SARASOTA, FL - FEBRUARY 25: Enrique Bradfield Jr. #72 of the Baltimore Orioles leaves the field during the game between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Ed Smith Stadium on Wednesday, February 25, 2026 in Sarasota, Florida. (Photo by Michael Mooney/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Good morning, Camden Chatters.
We’re just past the halfway point of the Orioles’ Grapefruit League schedule. The O’s played their 17th game yesterday — not including their exhibition against the Netherlands WBC team — and took a 7-2 loss to the Cardinals in Jupiter (the city, not the planet). Most of the Orioles’ regulars didn’t make the road trip, but Coby Mayo did, adding another hit to his already impressive spring tally. He also played an errorless third base. Granted, there was only one grounder hit in his direction — by former O’s third baseman Ramón Urías, coincidentally enough — but Mayo made the play successfully.
Meanwhile, a couple of Orioles are about to return to camp after brief stints in the World Baseball Classic. Dean Kremer pitched brilliantly for Team Israel with 4.2 scoreless innings on Sunday, but his club has been eliminated from advancing. He’ll be back with the Birds after Israel’s final game today.
So too will Enrique Bradfield Jr., whose eliminated Panama club wrapped up its pool play round yesterday. Panama’s quick exit is hardly the fault of Bradfield, who was a spark plug for the team. I attended the Panama-Canada WBC game in San Juan on Sunday and Bradfield was electrifying on the basepaths and in the outfield, twice reaching base on bunt singles — one of which was a drag bunt over the pitcher’s mound — and causing havoc with his speed. He made a couple of extremely impressive plays in center field, too, showing fantastic range to get to balls that many outfielders couldn’t touch. I’d sure be happy if Bradfield could bring that kind of energy and game-changing speed and defense to the Orioles, though he’ll need to test his mettle at Triple-A Norfolk first.
Two weeks from today, the Orioles will be finished with spring training and will be setting their sights on Opening Day. They have 14 games remaining — 12 in Florida, followed by home-and-home exhibitions against the Nationals in Baltimore and D.C. — to whittle down their camp roster to the season-opening 26-man. Considering there are currently 60 players remaining, the O’s still have plenty of decisions to make.
I’m still of the opinion that Mayo’s defense at third base is going to be a disaster, so he’s sure going to need to mash at the plate to make up for it. It could actually happen, if his spring performance is any indication.
If nothing else, the presence of a 28-year-old Orioles coach will serve as my daily reminder that I am very old.
Orioles birthdays and history
Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! And happy 28th birthday to O’s catcher Maverick Handley, who made his MLB debut with 16 games last year and is currently a non-roster invite at camp. Former Orioles born on this day include outfielder Tike Redman (49) and reliever Mike Timlin (60).
On this date in 1966, the O’s traded 22-year-old outfielder Lou Piniella to Cleveland for Cam Carreon. Piniella had played only four games with the Orioles, getting one lone plate appearance, before the O’s sent him packing, and he went on to have an 18-year playing career followed by another 23 prolific seasons as a manager. Carreon, meanwhile, played just four games for the O’s after the trade.
And on this day in 2016, the Orioles signed designated hitter and former #2 overall pick Pedro Álvarez as a free agent. The slugging Álvarez had never really lived up to his lofty draft status with the Pirates, hitting a bunch of homers but contributing little else, and the same was true of his O’s career. He powered 22 dingers for the Birds in 2016 but posted just a 0.9 WAR in parts of three seasons in Baltimore.
CLEARWATER, FLORIDA - MARCH 05: Jesús Luzardo #44 of the Philadelphia Phillies high-fives teammates in the dugout following the third inning against the Boston Red Sox during a Grapefruit League spring training game at BayCare Ballpark on March 05, 2026 in Clearwater, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Max Scherzer seems like a cool dude. Maybe he’d like to pitch out of the bullpen? Huh, huh??
Steve Borthwick’s captain is normally cool under pressure, but rare outburst points to a much bigger problem
Martin Johnson, England’s World-Cup winning skipper, believes there is no huge mystery to being a great captain. “If you haven’t got a good team it doesn’t matter how good a captain you are,” he said on the Rugby Legends podcast before the start of this year’s Six Nations. And if anyone is qualified to provide such a definitive judgment it is unquestionably him.
To suggest that calm, sure-footed leadership is irrelevant in top-level sport, however, is another matter. Even the greatest sides need decisive, intelligent direction, regardless of who supplies it. The other imperative is to have everyone pulling in the same direction. Shared responsibility and collective ownership are everything, particularly in rugby where the all-for-one, one-for-all ethos is fundamental.
The best story of this World Baseball Classic is not the baseball overdogs, the absurdly talented Team USA or Dominican Republic squads that mix next-level baseball talent with bloodless execution.
Nor is it – at least not yet – Shohei Ohtani, who blasted a pair of home runs as Japan quietly prevailed in its pool in Tokyo. And never mind the goofy upstarts from countries we weren’t sure played baseball – though Italy may make its biggest WBC mark yet.
No, the most remarkable group once again hails from an island of 3.2 million, a fraction of the population in the Dominican or Cuba and a miniscule slice of humanity relative to the global superpowers that count their citizens in the hundreds of millions.
For the sixth time in as many iterations of the WBC, Puerto Rico is on to the quarterfinals. That’s a claim the Dominicans can’t make, having once failed to escape group play. And it may seem ho-hum, given the island of Clemente and Beltran and many Molinas established its hardball bona fides several generations ago.
Yet the baseball-mad territory has been dealt setback after setback going on decades, be it subjugation to the Major League Baseball draft, to a series of hurricanes pounding the island to now, this strange situation involving insurance coverage and the terrible misfortune that it just so happened to befall nearly a dozen Puerto Rican ballplayers, thinning a strong yet already compromised talent pool.
Certainly, you’ve heard about the holy trinity of Puerto Rican shortstops, that Francisco Lindor was denied insurance (he’d end up fracturing a hamate bone, anyway), and the actuaries wouldn’t come near Carlos Correa’s medical charts, and that Javy Baez was sidelined for a years-ago marijuana violation that wouldn't have cost him any games in Major League Baseball.
But the insurance monster wouldn’t stop until ace Jose Berríos was knocked out, along with useful reliever Alexis Diaz and, perhaps most importantly, switch-hitting catcher Victor Caratini.
All this coming on an island that hasn't been the same ater it was ravaged for eight days in 2017 by Hurricane Maria, dealing long-term setbacks to its infrastructure while its leader tossed paper towels at the problem.
It’s been nearly a decade since Maria. Perhaps you tuned into the Super Bowl halftime show and appreciated the Puerto Rican struggle.
If not, Puerto Rico manager Yadier Molina can fill you in on the baseball end of that equation.
“Here in Puerto Rico, there are a lot of parks that haven't been repaired since Maria,” says Molina, the former St. Louis Cardinals great and youngest of the Molina catcher troika, before the team’s colossal pool play showdown against Cuba. “We need to give a little TLC to the sport. Everyone talks about education and health, but we need to talk about the sports, also.
“We need to help it, and we need to move it forward.”
Yet help or no help, the Puerto Ricans always seem to move it forward.
Minus Caratini, the Boricua once again summoned 39-year-old Martín Maldonado to put on the gear and squat behind the plate. One of the major leagues’ most respected backstops, Maldonado might have played his final MLB game, and besides, he was just a .204 career hitter, anyway.
Yet you don’t last 15 years in the major leagues without something special. And so when Puerto Rico trailed by a run, bottom of the ninth against Panama in a March 7 game that could have jeopardized its hopes, Maldonado simply rolled an opposite-field single to right field that keyed the tying rally.
An inning later, Darell Hernaiz hit a walk-off home run that generated roars in San Juan that probably endured through the team’s off day.
Against Cuba, it was Maldonado’s spot that came up in a scoreless game, second inning, bases loaded. And the .204 hitter smoked a first-pitch slider into the left field corner. Three runs scored.
Maldonado handled the five-pitcher relay with aplomb; Puerto Rico held Cuba to two hits. The 4-1 victory ensured their spot in the quarterfinals.
Logic would suggest this is where the Boricua get in over their heads. Yet history suggests otherwise: Puerto Rico advanced to the championship game in both 2013 and 2017 – as many WBC finals appearances as Team USA, and one more than the Dominicans. Sure, the Puerto Ricans haven’t yet won it all, but they’ve nonetheless punched above their weight significantly.
It’s easy to laugh off the immaculate vibes that always surround this squad. Team Rubio and all that, and court jester Kiké Hernández – another injury casualty this time around – keeping it all loose.
Yet the 20,000 fans who jam Estadio Hiram Bithorn and the many thousands more watching elsewhere create an expectation for the squad.
“We as Puerto Ricans take that very serious,” veteran catcher Christian Vazquez said before the Cuba matchup. “We see there's a lot of children looking up to us, and they're going to step into our shoes when there's another Classic, and we're going to have to keep on being a role model.
“So, it has a weight, and we do take that very seriously.”
Consider the tradition upheld. Even if the odds seem to get longer every single time.
We’re less than a week until this whole deal becomes official.
Before hitting Selection Sunday, conference tournaments will determine which teams burst the NCAA bubble, which Cinderella teams serve as bid stealers and which four teams land on the No. 1 line.
There are changes at the top of the updated USA TODAY Sports bracketology as Florida rises and replaces Connecticut, which ended the regular season with a thud by losing to Marquette.
That loss handed the Big East regular-season crown to rival St. John’s and likely results in the Huskies earning a No. 2 seed.
Meanwhile, the defending national champs have rounded into form by winning 11 in a row to win the SEC regular-season title by three games. This torrid run more than offsets Florida’s non-conference loss to UConn and has the Gators in position to secure a No. 1 seed by avoiding an early exit from the conference tournament.
The bubble remains a mess. Virginia Commonwealth has joined the field. For now, Indiana slides in as the last at-large team in the field despite a 3-11 mark against Quad 1 and a 3-2 record Quad 2 competition. But there's hope for Cincinnati, West Virginia, Auburn and others to make a move in conference tournaments.
Eight teams have already punched their tournament tickets in Long Island (Northeast), Queens (Atlantic Sun), High Point (Big South), Northern Iowa (Missouri Valley), Tennessee State (Ohio Valley), Furman (Southern Conference), North Dakota State (Summit League) and Troy (Sun Belt.).
March Madness bracketology: NCAA Tournament projection
Teams in bold have clinched tournament berth.
March Madness last four in
Santa Clara, Virginia Commonwealth, SMU, Indiana.
March Madness first four out
Cincinnati, West Virginia, Auburn, Stanford.
NCAA tournament bids conference breakdown
Multi-bid leagues: SEC (10), Big Ten (10), ACC (8), Big 12 (8), Big East (3), West Coast (3), Atlantic 10 (2), Mountain West (2).
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - MARCH 06: Jayson Tatum #0 of the Boston Celtics celebrates after scoring against the Dallas Mavericks during the second quarter at TD Garden on March 06, 2026 in Boston, Massachusetts. 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 Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) | Getty Images
For the first time all season, we’re seeing the version of the Celtics everyone has been waiting for. So far, so good.
That was the first impression when Jayson Tatum stepped back on the floor after nearly 10 months away. After Sunday’s win against Cleveland, Joe Mazzulla said Tatum “gave the game exactly what it needed,” praising the forward’s rebounding and defensive possessions in his second game back.
Against Dallas, he looked like a star reacquainting himself with the pace of real basketball again — a few missed shots, a bunch of flashes, but the unmistakable sense that the engine was warming up. Two days later for the Cleveland matinee, the Celtics’ ecosystem looked even more cohesive with Tatum inside it.
Aside from the recent injury to Nikola Vučević thinning the frontcourt a bit, this is the closest Boston has looked to the version of itself it spent the whole season waiting to see.
The next stretch of the Celtics’ schedule is where the real questions begin. The first two games have had strong rom-com opening energy: everything’s working, everyone’s smiling, and Tatum looks like the perfect guy to bring home to Mom and Dad.
But here come the Spurs and Thunder to complicate the plot. The Celtics visit San Antonio today at 8 p.m. ET, followed by a trip to Oklahoma City on Thursday night at 9:30 p.m. ET.
San Antonio and Oklahoma City are two of the most fascinating teams in the league right now, built around players who bend the shape of the game in completely different ways. One has a 7-foot-4 defensive cheat code who can erase mistakes that most defenses simply have to live with. The other orchestrates the kind of organized chaos that turns a lot of opponent possessions into turnovers and easy points the other way.
In other words, the Celtics are about to find out what the fully assembled version of this team actually looks like against the real contenders this season. If the Mavs and Cavs were the soft opening, then the Spurs and Thunder are the stress test to follow.
The Victor Wembanyama Problem
The Spurs don’t defend the way most teams defend. Then again, most teams don’t have Victor Wembanyama.
Most defenses try to stop the first action, but San Antonio is comfortable letting plays unfold because lurking somewhere behind it all is Him. Wembanyama doesn’t always guard the other team’s star directly. In fact, the Spurs often prefer the opposite. They let him roam. Float. Wait for someone to think they’ve beaten the defense before suddenly appearing at the rim to erase the mistake.
The Celtics have already seen firsthand how hard that can be to overcome.
In the third quarter of the Celtics’ first matchup against San Antonio, Wembanyama fueled an 11–2 Spurs run that flipped the game. Later in the fourth, a closing double-big lineup with him and Luke Kornet helped wall off the paint. Boston couldn’t rally as San Antonio held on for a 100–95 win.
WEMBY ICES IT!
21 pts, 6 reb, 3 blk in the win over the Celtics 🫡
This time around, Boston’s answer can’t just be hoping Wembanyama misses just enough rotations defensively to cost the Spurs. Fortunately, the Celtics have an old, yet new, tool in Tatum.
This is exactly the kind of matchup where his two-way game is felt most. If San Antonio wants Wembanyama lurking in the paint, Tatum is the Celtic most equipped to punish that without forcing the issue. He can screen, slip out of actions, make the extra pass before the help fully arrives, and attack the second line of the defense instead of charging blindly into the first. Most players see Wembanyama and speed up. Tatum tends to get comfortable and make the right read.
Brown matters too, but for different reasons. Boston still needs someone willing to challenge the paint even when the help defense is loading up. Brown’s first step can bend the Spurs defense, but picking the right moments to bend it will be key, especially with De’Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle applying ball pressure that can quickly turn mistakes into transition the other way.
In a familiar role, Derrick White becomes the connective tissue here. Against an aggressive, blitzing defense, his ability to make the correct read against his former team becomes huge: a quick swing pass, a back cut, a drive before the defense has fully loaded up. The kind of quietly excellent Derrick White plays Celtics fans are used to will be needed for Boston to keep things close.
Boston’s front court will have its hands full, in the understatement of the season. Queta and Garza will likely see plenty of the Wembanyama matchup, but the Celtics showed in the first meeting that they’re willing to get weird. Baylor Scheierman and Jordan Walsh both spent plenty of time guarding Wemby in January, and it would not be surprising to see Joe Mazzulla reach for those kinds of do-it-all defenders again.
Wembanyama is the headline in this matchup, but the pieces around him are an equal part of the success San Antonio has had this season. Fox brings downhill speed. Castle adds another steady ball handler. Devin Vassell punishes late help.
Boston doesn’t need a perfect game to beat San Antonio, but it will need a disciplined one. Also, the Spurs have a new postgame drum celebration this season. It’s kind of awesome, it’s definitely intimidating, and I’d prefer the Celtics not be the reason they get to do it tomorrow night.
The Celtics haven’t seen Oklahoma City yet this season, which is honestly part of the intrigue since the Thunder are the kind of team that’s easier to understand after you’ve actually experienced them once.
Watching them on TV, the defending champs look young, fast, and extremely organized. For opponents, the view up close is harsher. Everything moves half a second faster than expected, and every possession demands an extra decision you didn’t think you’d need to make.
A lot of the action starts and ends with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
SGA plays more patient than fast. He dribbles into space, waits for a defender to lean the wrong direction, then slides past them like he’s found a seam nobody else can see. Most defenses manage to contain the first move well enough.
But Oklahoma City builds their offense around what happens after that.
Once Shai gets a defender leaning, the rest of the Thunder offense is already in motion. Chet Holmgren slides into space for a pick-and-pop. Jalen Williams cuts through the lane. Suddenly the weakside corner feels just a little too far away to recover to.
And if the possession stalls, Holmgren is still standing there as a 7-foot bailout option who can either shoot over the top of a closing defender or put the ball on the floor for one dribble and finish.
Boston will have answers for some of that. Derrick White, Hugo Gonzalez, Jordan Walsh, and Baylor Scheierman are all legit defenders, adept at staying attached to slippery scorers like Shai. The Celtics have built their entire defensive identity this season around making elite players work through multiple defenders.
But the Thunder are built to stress exactly that kind of system.
Lu Dort might spend most of the night attached to Jayson Tatum, which could wear on the recently returned superstar. Dort has built a reputation for making life miserable for opposing stars, turning every dribble into a small fight. If you watched the Thunder-Nuggets game last week and last night, you saw how far that intensity can go when a dust-up with Nikola Jokić ended in a flagrant two for Dort and a pair of crazy eyes from Jokic.
The Thunder thrive when possessions get frantic, while Boston usually wins when the game slows down and the ball keeps moving. Something will have to give. The cast behind Tatum will play a big role in dictating which team is the one giving.
Jaylen Brown is the Celtic most capable of disrupting Oklahoma City’s defensive rhythm. When the Thunder send aggressive point-of-attack pressure — something Dort, Cason Wallace, and Alex Caruso all excel at — Brown’s ability to attack the second layer of the defense becomes crucial. If he gets downhill before the Thunder can load up their help, Boston forces Holmgren into constant decisions at the rim instead of letting him sit comfortably as a shot blocker.
Derrick White operates differently but is just as important to the offense. Oklahoma City’s defense relies heavily on rotations and quick recoveries, and White is one of the few guards in the league who consistently punishes that kind of system with early reads. A swing pass before the trap arrives. A quick drive when the defender is leaning the wrong direction. Those little half-second advantages are how teams prevent the Thunder from turning possessions into chaos.
And then there’s Payton Pritchard, whose game actually matches up surprisingly well against this kind of defense. Oklahoma City loves shrinking the floor and sending help from unexpected angles. Pritchard’s deep shooting range forces defenders to stretch that coverage farther than they’d like. If the Thunder overcommit to Shai’s defensive pressure or start flying around Boston’s actions, Pritchard is exactly the type of guard who can punish it with quick pull-ups or blow-bys that immediately give Boston advantages.
The real challenge for Boston’s offense won’t just be handling Oklahoma City’s initial pressure. They’ll need to keep possessions organized before the Thunder can turn them into the kind of scramble they thrive in.
Oklahoma City will be a great test to see whether this new/old version of Boston can stay whole when the game starts moving faster than they’re used to.
Time to find out if “whole” is good enough
It’s been an incredibly fun season, but the ceiling of this Celtics team has mostly existed as a hypothetical.
What would this team look like once Jayson Tatum returned? Would Jaylen Brown’s breakout season continue with Tatum alongside him again? Would the depth that carried Boston through the winter hold up against the league’s best teams?
Now those questions are about to get real answers.
San Antonio brings the league’s strangest defensive weapon. Oklahoma City brings one of the most complete teams in basketball. And Boston finally gets to see what its full roster looks like against both.
The Celtics look whole again. The next two games will tell us what that actually means.
He's tucked away on Team USA's World Baseball Classic roster amid Cy Young Award winners and All-Stars.
Yet even as Nolan McLean's career is just getting started, he's lined up to take on a significant role for the Americans.
McLean, the New York Mets' 24-year-old right-hander, has made just eight career major-league starts but might end up getting the ball in the WBC championship game. Team USA manager Mark DeRosa has lined up ace Paul Skenes for the semifinal round, to get the Americans to the championship.
From there, it might be McLean's turn.
He's starting Team USA's fourth pool-play game on Tuesday against Italy, which already will be a significant task as both teams enter undefeated in pool play. So how did such a relative newbie earn such esteem so quickly?
Who is Nolan McLean?
It wasn't that long ago that McLean was harboring dreams of following in Shohei Ohtani's footsteps, not Skenes'. The Mets drafted him as a two-way player in the third round out of Oklahoma State in 2023, and he kept the bat in his hands into the 2024 season.
At least until his pitching far out-kicked his hitting.
As McLean's arm got him to Class AA, making contact became a problem: He struck out 74 times in 143 plate appearances at high A and AA. Pitching it was.
On that side of the ball, he averaged a strikeout per inning, a good thing. And in 2025, he needed just five starts to graduate from Class AA Binghamton up to AAA Syracuse - where he was even better.
As McLean stacked dominant starts at Syracuse, posting a 2.78 ERA across 16 appearances the clamor for him to buttress a Mets rotation gasping for air grew louder. He finally arrived Aug. 16 - and became perhaps the most reliable cog on a Mets team that couldn't stop a free-fall.
Lest we forget, McLean was originally a three-way player: He was a highly recruited quarterback out of Garner, North Carolina, and on Oklahoma State's football roster as a freshman. Seems like he picked the best lane.
Nolan McLean stats
Startlingly, his numbers were even better in the National League than the International League. He gave up just 34 hits in 48 innings. Posted a 2.06 ERA, a 57-16 strikeout-walk ratio and 1.04 WHIP.
Oh, and he essentially couldn't lose.
The Mets won seven of his eight starts, his lone setback a 1-0 defeat to the division champion Phillies. Not that Philly got the best of him: He also spun eight shutout innings against the Phillies at Citi Field, giving up just four hits in his third major league start.
Yes, perhaps the WBC won't faze him too much.
Nolan McLean pitch repertoire
It usually takes pitchers the better part of a decade to master a half-dozen pitches, the result of endless tinkering, exposure to a wide swath of teammates and greater self-knowledge.
Yet McLean, at 24, might already be there.
He typically pitches off a four-seam fastball that averages 95 mph and has touched 98, along with a power sinker that most often serves as his putaway pitch. Yet his sweeper and curveball play significant roles as well, and gain greater effectiveness thanks to his trusty No. 1 and his daunting sinker.
McLean also throws a cutter, though that for now remains his perpetual workshop pitch, and a changeup.
No, they're not all perfect weapons. But for a guy to confidently throw that many pitches in a major league setting at such a tender augurs well for when McLean is, say, 30 years old.
Nolan McLean salary
Yep, he's perhaps the biggest value on both the WBC and star-studded Mets squad.
McLean will make $791,500 this season, the slight raise from the major league minimum of $780,000 a nod to his late-season contribution in 2025. He also figures to be a prime candidate for additional earnings through the pre-arbitration bonus pool that was enacted in the most recent collective bargaining agreement.
And while McLean still has six full seasons via free agency, he and other younger players should keep a wary eye on CBA negotiations and any significant changes to arbitration eligibility or free agency. He received a $747,600 signing bonus after getting drafted in 2023.
With the 2025-26 men's college basketball regular season in the books, its time now to look to the conference tournaments. In the 68-team field for March Madness, only 31 conference tournament champions can earn auto berths into the NCAA tournament.
While some teams on the bubble can secure their bids for the Big Dance by winning their respective conferences, there are not enough of those for each of them all to qualify.
Then there are teams that are not even in the conversation for the NCAA tournament that are potentially in line to steal a bid completely by winning their conference tournaments.
Here's a look at four teams that potentially steal bids from teams on the NCAA Tournament bubble by winning their conference tournaments in the Power Five:
Florida State has quietly been one of the hottest teams in college basketball over the last couple of months. Following a loss to SMU on Jan. 24, the Seminoles were sitting at a season-worst four games below .500 at 8-12 and just 1-6 in ACC play.
Since that point, FSU has won nine of its 11 games, including three three-game winning streaks in that span. The team has found its footing under first-year coach Luke Loucks, who is following in the footsteps of legendary coach Leonard Hamilton.
Of course, the Seminoles will have their work cut out for themselves to win the conference tournament. FSU earned the No. 8 seed for the tournament and will take on No. 9 California on Wednesday, March 11. If it wins that, it will face No. 1 Duke on Thursday, March 12.
No. 4 North Carolina could potentially await the Seminoles in the semifinals, while No. 3 Miami and No. 2 Virginia are the two teams favored to get in from the other side of the bracket into the championship game.
ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi moved Oklahoma to his "next four teams out" on Sunday, March 8. That's quite a rise for a program that looked poised to fire coach Porter Moser on Feb. 4, when the Sooners sat at 1-9 in conference play amid a nine-game losing skid.
However, Oklahoma closed out the season with six wins in its final eight games, including a four-game winning streak to close out the regular season. The Sooners have found their footing and could make some noise in the SEC Tournament.
For Oklahoma, a couple of wins in the conference tournament could position it to make the NCAA Tournament — but winning it all would guarantee entry. As the No. 11 seed, the Sooners open the tournament against No. 14 South Carolina.
If they beat the Gamecocks, they play No. 6 Texas A&M and, assuming a win vs. the Aggies, No. 3 Arkansas in the quarterfinals. No. 2 Alabama could await them in the semifinals, if they make it that far. That would likely be enough to get into the NCAA Tournament, but a win against Florida in the championship game would not only lock up a spot, but also help in seeding.
Following a regular season finale loss to TCU on Saturday, March 7, Cincinnati is in the first four teams out according to USA TODAY Sports' latest bracketology. However, the Bearcats have shown throughout the regular season they can hang with the best teams in the Big 12 and are a threat to go on a run.
Cincinnati has wins over then-No. 2 Iowa State and then No. 2 Arizona on its resume. Baba Miller ― an FSU transfer ― has lived up to the potential he had coming out of Spain, before having to sit out his freshman season by the NCAA for receiving improper benefits.
The Bearcats will open the Big 12 Tournament against No. 16 Utah on Tuesday, March 10, and must face No. 8 UCF if it advances. No. 1 Arizona would await Cincinnati in the quarterfinals if it were to win that one.
According to KenPom, the Bearcats have the 12th-best defense in the country this season. If it can hold up in the Big 12 Tournament, Cincinnati has a real chance to make a deep run.
Marquette (12-19, 7-13 Big East)
Marquette is the biggest reach on this list, as the Golden Eagles have underperformed all season. But could Saturday's 68-62 upset victory over No. 4 UConn could be a sign of things to come?
The victory denied the Huskies the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament, but also set up a potential rematch in the second round, if the Golden Eagles can defeat No. 10 seed Xavier in the first round on Wednesday, March 11 to kick off the tournament.
A team seven games below .500 has likely shown us what its true colors are already. But all you need to do in March Madness is get hot at the right time and win games when they count the most.
It helps that Nigel James Jr. has seemed to play his basketball at the right time. He has averaged 21.3 points, 6.3 rebounds and 5.5 assists over his last six games.
It's a time of the year that makes or breaks a head coach's career at their respective school. Look at the handful of universities that "part ways" with head coaches each March after disappointing postseason runs.
But it's also one that can make a name for a young head coach as they lead their respective team on a March Madness run. A recent example of this is Dusty May, who leveraged a Florida Atlantic Final Four run into becoming the head coach at Michigan, which won the outright Big Ten regular season championship this season.
The 2026 men's NCAA Tournament is expected to be flooded with some of the top coaching talent in the country, both young and experienced. There's Dan Hurley, who's looking for his third national title in the last four years at Connecticut. There's also Jon Scheyer at Duke, who is looking to bring the first national championship to Durham, North Carolina since Mike Krzyzewski retired.
There are also veteran coaches such as Michigan State's Tom Izzo, Arkansas' John Calipari and Kansas' Bill Self, who have all proven they can rip off a deep run in March at any time. But who are the top coaches in the sport heading into the heart of this year's conference tournaments and March Madness?
Ranking top 10 coaches in men's college basketball
1. Dan Hurley, UConn
When Hurley took over the program in 2018, the Huskies had not made the NCAA tournament in back-to-back years since 2011-12. The program lacked the physicality and toughness that it once had under Jim Calhoun. He has since built UConn back into a national powerhouse, famously warning the entire country about this after a loss at Villanova in 2020 that the Huskies were "coming" after all.
Since then, he led the Huskies to back-to-back national championships in 2023 and 2024 and has his program back to being a national championship contender after not meeting expectations last season with a second-round exit in the 2025 NCAA Tournament.
2. Jon Scheyer, Duke
Taking over for the legendary Krzyzewski can be a daunting task. Jon Scheyer, however, has made it look seamless, as the Blue Devils have retained their status as one of the top programs (with the help of players such as Cooper Flagg and Cameron Boozer). He's once again in the mix for national coach of the year with the Blue Devils sitting at 29-2 overall on the season and in line for their second consecutive ACC tournament title.
But Scheyer's resume is still missing a national championship, and that's what has him under Hurley on the list. That title very much could be in store for him this season, though, given how dominant the Blue Devils have been.
3. Tommy Lloyd, Arizona
Speaking of former assistants who have thrived as head coaches, Tommy Lloyd is right up there with Scheyer. The former Gonzaga assistant under Mark Few is 140-35 in his five seasons with Arizona, and has passed Brad Stevens for the most wins in the first five seasons.
Lloyd hasn't made it past the Sweet 16, however, and has a first-round loss to No. 15 seed Princeton in 2023.
4. Dusty May, Michigan
Everyone remembers the Owls' Final Four in 2023 that helped May land the Michigan job, and a 19-win improvement in his first season that finished with a trip to the Sweet 16.
He bought into the transfer portal over the offseason to build a national championship contender that's in line for its fourth NCAA tournament 1-seed in program history. Their NCAA tournament resume features 14 Quad 1 wins — highlighted by their 3-0 record at the Players Era Festival Championship over San Diego State, Auburn and Gonzaga — and five top-25 wins in Big Ten play over Southern California, Nebraska, Purdue, Michigan State and Illinois.
5. Todd Golden, Florida
In Year 3 at Florida last season, Golden, then 39 years old, became the youngest coach to lead a team to a national championship since Jim Valvano did so at North Carolina State in 1983. It's a national championship that brought the Gators back into national contention for the first time since the Billy Donovan Era in Gainesville, putting him in the class of elite young coaches in the country.
This season, Golden has done a fantastic job of turning around the Gators' season after they went 5-4 in the first month and 0-3 against top five opponents in Arizona, Duke and UConn. Since then, the Gators are 19-2 and are knocking at the door of the 1-seed line.
6. Tom Izzo, Michigan State
It's March, so don't count out Izzo. The 71-year-old coach has won 59 games in the NCAA tournament, which he'll be leading the Spartans to for the 28th consecutive season this year. He might not have his best national contending roster this year, but the Spartans can still do some damage in the NCAA tournament.
7. Kelvin Sampson, Houston
Houston hasn't lost a beat under Kelvin Sampson since they made to the Big 12 in 2023. The Cougars have remained one of the top programs in the country, earning back-to-back No. 1 seeds and making the national championship game last season. The Cougars' likely top-three seeding projection in the NCAA tournament will be their fourth straight under Sampson.
There aren't many active coaches who have a national title and multiple Final Four appearances on their resumes outside of John Calipari. He led the Razorbacks to a Sweet 16 appearance in Year 1 at Arkansas, where they nearly made the Elite Eight.
His Xs and Os may not be what they were during the prime of his tenure at Kentucky, but he can still recruit like no other, develop NBA talent and still coach. Any form of Coach Cal is better than no Coach Cal.
9. Bill Self, Kansas
Kansas' 2025-26 season hasn't necessarily gone exactly as planned with a 22-9 record and Darryn Peterson drawing attention for his limited minutes usage. Yet, the Jayhawks still find themselves between the 3- and 5-seed line. It's a true testament to Self's coaching and adaptability.
10. Rick Pitino, St. John's
Rick Pitino led St. John's on a magical run last season, where it won its first Big East Tournament crown since 2000 and earned a 2-seed in the NCAA Tournament. The Basketball Hall of Fame coach, who won his 900th career on-court game earlier this season, reloaded his roster through the transfer portal and has the Johnnies once again atop the conference with UConn.
PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA - DECEMBER 30: Jalen Chatfield #5 of the Carolina Hurricanes skates with the puck under pressure from Tommy Novak #18 of the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second period during the game at PPG PAINTS Arena on December 30, 2025 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Here are your Pens Points for this Tuesday morning…
The Pittsburgh Penguins begin a difficult stretch of games on Tuesday, with a five-game road trip against several likely playoff teams, including the Carolina Hurricanes, Vegas Golden Knights, and Utah Mammoth. Pittsburgh recently earned some important points despite Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin’s absences. Is it too dramatic to call this a season-defining swing? [PensBurgh]
There are about 20 games left on the regular season schedule for most teams, and for those teams in the Eastern Conference, many of whom are fighting alongside Pittsburgh for a playoff berth, like the Columbus Blue Jackets or New York Islanders, the playoff race is tightening by the day. These points are worth their weight in gold. [PensBurgh]
The Pittsburgh Penguins loaned defenseman Jack St. Ivany to the AHL’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins for a conditioning assignment on Monday. St. Ivany has not played since Jan. 25 after suffering a left-hand injury that required surgery. [Trib Live]
News and updates from around the NHL…
The Florida Panthers’ playoff odds remain questionable at best, and one of their heart-and-soul players, Brad Marchand, continues to deal with a lower-body injury, which may end his season altogether. [Sportsnet]
Ottawa Senators forward Dylan Cozens is playing an important role in his team’s push for the playoffs, providing scoring and physical play on the second line as the team battles for a postseason spot. [NHL]
It has been anything but a positive year for the Toronto Maple Leafs, who are on life support, trying to find any way to save what rapidly appears to be a lost season. However, some within the locker room are hoping this was just a down year, a blip on the radar. [TSN]
“Whatever dude, one day you’ll work for ME.” | Getty Images
The Islanders’ final out-of-time-zone road trip comes to a conclusion tonight in St. Louis, with a golden chance to go .500 on a four-game trip that began with a couple of stinkers in Southern California.
The Blues are in the middle of a cratering season that has brought Brayden Schenn to Long Island. However, they are now on a 4-0 post-Olympic run — including a 4-0 win over the Ducks, with a Jonathan Drouin slumpbuster — that has lifted them a few points above the not-Vancouver line, sending the fanbase into panic over the potential spoiling of their lottery odds. Their youth movement is underway, with Jake Neighbors (who praised Schenn’s influence on his way out) a young power forward now getting a letter, and 2023 first-rounders Otto Stenberg and Theo Lindstein getting called up before this game.
Ilya Sorokin will get the start for the Isles. This one is a TNT/HBO broadcast.
This week in Islanders Anxiety features our own Jenny, daughter of a Drouin-loather and fresh off a globe-spanning, time zone-disorienting flight from the other side of our planet, discussing the moves, games and watching the Islanders over breakfast. [LHH]
Brayden Schenn’s old teammates will miss him and the impact he had on their (the youngers’) careers. He’s ready to get an “emotional” return out of the way. In the Year of Our Bossy, 2026, a player has wiaved his NTC to come to the Islanders so he could join a “competitive” team on the rise. [Newsday | Athletic]
His new teammates were immediately pleased to see him in action. [Post+]
Bo Horvat gives his side of his $2,500 for unsportsmanslike conduct against Eklund’s brother: the dude took his stick and threw it down the hall, so he asked for it back and popped his visor up. [Newsday]
The Tri-State Hockey podcast with Arthur Staple welcomes its first-ever guest: Mathieu Darche, fresh off the trade deadline, being up front about what he’s thinking and doing, leaning into the current core’s age while waiting for the next wave of prospects. On the Schenn trade, he admits it’s “fairly aggressive for where we are.” On the Pageau extension, he says he even reached out to the other UFAs like Anders Lee to let them know why he was negotiating with this one mid-season. [YouTube]
No surprise, Matthew Schaefer is your Calder favorite. [NHL]
Elsewhere
Last night’s NHL scores included the Senators picking up another win and the Blue Jackets picking up an OTL point.
Bylsma: At the trade deadline, communication between coach and GM on needs is critical. [NHL]
How Matthew Knies went from being The Future to a possible Future Trade Bait in Toronto. [Sportsnet]
There’s a good chance Brad Marchand won’t play again this season. [Sportsnet]
PROVO, UT - FEBRUARY 21: AJ Dybantsa #3 of the Brigham Young Cougars watches a shot during warm-up before the game against the Iowa State Cyclones at the Marriott Center on February 21, 2026 in Provo, Utah. (Photo by Chris Gardner/Getty Images) | Getty Images
We have Dybantsa, a dynamic, flexible scorer with a refined taste for shot selection, draws fouls like an NBA superstar, and has an unmatched competitive drive despite a disappointing season at BYU.
Then there’s Darryn Peterson, perhaps the best guard prospect the game has seen since Kyrie Irving, complete with demi-god scoring talent and an Irving-esque dramatic magnetism.
And last but not least is Cameron Boozer, the best player on the best team in the nation at Duke, and as reliable as a grandfather clock. Steady, rhythmic, reliable. He does a bit of everything, and he does it all very well despite limited athleticism.
It’s all very reminiscent of the 2022 class, which was likewise triple-spearheaded by prongs Paolo Banchero, Chet Holmgren, and Jabari Smith Jr. Now, nearly four years later, these players have revealed their true identities to the NBA world to varying degrees of favor.
The eventual first-overall selection, Paolo Banchero, whose putrid advanced stats and teeth-grinding inefficiency have basketball nerds everywhere burning Banchero’s number in effigies and smearing his reputation with the nickname “PB no J”, which is sincerely the funniest diss I have ever heard in my entire life. An undeniably talented player who has become known as one of basketball’s most inefficient scoring options has dragged both himself and the Orlando Magic well behind schedule.
Chet Holmgren, who went second to OKC, was touted as a do-it-all big with guard skills maliable and flexible to knock down a three-pointer at one end, and turn around to swat a layup into the stands at the other (if he can put some meat on his spindly frame, that is). Don’t let the fact that the upgraded model of Holmgren, known as Victor Wembanyama (apologies to Shaq and the Bol Bol fan club), buried Holmgren’s popularity a year later —Holmgren was a vital contributor for OKC’s Finals run and continues to produce at an impressive rate.
Be honest, you had almost completely forgotten about Jabari Smith Jr until reading this article. It’s not your fault — 3-and-D guys don’t collect headlines. He’s scoring over 15 points per night this season on a solid 36.5% clip from distance.
And here we are again. With no Wembanyama or Flagg standing alone as the obvious number-one pick on every draft board, it’s time to start considering what flavors of a prospect’s petri dish the teams at the top of the draft order should prioritize.
My message to the eventual owner of the number-one pick this summer is simple. Don’t overthink it: pick AJ Dybantsa.
TUCSON, AZ – FEBRUARY 18: BYU Cougars forward AJ Dybantsa (3) lays up the ball during the second half of a men's basketball game between the BYU Cougars and the Arizona Wildcats on February 18, 2026, at McKale Center at ALKEME Arena in Tucson, AZ. (Photo by Christopher Hook/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
NBA Draft Profile: AJ Dybantsa
Bio: 6 ft, 9 in | 201 lbs | 19 yrs old | Brigham Young University
Accolades: Big 12 Freshman of the Year, All-Big 12 First Team, Projected First-Team All-American
NBA Comparison: Cross-section of Tracy McGrady and Paul George, plus a drop of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Praise
Do you remember playing with a sticky hand as a kid? That rubber string with a grippy hand at the end, you know? AJ Dybantsa moves as if he were a sticky hand, but with a skeleton, muscles, and typical human stuff to hold him together. Recall, if you’re able, the helpless feeling of dodging your friend’s sticky hand-enhanced attacks during adolescence. The dust-riddled, grime-collecting, yet equally elastic limb flies toward your face in an unpredictable — and therefore unstoppable — pursuit. You will get slapped in the face when you stand opposed to this force. It’s a matter of when, not if.
AJ is bendy, stretchy, and equally impossible to reliably predict. Even if you could, his length, deliberate nature, and shooting touch deliver an agonizingly robust sample size of viewers unifying to say “good defense, better offense” from their seats. AJ lives in the midrange (that’s right, it’s coming back) and is at home while backing down a defender from the high post before wiggling and releasing with a turnaround jumper.
He’s equally deadly turning over either shoulder and elevating above all distractions for a clean look at the basket from nearly anywhere on the floor. For a player whose diet consists of many, many jump shots, his 51.2% FG rate is remarkable.
That’s not to suggest that Dybantsa settles for jump shots, however, as he displayed an incredible ability to get paint touches and finishes better than nearly any wing in modern collegiate history. A post in February showed that AJ converts on roughly 76% of his attempts at the rim (whoa), and is assisted on only 23.4% of those looks. He can do it himself, even against the gauntlet that is the Big 12 Conference.
He posted a program-record 43 points in an eruption against rival Utah, and led the entire nation in points per game essentially from the first game of the year until the final buzzer of the regular season.
Call it flopping, call it selling, call it a superstar whistle, but AJ Dybantsa drew more fouls in his freshman season at BYU than any other player in the nation. Getting fouled is an NBA skill, and one that competing franchises will want in their superstar. Getting fouled not only presents an opportunity for free points (Dybantsa converted 75.3% of his free throws as a freshman), but also slows the game down and gives your team a moment to regroup. Breathe easy, boys, AJ is at the line.
And AJ was at the line for a significant amount of his floor time. He attempted 8.4 free throws per night during 40-minute college basketball games. Adjusted for a 48-minute NBA game, AJ’s number would be pushed to around 10.1 attempts per night. To put that number in perspective, Luka Doncic leads the NBA in free-throw attempts with 10.4 on average. AJ Dybantsa would be in second place with 10.1, above notorious foul-drawers like SGA, Nikola Jokic, and James Harden.
In addition to all of this, Dybantsa describes himself as a playmaker first and a scorer second. With a more competent supporting cast and the increased spacing of an NBA floor, Dybantsa will have plenty of opportunity to use his on-ball gravity to create open looks for his teammates, and more breathing room to find his own shot in the midrange.
He’s fast, he’s athletic, and he scores the basketball like a 29-year-old veteran. Dybantsa’s potential is All-NBA. He could be an MVP candidate and a top-five player in the world before his career is over. He has the competitive drive and coachability of a player well beyond his years, and that’s the demeanor of a player capable of leading a team deep into the postseason.
At BYU, he’s been forced to assume greater responsibility with several key teammates and offensive load-bearers going down with injury, including two-time All-Big 12 teamer Richie Saunders, who tore his ACL with several weeks still to go in the regular season. Rallying his teammates and choosing to compete rather than quit, Dybantsa led the Cougars to wins over two top-10 programs (Iowa State and Texas Tech) without Saunders. AJ proved to be a beloved locker room presence with infectious positive energy and an incredible work ethic.
But let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves. Though the good is, indeed, very good with AJ, it hasn’t been all sunshine and rainbows in his freshman season under head coach Kevin Young. He’s not perfect as a prospect, nor are his shortcomings negligible when weighing his value as the potential number-one selection.
His biggest issue is turnovers. They’re a natural part of the growth process for a young superstar like AJ, but that doesn’t mean that ball security should be ignored. Whether he’s trying too hard to fit a pass into a tight window or is simply sloppy with his dribble, there were many frustrating instances where the swarming, disciplined defenses of teams like Iowa State, Houston, and Arizona confused and compelled AJ to make a bad decision.
I attribute this to his frame in large part, but AJ’s handle isn’t always air-tight. Far from bad, but not quite excellent, Dybantsa’s dribble is often a little loose when operating outside the three-point arc, and that’s gotten him into trouble when facing aggressive, pesky defenders who like to swipe as the ball leaves his fingertips. 2.9 turnovers per game isn’t abhorrent, but ball security should be a major point of emphasis as he advances to the NBA level.
Though AJ is a gifted scorer, his three-point shot has been less-than steady throughout the 2025-26 campaign. He’s hitting above an acceptable 33%, but the flight of his ball has me very concerned about his efficiency as he steps back to the deeper NBA arc. He shoots a fairly flat ball; there is very little arch when he elevates from distance, leaving him less room for error than a player whose shot spends more time in the air.
There is precedent for great offensive threats to shoot with a shallow arch — Kawhi Leonard comes to mind — and heaven knows that his jumper regularly found its target from two-point land.
AJ has been a serviceable defender at BYU. Not a brick wall by any means, but he has been known to suffer the occasional lapse in focus when defending off-ball. Blame TikTok and his generation’s fried dopamine receptors, I guess. This is his most easily-corrected weakness, though one that he shares with some of the NBA’s very best. Take it for what it’s worth.
Verdict
If you want to hit a home run with the first overall pick in this draft, you don’t think twice about selecting AJ Dybantsa. With a mature, poised offensive skill set and a track record of endless competitive drive, this freshman from Brigham Young University led the nation in scoring and already plays basketball like an NBA veteran.
His ceiling is higher than that of Peterson or Boozer, and his game projects favorably to the rhythm and increased spacing of the NBA style. Put in the right situation, Dybantsa could blossom into a dominant superstar, collecting accolades like they’re Halloween candy. It’s hard to imagine a future where Dybantsa doesn’t develop into an All-Star-level talent as a pro.
It’s no secret that Dybantsa is at the top of Utah’s draft board. Owner Ryan Smith has been indirectly funding his collegiate development, and the Ainge family’s frequent appearances dressed in royal blue at the Marriott Center have given the Jazz all the scouting intel they need to make a decision. If the Jazz luck into the number one pick in the upcoming lottery, don’t be surprised if their representative shakes Adam Silver’s hand with a custom Dybantsa jersey a la Cleveland in 2003.
Calvin Barrett is a writer, editor, and prolific Mario Kart racer located in Tokyo, Japan. He has covered the NBA and College Sports since 2024.
TAMPA, FL - FEBRUARY 18: Gerrit Cole #45 and Max Fried #54 of the New York Yankees look on during spring training at George M. Steinbrenner Field on February 18, 2026 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by New York Yankees/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The closer we get to Opening Day, the sooner we’ll lean about the Yankees’ ultimate roster plans. Manager Aaron Boone got the obvious out of the way last night, with the confirmation that 2025 ace free-agent signing Max Fried will be the Opening Day starter.
If you had to line up the Yankees’ rotation beyond Fried right now, who would make your cut? For the purpose of this question, we want to know the specific order you’d use for the first time the Yankees need to pitch five starters in five days. Fried, Ryan Weathers, Cam Schlittler, Luis Gil, and Will Warren all figure to be in the mix, but how are you lining them up and why? Maybe you’d like to get Ryan Yarbrough in there, too. This is a no-judgment zone!
Also, as a secondary exercise, suppose that all of the Yankees’ injured starters return and all are healthy. (I cannot emphasize enough that I do not believe this will happen because the best-laid plans of healthy pitching are best forgotten. But we’re having fun here! How would you line the front five up with Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodón, and Clarke Schmidt in the mix? Yes, yes, the boring-but-correct answer is that it depends on how all the pitchers look in that moment, and especially how the arms respond to their various comebacks.
For the first prompt, my gut says to go Fried/Schlittler/Weathers/Gil/Warren, and for the second, Fried/Cole/Rodón/Schlittler/Schmidt — tagging Weathers in for Schmidt since I don’t really trust that his elbow will let him make so many starts for the 2026 Yanks. Let us hope that this is a problem the Yankees are forced to handle! I’m feeling optimistic about most of these names anyway.
Today on the site, John and Matt lead will recap the WBC action from Monday, Sam will preview Ryan Weathers’ 2026 campaign, Peter will look across town and read the tea leaves about the 2026 Mets, and Nick will celebrate the birthday of Steve Howe, a very talented pitcher whose own demons unfortunately kept him from sticking around on this Earth for very long.
Michigan was the big winner of the 2025-26 season Big Ten men's basketball season. The Wolverines won the league by four games and added to its dominance with Yaxel Lendeborg being named Big Ten Player of the Year by a panel of USA TODAY Network voters. It was a near unanimous selection with Lendeborg receiving 15 of 16 votes.
He was, however, the only unanimous first team All-Big Ten selection. Illinois's Keaton Wagler appeared on the first team in 15 of the 16 ballots.
Here are the All-Big Ten first and second teams and postseason awards as voted on by USA TODAY Network reporters who cover the conference.
2026 All-Big Ten basketball first, second teams
* denotes unanimous selection
FIRST TEAM
Yaxel Lendeborg, Michigan*
Keaton Wagler, Illinois
Jeremy Fears Jr., Michigan State
Braden Smith, Purdue
Bennett Stirtz, Iowa
SECOND TEAM
Bruce Thornton, Ohio State
Pryce Sandfort, Nebraska
Nick Boyd, Wisconsin
Nick Martinelli, Northwestern
Lamar Wilkerson, Indiana
Also receiving votes: Hannes Steinbach (Washington), Morez Johnson Jr. (Michigan), Tyler Bildeau (UCLA), David Mirkovic (Illinois), John Blackwell (Wisconsin), Fletcher Loyer (Purdue), Jaxon Kohler (Michigan State).
2026 Big Ten basketball Player of the Year
Michigan's Yaxel Lendeborg was a near unanimous pick for Big Ten Player of the Year. The UAB transfer didn't post monster numbers (14.7 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 3.2 apg), but he's the best player on the conference's best team.
"If he’s not Big Ten Player of the Year, then I’ll be shocked," Wolverines coach Dusty May said Monday.
Well Dusty, all is right in the world.
Iowa's Bennett Stirtz and Purdue's Braden Smith received the other two votes.
2026 Big Ten basketball Coach of the Year
This was the closest vote as Nebraska's Fred Hoiberg edged Michigan's Dusty May by three votes.
Nebraska is the only Power conference team to never win a game in the NCAA Tournament, but it looks like Hoiberg's group may be the one to break that duck.
Wisconsin's Greg Gard also received a vote.
2026 Big Ten basketball Newcomer of the Year
Yaxel Lendeborg wins this one, too, though Illinois freshman Keaton Wagler received a decent amount of consideration. Lendeborg arrived via the transfer portal after winning back-to-back American Conference Defensive Player of the Year honors and consecutive first-team all-league picks.
2026 Big Ten basketball Defensive Player of the Year
Michigan's Aday Mara won the vote for Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, with Nebraska's Sam Hoiberg and Mara's Michigan teammates Morez Johnson Jr. and Yaxel Lendeborg also receiving votes.
Mara averaged a Big Ten-best 2.6 blocks per game, tied for fifth-best in the nation, and added 6.9 rebounds per game.
Voters for Big Ten postseason awards included: Tony Garcia (Detroit Free Press), Chris Solari (Detroit Free Press), Sam King (Lafayette Journal & Courier), Adam Jardy (Columbus Dispatch), Zach Osterman (IndyStar), Nathan Baird (IndyStar), Tyler Tachman (Des Moines Register), Chad Leistikow (Des Moines Register), John Steppe (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel), Graham Couch (Lansing State Journal), Connor Earegood (Detroit News), James Hawkins (Detroit News), Michael Niziolek (Bloomington Herald-Times), Chris Hansen (Eugene Register Guard), Austin Curtright (USA TODAY Network), John Leuzzi (USA TODAY Network).
The 2026 men's basketball All-Big 12 first team included three freshmen, but excluded one many wouldn't have predicted at the season's tip-off.
BYU's AJ Dybantsa, Houston's Kingston Flemings and Arizona's Brayden Burries all made the All-Big 12 first team as voted on by USA TODAY Network reporters. Dybantsa and Flemings were the only unanimous selections.
Kansas freshman star Darryn Peterson, who missed 11 games this season, was named to the second team.
Dybantsa was voted Big 12 Player of the Year and unanimous Big 12 Newcomer of the Year.
Arizona's Tommy Lloyd was named Big 12 Coach of the Year after guiding the Wildcats to the league's regular-season title and a likely No. 1 seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament. Arizona will be looking to make its first Final Four since 2001.
Kansas big man Flory Bidunga earned Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, after tying second in the nation in blocked shots.
Here are the All-Big 12 first and second teams and postseason awards as voted on by USA TODAY Network reporters who cover the conference.
2026 All-Big 12 basketball first, second teams
* denotes unanimous selection
FIRST TEAM
AJ Dybantsa, BYU*
Kingston Flemings, Houston*
JT Toppin, Texas Tech
Brayden Burries, Arizona
Joshua Jefferson, Iowa State
SECOND TEAM
Christian Anderson, Texas Tech
Jaden Bradley, Arizona
Flory Bidunga, Kansas
Darryn Peterson, Kansas
Milan Momcilovic, Iowa State
PJ Haggerty, Kansas State
Also receiving votes: Motiejus Krivas (Arizona), Koa Peat (Arizona), Emanuel Sharp (Houston), Robert Wright III (BYU), Tre White (Kansas), Melvin Council Jr. (Kansas), Themus Fulks (UCF), Terrence Brown (Utah), Xavier Edmonds (TCU), Baba Miller (Cincinnati), Honor Huff (West Virginia).
2026 Big 12 basketball Player of the Year
BYU star freshman AJ Dybantsa received half the votes for Big 12 Player of the Year from our voters. Joshua Jefferson (Iowa State), JT Toppin (Texas Tech) and Arizona's Brayden Burries also received votes.
Dybantsa lived up to the considerable hype, averaging 24.7 points, 6.7 rebounds, 3.8 assists. However, as a team, the Cougars struggled down the stretch without Richie Saunders, losing eight of their final 12 games and finishing Big 12 play 9-9.
2026 Big 12 basketball Coach of the Year
Arizona's Tommy Lloyd led the Wildcats to a 29-2 overall record and 16-2 mark in the Big 12 on their way to winning the regular-season conference title.
UCF's Johnny Dawkins received two votes, while Texas Tech's Grant McCasland and Kansas' Bill Self also received consideration.
2026 Big 12 basketball Newcomer of the Year
Dybantsa may have split opinion on overall Player of the Year, but there was no question here as the BYU star freshman was a unanimous pick for Big 12 Newcomer of the Year.
2026 Big 12 basketball Defensive Player of the Year
Kansas big man Flory Bidunga was a near unanimous selection here. Bidunga averaged 9.0 rebounds a game and a Big 12-best 2.7 blocks per game, which tied for second in the nation.
Voters for USA TODAY Network Big 12 postseason awards included: Christopher Boyle (Daytona Beach News-Journal), Nathan Giese (Lubbock Avalanche-Journal), Scott Springer (Cincinnati Enquirer), Wyatt Wheeler (Topeka Capital-Journal), Jordan Guskey (Topeka Capital-Journal), Austin Curtright (USA TODAY Network), Eugene Rapay (Des Moines Register), Travis Hines (Des Moines Register), Scott Wright (The Oklahoman), Jacob Unruh (The Oklahoman).
