General Sports 3d Briefing
×Last updated: March 24, 2026, 1:30 AM ET
NCAA Women's Tournament Advances to Sweet 16
The second round of the Women's NCAA Tournament concluded with several thrilling matchups, setting the stage for the Sweet 16 regional semifinals, where six SEC teams and five ACC teams now remain espn.com. UCLA rolled on espn.com after star Lauren Betts erupted for a career-high 25 points in an emphatic 87-68 second-round victory over Oklahoma State. Meanwhile, Virginia authored a historic upset espn.com by dismantling host Iowa 83-75 in double overtime, becoming the first First Four team ever to reach the Sweet 16 in the NCAA women's tournament. In Storrs, UConn advanced decisively espn.com, utilizing a massive 31-0 run to crush Syracuse 98-45, though the Orange's coach, Felisha Legette-Jack, later blasted the NCAA for the recurring placement of her team in the challenging UConn subregional espn.com.
NCAA Men's Tournament Sweet 16 Field Takes Shape
The men's bracket solidified its Sweet 16 matchups following a dramatic Sunday of second-round action, with the tournament enjoying its best ratings start since 2011 espn.com. St. John's punched their ticket espn.com after Dylan Darling's last-second layup secured a 67-65 win over Kansas, sending the Red Storm to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1999, prompting questions about the future of Jayhawks coach Bill Self, who confirmed he has made no decision yet espn.com. In the Midwest, Michigan, the region's top seed, powered past Saint Louis behind a 25-point performance from Yaxel Lendeborg espn.com, setting up a regional semifinal clash between coaches Dusty May and Josh Schertz espn.com. Elsewhere, No. 2 seed UConn narrowly avoided a massive upset when Tarris Reed Jr. delivered a monumental 31-point, 27-rebound performance to defeat Furman 82-71 espn.com, while Purdue coach Matt Painter achieved his 500th career win at his alma mater by taking down Miami 79-69 espn.com.
Men's Tournament Upsets & Coaching Carousel
The second weekend saw several major seeds fall, including No. 3 seed Gonzaga, who were upended by the First Four team Texas, 74-68, leading Texas coach Sean Miller to reject any "Cinderella" label for his squad espn.com. Iowa eliminated the defending champion Florida Gators espn.com on a buzzer-beating three-pointer, though Iowa State later inflicted Kentucky's worst tournament loss since 1972, winning 82-63 espn.com. The coaching carousel continued spinning across Division I, as Cincinnati worked to hire espn.com Utah State's Jerrod Calhoun, who has led the Aggies to back-to-back NCAA tournaments, while Arizona State announced the hiring of Saint Mary's Randy Bennett as their new head coach espn.com. In other coaching news, Syracuse is reportedly moving to hire former star Gerry McNamara from Siena espn.com, and Charlotte brought in Wes Miller after his dismissal from Cincinnati espn.com.
Global Sports: Tennis, Golf, and Cricket Turmoil
In professional tennis, Aryna Sabalenka moved into the last 16 bbc.com at the Miami Open after dispatching Caty McNally, though world number one Sabalenka had earlier made light work of Zheng Qinwen bbc.com. Following her Miami exit, Iga Swiatek made a coaching change, splitting with Wim Fissette bbc.com. On the PGA circuit, Tiger Woods confirmed he will participate in Match 2 of the TGL finals after his team, Jupiter Links, lost a tight 6-5 opener to Los Angeles on Monday espn.com, with the championship matchup set to determine the inaugural winner of the new league espn.com. Meanwhile, English cricket leadership faced intense scrutiny; former captain Michael Vaughan suggested head coach Brendon McCullum and managing director Rob Key were "very lucky to survive" a post-Ashes review bbc.com, though ECB chief Richard Gould maintained McCullum is the right person to steer the team forward despite the 4-1 Ashes defeat bbc.com.
Rugby, Athletics, and Miscellaneous Action
In rugby union, England is slated to face Canada in a September World Cup final rematch as part of the WXV Global Series fixtures bbc.com, while in the United Rugby Championship, Exeter claimed a victory bbc.com over Sale to move into the play-off places, and the Stormers edged the Dragons to climb to second in the standings bbc.com. Athletics saw several major achievements, highlighted by Great Britain securing three gold medals in a sensational 28-minute span at the World Indoor Championships, including Keely Hodgkinson setting a championship record bbc.com to win the 800m, and Josh Kerr reclaiming his world indoor 3,000m title after returning from injury bbc.com. In other combat sports, the debate over fighter compensation resurfaced at UFC London bbc.com, where Movsar Evloev earned a majority decision over Lerone Murphy, damaging Murphy's featherweight title aspirations bbc.com. Finally, in a concerning development, a 19-year-old women's junior flyweight boxer, Isis Sio, was placed in a medically induced coma following a knockout espn.com.