The team with the best record in the NBA and on an 11-game win streak is about to get its second-best player back.
Jalen Williams is not on the Oklahoma City injury report and is set to return to the court on Monday when the Thunder face the 76ers. Williams has been out since Feb. 11 with a strained hamstring.
The Thunder's preferred starting lineup — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Williams, Lu Dort (also coming off the injured list), Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein — have played in just five games together this season, but are now getting healthy just in time for the playoffs.
Williams was an All-NBA player a season ago but has played in just 36 games this season due to injuries (he had wrist surgery last offseason). He has never found his rhythm this season and is averaging 17.5 points per game (the lowest since his rookie season), while shooting a 31.3% from 3-point range (a career low).
The last entrant into this year's Sweet 16 will either be Texas Tech or Alabama.
Both are dealing with major absences in their lineups -- for two very different reasons.
Texas Tech star JT Toppin, the 2025 Big 12 Player of the Year, tore his ACL on Feb. 18 and will miss the rest of the season. The Red Raiders went 3-3 entering the NCAA Tournament without him.
Alabama will be playing without its second-leading scorer Aden Holloway after he was arrested on two felonies on March 16, for possession 2.1 pounds of marijuana in his residence. The University of Alabama released a statement and said Holloway was removed from campus and won't return to the team until the university's office of student conduct finishes its investigation.
But even with those two missing, there's still a matchup of stars worth your attention: Texas Tech's Christian Anderson vs. Alabama's Labaron Philon.
The winner of tonight's game will advance to next week's Sweet 16 where it will face No. 1 Michigan in Chicago.
One thing Texas Tech has going for it is the plethora of offensive weapons beyond Anderson. Alabama, meanwhile, has to rely on Philon to carry much of the offensive burden without Aden Holloway. The Red Raiders do well when they can let one player do the damage and take everybody else out of the equation.
Why isn't Aden Holloway playing for Alabama? Latest arrest details on drug charges
Holloway was arrested on Monday, March 16 and charged with first-degree possession of marijuana and failure to affix a tax stamp after the West Alabama Narcotics Task Force found 2.1 pounds of marijuana in his residence.
He was transported to the Tuscaloosa County Jail and was set with a $5,000 bond, according to The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network. The University of Alabama later released a statement and said he was removed from campus and won't return to the team until the university's office of student conduct finishes its investigation.
Duel between Labaron Philon vs Christian Anderson will be must-see
Texas Tech's Anderson averages 7.5 assists to rank No. 3 in the country, trailing just Braden Smith of Purdue and Jeremy Fears Jr. of Michigan State. Meanwhile, Philon's 4.8 assists struggle to crack the top 75. That being said, Alabama had one more elite option to dish out the ball in its nationally-acclaimed backcourt prior to the arrest of Aden Holloway on Monday, March 16.
Both sophomores can shoot, too. Philon touts a field-goal percentage of better than 51% to average 22 points per game, but Anderson isn't far behind, shooting 48% from the floor to average 19 points per contest.
Where is JT Toppin? What happened to Texas Tech star?
Toppin, a first team All-Big 12 pick, started 25 games before his season-ending ACL tear against Arizona State on Feb. 18. At the time, Toppin was averaging career-highs in points (21.8) and rebounds (10.8) per game, shooting 54.8% from the field.
This isn't the JT Toppin show anymore, and it hasn't been for a while. Texas Tech has had to move on. While Toppin is still very much part of the team — he was on FaceTime with several Red Raider teammates in the locker room after the Akron game — it's unfair to the players still on the floor to make it about the guy who isn't there.
"It's tough because we all care for JT," Petty said. "I love him. He's my brother. It's tough."Lubbock Avalanche-Journal reporter Nathan Giese contributed to this story.
ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 24: Freddie Freeman #5 of the Los Angeles Dodgers at bat against the Los Angeles Angels at Angel Stadium of Anaheim during a spring training game on March 24, 2025 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Dodgers are back in Southern California on Sunday night to start the exhibition Freeway Series against the Angels at Angel Stadium in Anaheim. Much like Friday night against the Padres at Camelback Ranch, Sunday showcases another potential opening day lineup for the Dodgers, this time with Alex Freeland at second base after getting good news Sunday morning.
Lineup
Shohei Ohtani DH Michael Tucker RF Mookie Betts SS Freddie Freeman 1B Will Smith C Max Muncy 3B Teoscar Hernández LF Andy Pages CF Alex Freeland 2B
Tyler Glasnow starts on the mound.
Other pitchers
Non-roster pitchers Chris Campos and Antoine Kelly are active for the Freeway Series, as is the full major league bullpen. Tanner Scott, Alex Vesia, Blake Treinen, and Ben Casparius are expected to pitch Sunday night.
Up from the minors are Ronan Kopp (wearing number 83), Cam Day (89), Antonio Knowles (92), and Cody Morse (90).
Other position players
Miguel Rojas, Santiago Espinal, Alex Call, and Dalton Rushing are active, as is catcher Eliézer Alfonzo, the last remaining non-roster position player in camp.
Up from the minors are Zach Ehrhard (99), James Tibbs III (98), Eduardo Quintero (87), Emil Morales (93), Chase Harlan (94), and Joendry Vargas (88).
WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 03: Jalen Brunson #11 of the New York Knicks drives to the basket against Will Riley #27 of the Washington Wizards during the second half at Capital One Arena on February 3, 2026 in Washington, DC. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Washington Wizards play the New York Knicks at 7:30 p.m. tonight at Madison Square Garden. Watch the game on Monumental Sports Network.
Lakers star Luka Doncic, left, controls the ball in front of Orlando's Jamal Cain during the Lakers' win on Saturday. (Julio Aguilar / Getty Images)
He’s the hottest player in the NBA. Not even the NBA’s technical foul rule can slow Luka Doncic down.
The NBA rescinded Doncic’s 16th technical foul, the league announced Sunday, allowing Doncic to avoid a mandatory one-game suspension that would have kept him out of Monday’s game against the Eastern Conference-leading Detroit Pistons.
Doncic and the Lakers appealed the call after he was given a technical for taunting against Orlando Magic forward Goga Bitadze in Saturday’s Lakers win. Bitadze's technical foul was also rescinded after the European players were arguing while Doncic was shooting free throws. Doncic claimed Bitadze made a vulgar comment toward Doncic’s family in Serbian while Bitadze said he first heard inappropriate comments from Doncic and only repeated what he heard the Lakers guard say.
Often criticized for arguing with officials, Doncic remains at 15 technical fouls this season, second in the NBA behind Phoenix’s Dillon Brooks. In 2023, Doncic also had his 16th technical foul rescinded, avoiding a one-game suspension.
Doncic’s historic scoring run has fueled the Lakers’ nine-game winning streak, their best since the 2019-20 season that ended with an NBA championship. Doncic, the NBA’s leading scorer, is averaging 40 points per game during the winning streak while shooting 40.3% from three-point range. His 60-point outburst against the Miami Heat last Thursday was the first 60-point game in Lakers history since Kobe Bryant’s last game in 2016. He was just the seventh Lakers player to record a 60-point game, joining legends Bryant, Elgin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlain, George Mikan, Jerry West and Shaquille O’Neal.
The winning streak has vaulted the Lakers from sixth in the West to third. They have navigated the most difficult stretch of their schedule with seven wins over playoff-bound teams.
The Pistons, poised to earn the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs for the first time since 2007, are without their own star player as guard Cade Cunningham is sidelined for at least two weeks with a collapsed lung. Detroit is 2-0 without him with wins over Washington and Golden State.
Note: Rui Hachimura (right calf soreness), Maxi Kleber (lumbar back strain) and Marcus Smart (right ankle soreness) are questionable for Monday's game.
Dylan Garand held his own in his NHL debut on Sunday afternoon, which ended in a New York Rangers’ 3-2 shootout loss against the Winnipeg Jets.
This day was a long time coming as Garand was drafted in the fourth round by the Rangers back in 2020 and has spent the past four seasons playing in the American Hockey League for the Hartford Wolf Pack.
“I think there are a lot of goalies that get rushed into the NHL, first or second year pro, not that many games under your belt, and things like that,” Garand said. “Sometimes that hurts your career. For me, I've played a lot of American League games, and, yeah, I think it's made me more ready for today. Didn’t rush my development. Definitely leaned on all of that experience for sure.”
On Wednesday night, after the Wolf Pack’s 5-2 win over the Charlotte Checkers, Garand was informed that not only would he be called up to the NHL, but he was also slated to start on Sunday.
The 23-year-old goaltender’s mind was consumed by what would transpire once he touched the ice at Madison Square Garden on Sunday.
“I found out after a game last Wednesday that I was gonna play on Sunday, so I just was kind of thinking all day, every day for the last four days,” Garand confessed.
Garand secured tickets for his mom, dad, stepmom, and goalie coach from his days with the Kamloops Blazers of the Western Hockey League.
Garand flashed off his potential, recording a total of 35 saves on 37 shots, while making timely stops, especially down the stretch in the third period.
He was poised, looking steady and calm behind the pipes, and he did not appear to be flustered by the moment.
Despite giving up two goals on Winnipeg’s two attempts in the shootout, Mike Sullivan was pleased with Garand’s performance.
“He obviously was terrific,” Sullivan said of Garand. “He looked really solid, calm demeanor there, track pucks well, rebound control was great. He made some big saves for us. I thought he had a really strong game.”
In the grand scheme of things, the score in Sunday afternoon’s game was meaningless compared to the magnitude of this day for Garand and his family.
The young goaltender has had to overcome a long journey filled with highs and lows to get to this point, waiting patiently in the AHL for years before this opportunity to play in the NHL finally came around.
“I've kind of been waiting to make my NHL debut my whole life… I don't even remember the last time I didn't want to be a hockey player. It’s my life’s dream,” Garand said. “It's pretty cool to accomplish that. Hopefully it’s just the beginning, but yeah, it's a dream come true for sure. It’s an awesome experience, and I’m glad my family is here for it too.”
With Jonathan Quick’s contract ending at the end of the 2025-26 season and his future in the NHL still uncertain past this year, the Rangers' backup goaltending position behind Igor Shesterkin could very much be up for grabs.
Garand’s NHL debut showed that he’s capable of slotting into that backup role if the opportunity is presented to him.
The 7th-seeded Wildcats of the Midwest Region were handed a 19-point loss by 2-seed Iowa State on Sunday in St. Louis in overtime, giving Kentucky its first exit in the first weekend under Pope, who helped lead the program to a national championship under Rick Pitino as a player.
Kentucky found some March magic in Friday's first-round overtime win over 10-seed Santa Clara with Otega Oweh getting off a game-tying 3-pointer from near the logo to tie the game and force overtime. Oweh, who hit a pair of key free throws in overtime, went off for 35 points in the win over the Broncos.
Coming off a Sweet 16 run in Pope's second season, the honeymoon stage of his return to Lexington was quickly ended this season, as the Wildcats had an up-and-down year that featured losses they "should not have" taken as a "blue blood", like Missouri, Georgia, and Auburn in SEC play. Kentucky went 1-4 against top-ranked opponents in the nonconference as well.
There were also wins — like Tennessee, Arkansas, St. John's and Vanderbilt — for the Wildcats that reminded the SEC (and the country) of the talent — that has come at the cost of well over $20 million in NIL value — that Pope has on his roster.
Here's what to know of Pope's buyout and contract information at Kentucky following the Wildcats' loss to Iowa State:
Mark Pope buyout at Kentucky
According to Pope's contract, obtained by the USA TODAY Network, Kentucky would owe the coach $$12,937,500 million if he were fired on April 1.
Mark Pope contract details at Kentucky
Length: Contract has three years remaining
Base salary remaining: $1.2 million
Supplemental compensation remaining: $16,050,000 million
According to Kentucky's contract with Pope, obtained by the USA TODAY Network, there are three additional years remaining. addition to his $1,250,000 annual base salary, he is earning $1,800,00 in supplemental pay for the 2026 contract year. In addition to the $1.2 million in base salary remaining ($400,000 per year), there is $16.05 million in supplemental compensation remaining.
All told, the total left on Pope's deal is $17,250,000. Kentucky would owe the buyout for the remaining 75% of his contract if it decided to fire Pope without cause at anytime.
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Seattle's Andrew Thomas finished with two saves and Drake Callender did likewise as the Sounders and Minnesota United played to a scoreless draw on Sunday.
It was the third straight and fourth shutout in five starts this season for Thomas. The 27-year-old took the starting reins from mainstay Stefan Frei — now in a backup role. He hasn't allowed a goal since a 2-1 loss to Real Salt Lake in Seattle's road opener. He also blanked the Colorado Rapids 2-0 in the season opener at home. Thomas had the lone save of the first half.
Callender notched his second clean sheet in his first season with Minnesota United. Callender and Inter Miami goalkeeper Dayne St. Claire switched teams in the offseason. Callender made 92 starts for Miami beginning in 2022, but only five last season.
Jordan Morris saw his first action for the Sounders (3-1-1) since he was injured in the season opener. Morris entered in the 65th minute along with Jesús Ferreira and 18-year old midfielder Snyder Brunell.
Seattle was coming off back-to-back 1-0 road victories over St. Louis City and the San Jose Earthquakes.
Minnesota United (1-2-2) came in after being outscored 9-1 in two straight road losses to Nashville SC and the Vancouver Whitecaps.
Minnesota swept Seattle during the regular season last year and then eliminated the Sounders in the best-of-three first round of the playoffs, winning twice at home on penalty kicks after 0-0 and 3-3 draws in regulation. Seattle posted a 4-2 victory at home in the middle match.
Up next
Seattle: Visits the Houston Dynamo on April 4.
Minnesota: Visits the Los Angeles Galaxy on April 4.
On this day, the White Sox brought back catcher Reese McGuire and parked him on the South Side. | (Photo by David Durochik/Diamond Images via Getty Images)
1904 Bob Elson, who would become the longest-tenured broadcaster in White Sox history, was born in Chicago.
Elson graduated from DePaul but became a WGN voice in 1929 almost completely by accident, being pulled into an audition while merely taking a tour of KWK in St. Louis and then WGN snatching him home. He would go on to cover more than 5,000 baseball games in his career.
Elson spent most of his career covering both White Sox and Cubs games, but from 1946-70 worked only on the White Sox. He had a smooth delivery that allowed him also to shift over to Blackhawks work (1934-55, interrupted only by service in World War II), and pro football (Bears and Cardinals) in the 1930s. He was also one of the first broadcasters to conduct on-field interviews.
While not exactly the most beloved or colorful voice in club history, there will never be another broadcaster who comes close to the service Bob Elson gave the White Sox.
1906 Moose Solters, who finished his career with the White Sox, was born, in Pittsburgh. The left fielder seemed on his way to superstardom, with brilliant early-career seasons for the Red Sox and Browns. But three of his four seasons from 1936-39 were poor, prompting the White Sox to buy low on Solters in a 1939 challenge trade with St. Louis, sending the Browns left fielder Rip Radcliff. Radcliff had a great 1940 season in St. Louis, leading the majors in hits. Solters also had a strong, bounce-back season.
Sadly, during the 1941 season Moose was struck by a loose baseball while walking onto the field at Griffith Stadium in Washington, sustaining a skull fracture. His comeback attempt failed, as his eyesight began to fail him as a result of the injury.
For you trivia buffs, both Solters and Marv Owen were born on exactly the same day, preceding the first White Sox championship season. Solters played three seasons with the White Sox and Owen two, and depending on the timing of transactions the birthday twins may have been briefly on the same White Sox roster: Owen was sold to the Red Sox on Dec. 8, 1939, the same day Solters came to the South Side in trade.
1985 Primary 1960s White Sox owner Art Allyn passed away at age 71, in Sarasota.
He came to the White Sox a lion and went out a lamb — or maybe it was the other way around. Allyn had the winning bid to secure the club from Bill Veeck and shrewdly rebuilt an aging team via GM Ed Short. In fact, for all of the storied White Sox seasons, the best three-year record for the franchise came under Allyn’s ownership, 1963-65.
Allyn had a heroic side off the field as well: Repulsed by the segregation Florida continued to practice into the 1960s, the owner bought a motel near the Sarasota training grounds to allow his Black White Sox players to sidestep the institutional racism still being practiced.
On the other hand, Allyn did leave the White Sox as a villain. Allyn was unwilling to hold Short’s feet to the fire after a series of sour moves in the second half of the 1960s, and the threadbare White Sox began to openly solicit Milwaukee as a relocation site after the Braves moved south to Atlanta. It was Allyn who steered the Sox up north to play a significant percentage of their home schedule at County Stadium, not Comiskey Park.
Finally, with Art on the verge of selling the White Sox to interests who would have vacated Comiskey Park permanently, Art’s brother John Allyn intervened and bought Art out in 1969, saving the White Sox for Chicago.
2026 The White Sox signed catcher Reese McGuire to a $1.2 million contract, beginning his second go-around with the team. McGuire originally played on the South Side in 2022, slashing .221/.261/.285 in 53 games before being dealt to Boston for Jake Diekman. That 0.0 WAR effort was enough to bring the 31-year-old back to town, likely costing the White Sox younger and cheaper catching prospect Korey Lee.
The Seattle Mariners for years have done a “Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Night” for years, and in 2026 they will expand that to include a BYU night.
On Saturday August, 22 against the Chicago Cubs the Mariners will host a BYU Night. If you purchase the ticket special you will receive a Mariners-themed BYU Jersey. Below is the description from the Mariners.
“Rally your crew for BYU Night at T-Mobile Park on Saturday, August 22! With this exclusive offer, you can score a Mariners-themed BYU Jersey and specially priced tickets to a marquee matchup against the Cubs. Plus, $5 of every ticket sold will benefit the BYU Scholarship Replenishment Fund.”
I live in the Seattle area and have been working with the Mariners and BYU on this promotion. The Mariners have done college themed nights for regional universities in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho, and this will be the furthest college themed night they have done. The Mariners have seen the success from LDS night and recognize all the BYU alumni and fans in the Pacific Northwest.
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - AUGUST 13: Maikel Garcia #11, Bobby Witt Jr. #7, Vinnie Pasquantino #9, and Michael Massey #19 of the Kansas City Royals talk during a pitching change in the fifth inning during a game against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field on August 13, 2024 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Brandon Sloter/Image Of Sport/Getty Images) | Getty Images
It’s time to predict how the season will play out! How will the Royals do? Who will win MVP? Who will end up playing in the World Series?
Give us your predictions on the Royals, the playoffs, and awards for the 2026 season by filling out this short survey. You can see last year’s predictions here. We’ll unveil what the readers predicted on Wednesday, plus predictions from our writers.
The No. 2 Huskies messed around a little bit No. 15 Furman before putting the Paladins away, 82-71. UConn was shorthanded without point guards Silas Demary Jr. and Jaylin Stewart.
Demary listed as questionable on the NCAA's availability report for today's game vs. the No. 10 seed Bruins, and the Huskies will hope to have their point guard back.
No. 7 UCLA beat 10th-seeded UCF in 75-71 in the first round. The Bruins controlled most of the game but had some nervy moments late. Eric Dailey Jr. led the way with 20 points, with Trent Perry and Xavier Booker adding 15 each.
The winner of today's game advances to next week's Sweet 16 against No. 3 seed Michigan State in Washington D.C.
Will Dan Hurley, Mick Cronin control emotions or get technical fouls?
Hurley and Cronin are among the more volatile coaches on the bench. Put them together and there's a chance for a sideline explosion.
"It’s ridiculous. Everybody needs to get a life," Cronin said Saturday, March 21 when asked if he cares about how people perceive Hurley and himself. "You want to win big? Do you think Coach Hurley’s not supposed to be intense, but you want to win? We’re not coaching Little League."
Silas Demary Jr injury update: Will UConn guard play vs UCLA?
Why is Bill Murray at UConn vs UCLA March Madness game?
Murray's son Luke Murray is an associate head coach on the Huskies' coaching staff.
Luke Murray is in his fifth season on the UConn bench. Before taking the Huskies assistant job in 2021, he was an assistant at both Xavier and Louisville under now the College of Charleston coach Chris Mack. He is in his ninth season on Hurley's staff across three different stops.
Tarris Reid stats: Huskies big man's big night matches Elvin Hayes
Reid scored 31 points and pulled down 27 rebounds in the Huskies' first round win over Furman.
The 6-11 forward became the first player since Houston's Elvin Hayes in 1968 to finish with at least 30 points and 25 rebounds in an NCAA Tournament game.
"That's as good as you are ever going to see it," UConn coach Dan Hurley said of Reed's performance after his team's 82-71 win over Furman to a group of reporters outside the Huskies locker room.
DENVER, COLORADO - JANUARY 30: A girl holds a sign that states "NO!" as demonstrators participate in a protest against ICE "reign of terror" actions ongoing in Minnesota on January 30, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. Many similar demonstrations are occurring nationwide today in a uniformed display of collective protest. (Photo by Mark Makela/Getty Images) | Getty Images
No.
…
Wait, you want more? How about in bold?
No.
Ok, I guess I should probably show my working a little bit. So what I did was gather up the D-backs’ spring training results for each season since 2003 (which is where ESPN’s statistics begin), with the exception of 2020 – when both spring training and the regular season were kinda half-assed. I took the win percentage of the team that spring (ties, which are a thing in the Cactus League, were discarded) and plotted it against the regular season record for the same year. If there was any kind of correlation, you’d expect there to be a visible line. Here’s what the graph actually looks like:
Yeah, I’m not really seeing it, unless I squint particularly hard. Far and away the best spring record was in 2016, when the Diamondbacks went 24-8, the best spring record in the majors by 2.5 games. If you don’t remember much else about the 2016 season, there’s good reason for that. Conversely, one of the worst springs came in 2011, when Arizona went 12-25, the lowest win percentage in the Cactus League. But that ended up being the last time the team won the division, doing so by a comfortable eight-game margin. All told, the correlation between spring and regular season records is .105 – pretty weak.
That figure is roughly in line with an earlier and broader study, carried out in 2002. It concluded, “The correlation between spring records and regular season records is .15… For comparison, the correlation between last year’s regular season record and this year’s regular season record during the same period is a much stronger .52.” In other words, if you want to see how a team is going to do this year, looking at how they did last year is going to be a far better predictor, than what they are doing in spring. There are a lot of reasons for this, mostly connected to the fact that teams are simply not trying their utmost to win Cactus League games.
We see this in line-ups which become a game of “Who’s he?” after the fifth inning. In pitchers who enter a game more interested in refining a particular pitch – or perhaps, trying out a new one – than getting people out. In outfielders not putting their bodies on the line to make preseason plays which could end up in injury. In schedules which don’t reflect the regular season – this spring, the D-backs play the White Sox as often as any NL West opponent. In veterans who, let’s be honest, aren’t fighting for a roster spot, know exactly what they need to do to be ready, and are understandably disinclined to do any more.
There is an argument to be made that there is a connection, but it’s diluted by time. After all, the Opening Day roster for the D-backs in 2025, was radically different from the one which took the field after the trade deadline. [As a rough check, of the fourteen players to appear in the D-backs’ August 1 game against the Athletics, only half were on the Opening Day roster] So, let’s plot Arizona’s spring training record against what the team does at the very start of the season, with their record through the end of April that season. Maybe that will show a greater degree of correlation?
…or not. “Not” works too. Indeed, and slightly weirdly, there is actually less correlation, with a figure of just .007. It does vary. Last year, the numbers were actually fairly close: 17-14 in spring, then 16-14 through the end of April. But over three consecutive seasons either side of COVID, from 2018 through 2021, there was a gap of more than 150 points in the win percentages. The all-time gap, however, belongs to 2008, at a whopping 314 points. The Diamondbacks went an underwhelming 8-12 in spring, then roared out of the gate with a 20-8 record, before… Yeah, it kinda was downhill for them thereafter.
It does all average out over time. The composite record from 2003-25 (again, excluding 2020) comes in at a win percentage of .495, which sits almost exactly between the team’s record through April (.510) and their mark across all regular season games (.478) over the same period. The D-backs have generally been… well, mediocre over the past twenty-plus years and that is reflected in general mediocrity before Opening Day. Might be interesting to see whether or not that applies to, say, the Dodgers: are they as good in spring as they have been during the regular season? But, meh. It’s the Dodgers, so who cares?
Below is the actual data used in the graphs. Told you I’d show my working. 🙂
SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Notre Dame's Ahmed Hesham won the men's saber on Sunday, and the Fighting Irish men joined the women in winning the inaugural three-weapon national championship at the Joyce Center.
Hesham defeated St. John's Adham Moataz 15-12 in the final after a third-place finish last season.
Notre Dame finished with 91 points, 10 better than runner-up Columbia. St. John's (63), Harvard (62) and Pennsylvania (58) rounded out the top five.
Notre Dame's Chase Emmer fell short in defense of his foil title after losing 15-8 to Columbia's Sam Kumbla in the final.
Fighting Irish freshman Kruz Schembri made it to the épée final before losing to North Carolina's Youssef Shamel 15-7.
The Fighting Irish trio led all three disciplines after the first day.
Notre Dame won 14 co-ed championships, including six of the last eight. The Fighting Irish won last season's title in the final year of the combined men's and women's team championship.
Notre Dame edged Columbia 102-99 on Friday to win the first women's three-weapon title. Eszter Muhan won the épée for the Irish.
Mets top outfield prospect Carson Benge entered 2026 spring training with every chance to not only win a spot on the Opening Day roster but also the starting job in right field.
And while the team concluded their Grapefruit League schedule with a 4-3 loss to the Miami Marlins on Sunday afternoon, Benge still does not yet know what his fate will be, telling reporters afterwards that he still has not been informed whether or not he has made the team.
“Still waiting,” he said with a smile.
On paper, Benge did everything he needed to, and then some, to make the club this spring. The 23-year-old hit .366 with a .435 OBP, driving in five runs and stealing a base. And that doesn’t include a home run that he hit in an exhibition game against Team Israel.
But even more than that, Benge looked the part, which was what the Mets wanted to see from him this spring. He worked the count, took pitches the other way, and looked good defensively in right field.
"I’m happy that I carried myself in a very good way and I showed everyone what kind of person I am, and I feel like that spoke the loudest for me," Benge said.
With Mike Tauchman heading for meniscus surgery, all signs point towards Benge not only making the team but starting on Thursday against Pirates ace Paul Skenes.
But whether Benge ends up making the club or not, he gained some invaluable experience by being around the team for all of 2026 camp.
"Just the level that these guys play at, day in and day out they put in the work," Benge said. "They put real focus into everything they do, from preparation, hydration, stuff on the field, and stuff off the field. That’s really what I picked up."
The Mets will pack up and head back to New York, where they'll play an intra-squad scrimmage game on Monday in preparation for Thursday's Opening Day.
Benge was unsure whether or not he'll be heading north with the big club, but he's ready to roll with the punches on whatever comes next.
"I’m excited to get out of here and play some ball, wherever that may be," he said.
