General Sports 3d Briefing
×Last updated: March 21, 2026, 11:30 PM ET
NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Upsets & Advances
The men's NCAA tournament saw several dramatic second-round contests concluding Saturday, with Texas capping an improbable run espn.com by becoming the first First Four team in five years to reach the Sweet 16 following a 74-68 victory over Gonzaga. Meanwhile, the top-seeded Michigan squad powered past Saint Louis espn.com behind a 25-point performance from Yaxel Lendeborg to secure their own Sweet 16 berth, a game that featured Coaches Dusty May & Josh Schertz exchanging ideas for years espn.com. In other action, No. 1 overall seed Duke dodged a major upset scare espn.com, rallying from a 13-point deficit against 16th-seed Siena to advance, while UConn survived a scare espn.com thanks to Tarris Reed Jr.'s dominant 31-point, 27-rebound game.
The first round delivered significant upsets, including No. 11 seed Texas knocking off sixth-seed BYU espn.com, overcoming 35 points from BYU's AJ Dybantsa, who is now mulling his future espn.com. Elsewhere, No. 12 seed High Point stunned fifth-seeded Wisconsin 83-82 on Thursday, sealed when Chase Johnston hit his first two-pointer of the season to give High Point the lead espn.com, and No. 4 seed Nebraska recorded its first-ever NCAA tournament win espn.com with a commanding 76-47 defeat of Troy. Adding to the upsets, No. 10 seed Virginia authored the first upset in the women's bracket by toppling No. 7 Georgia 82-73 espn.com, a day after No. 9 seed TCU edged out Ohio State 66-64 in a tight opener with a late Xavier Edmonds layup espn.com.
NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament Dominance & Drama
The women’s NCAA Tournament saw top seeds advance while some upsets occurred on the opening weekend. No. 2 seed UConn avoided an upset espn.com in a tight match, though the consensus favorites for the title entering Saturday were already set, with UConn tabbed as the odds-on favorite espn.com. In first-round blowouts, defending champion Florida began their title defense with a 114-55 thrashing, marking the second-largest victory margin in tournament history espn.com, while South Carolina senior Joyce Edwards posted 27 points and eight rebounds espn.com in a 103-34 rout over Southern. USC also advanced, but only after a crucial buzzer-beater review nullified Clemson's attempt espn.com at the end of regulation before the Trojans eventually won in overtime, 71-67.
College Hoops Coaching & Off-Court Matters
Coaching movement and off-court issues continued to dominate college basketball news this week. South Carolina baseball coach Paul Mainieri is out midway through his second season espn.com, unable to replicate the success he saw during his tenure at LSU. In basketball hires, Georgia Tech officially named former Troy coach Scott Cross as its new men's head coach on Friday per an official announcement espn.com. Meanwhile, UNC officials are reportedly in discussions regarding coach Hubert Davis's future following yet another first-round exit, where Davis insisted fatigue was not to blame espn.com after VCU rallied from 19 down to win in overtime on Thursday. Separately, the NCAA has filed a federal lawsuit against Draft Kings, accusing the sportsbook operator of trademark infringement over 'March Madness' usage espn.com.
UFC, Boxing, and Combat Sports
In the UFC London main event, Movsar Evloev dealt a significant blow to Lerone Murphy's featherweight title aspirations, securing a majority decision victory over the Briton bbc.com, a matchup that had generated discussion regarding the fairness of title contender matchmaking bbc.com. Elsewhere in combat sports, Costello van Steenis successfully retained his PFL middleweight title by stopping Fabian Edwards in the third round, denying the Briton a world title shot bbc.com for the second time. In professional boxing, Chinese Taipei's Olympic champion Lin Yu-ting has been cleared to return to competition bbc.com after successfully passing the governing body's mandated sex verification test, while Michael Conlan confirmed the "end of the road" for his professional career following a split decision loss to Kevin Walsh in Belfast on Saturday night bbc.com.
Global Athletics & Track & Field
The world of athletics saw impressive performances over the past few days, highlighted by Josh Kerr’s triumphant return from injury, as he reclaimed the world indoor 3,000m title bbc.com in thrilling fashion. In sprinting, Great Britain's Jeremiah Azu finished fourth in what was described as "one of the best 60m races of all time" at the World Athletics Indoor Championships narrowly missing a medal in the event bbc.com, while fellow Briton Amy Hunt discussed the importance of female athletes pursuing university degrees while preparing for the same championships bbc.com. On the swimming front, Australian Cameron McEvoy set a new men's 50m freestyle world record, eclipsing the long-standing mark set during the 'supersuit' era by breaking Cesar Cielo's previous best bbc.com.
Rugby Union & League Updates
The European club rugby circuits saw several tight contests, with Exeter narrowly beating Sale 26-14 to move into the Premiership play-off places bbc.com. In the United Rugby Championship, Connacht delivered a powerful second-half display to secure a statement victory over Ulster at the Affidea Stadium despite Ulster missing Rob Baloucoune for three months bbc.com, while in the Welsh contingent, Cardiff welcomed back Taulupe Faletau for a URC clash against the Bulls after his absence since New Year's Day bbc.com. In Super League, Warrington Wolves' Kelepi Tanginoa scored four tries as the team hammered Castleford Tigers bbc.com to move into second place in the standings, while leaders Wigan Warriors fought back from a 14-0 deficit to maintain their 100% start to the season against York Knights winning 26-14 bbc.com.
Cycling, Cricket, and Other Global Sports
In professional cycling, Tadej Pogacar captured his first Milan-San Remo title bbc.com after a grueling battle with Tom Pidcock, though the women's race concluded with Italian rider Debora Silvestri being taken to hospital following a serious crash bbc.com. Cricket saw Rwanda's Fanny Utagushimaninde achieve a major milestone, as the 15-year-old became the youngest woman to score a T20 international century during her remarkable innings espn.com, while Ireland's Paul Stirling announced he is stepping down as the T20 captain stating it felt like the right time for a new chapter bbc.com. Furthermore, Freestyle skier Kirsty Muir secured her second consecutive World Cup slopestyle victory in Flachnau, Austria, putting her at the top of the overall season standings bbc.com, matching the World Cup success of snowboarder Mia Brookes who also claimed her fifth career title in slopestyle bbc.com.