sports, Costello van Steenis successfully retained his PFL middleweight title by stopping Fabian Edwards in the third round, crushing Edwards' world title hopes again bbc.com, while Chinese Taipei's Olympic champion Lin Yu-ting was cleared to compete following a mandated sex test bbc.com. On the track, Josh Kerr completed a remarkable comeback from injury, reclaiming his world indoor 3,000m title bbc.com in thrilling fashion, though Great Britain's Jeremiah Azu narrowly missed a medal, finishing fourth in what was described as "one of the best 60m races of all time" at the World Athletics Indoor Championships bbc.com.
Global Rugby & Cricket Developments
European rugby saw several crucial league matches, with Exeter edging Sale 26-14 to move into the Premiership play-off positions bbc.com, while in the United Rugby Championship, Connacht delivered a powerful second-half display to secure a statement win over Ulster bbc.com; however, Ulster faces difficulties as star wing Rob Baloucoune is sidelined for three months with an elbow injury bbc.com. Meanwhile, the English Premiership Women's Rugby saw Trailfinders claim a narrow 21-17 victory over Harlequins thanks to an Abi Burton try three minutes from time bbc.com. In cricket, Rwanda's Fanny Utagushimaninde made history by becoming the youngest woman to score bbc.com a T20 international century at just 15 years and 223 days old, and there are developing plans for a potential European Cricket Nations Cup to launch as early as 2027 bbc.com.
Cycling, Golf, and Other Sports News
Tadej Pogacar continued his stellar run by capturing his first Milan-San Remo title bbc.com after a tight contest with Tom Pidcock, though the women's race was marred by a serious crash that resulted in Italian rider Debora Silvestri being hospitalized bbc.com. In the pool, Australian Cameron McEvoy shattered the long-standing men's 50m freestyle world record bbc.com, eclipsing Cesar Cielo's mark set during the 'supersuit' era. Elsewhere, Jon Rahm has decided to drop his appeal against DP World Tour sanctions for playing in LIV Golf events but has refused to pay the outstanding fines bbc.com, while in the UK, the predicted growth of virtual golf suggests that by the end of 2028, there could be more simulated rounds played in the UK than outdoor ones bbc.com.