“THE SCOREBOARD”
MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
NCAA MEN’S BASKETBALL TV SCHEDULE/RESULTS
SUNDAY
HOUSTON 69 TENNESSEE 50
AUBURN 70 MICHIGAN STATE 64
FINAL FOUR SCHEDULE
SATURDAY, APRIL 5 (FINAL FOUR IN SAN ANTONIO)
(1) FLORIDA VS. (1) AUBURN, 6:09 P.M | CBS
(1) DUKE VS. (1) HOUSTON, 8:49 P.M. | CBS
MONDAY, APRIL 7 (NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME IN SAN ANTONIO)
8:50 P.M. ON CBS
NIT SCORES
NO GAMES SCHEDULED
WOMEN’S NCAA TOURNAMENT TV SCHEDULE
SUNDAY, MARCH 30 (ELITE EIGHT)
(1) SOUTH CAROLINA 54, (2) DUKE 50
(1) UCLA 72, (3) LSU 65
MONDAY, MARCH 31 (ELITE EIGHT)
(1) TEXAS VS. (2) TCU, 7 P.M. ON ESPN
(1) SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA VS. (2) UCONN, 9 P.M. ON ESPN
FRIDAY, APRIL 4 (FINAL FOUR IN TAMPA, FLA.)
7 P.M. ON ESPN
9:30 P.M. ON ESPN
SUNDAY, APRIL 6 (NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME IN TAMPA, FLA.)
3 P.M. ON ABC
WNIT
BUFFALO 71 RUTGERS 64
INDIANA COLLEGE BASEBALL SCOREBOARD
FLORIDA STATE 4 NOTRE DAME 2
FLORIDA STATE 17 NOTRE DAME 9
UCLA 16 PURDUE 3
BUTLER 15 NORTHEN ILLINOIS 10
EVANSVILLE 5 VALPARAISO 4
SOUTHERN INDIANA 8 LITTLE ROCK 7
INDIANA COLLEGE SOFTBALL SCOREBOARD
VIRGINIA 6 NOTRE DAME 4 (10)
NEBRASKA 6 PURDUE 0
COLLEGE HOCKEY PLAYOFFS
PENN STATE 3 UCONN 2 OT
DENVER 3 BOSTON COLLEGE 1
INDIANA COLLEGE MEN’S LAX
NO GAMES SCHEDULED
INDIANA COLLEGE WOMEN’S LAX
NORTH CAROLINA 14 NOTRE DAME 3
NBA SCOREBOARD
CLEVELAND 127 LA CLIPPERS 122
NEW YORK 110 PORTLAND 93
MINNESOTA 123 DETROIT 104
GOLDEN STATE 148 SAN ANTONIO 106
ATLANTA 145 MILWAUKEE 124
NEW ORLEANS 98 CHARLOTTE 94
TORONTO 127 PHILADELPHIA 109
HOUSTON 148 PHOENIX 109
NHL SCOREBOARD
MONTREAL 4 FLORIDA 2
BUFFALO 8 WASHINGTON 5
WINNIPEG 3 VANCOUVER 1
UTAH 5 CHICAGO 2
PITTSBURGH 1 OTTAWA 0 OT
CAROLINA 6 NY ISLANDERS 4
TORONTO 3 ANAHEIM 2
LOS ANGELES 8 SAN JOSE 1
MLB SCOREBOARD
NY YANKEES 12 MILWAUKEE 3
WASHINGTON 5 PHILADELPHIA 1
TORONTO 3 BALTIMORE 1
SAN FRANCISCO 6 CINCINNATI 3
MIAMI 3 PITTSBURGH 2
TAMPA BAY 6 COLORADO 4
LA ANGELS 3 CHICAGO WHITE SOX 2
CLEVELAND 6 KANSAS CITY 2
ST. LOUIS 9 MINNESOTA 2
TEXAS 3 BOSTON 2
ARIZONA 10 CHICAGO CUBS 6
SEATTLE 2 LAS VEGAS 1
SAN DIEGO 5 ATLANTA 0
MINOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
INDIANAPOLIS AT ST. PAUL PPD.
MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER
AUSTIN 1 ST. LOUIS 0
PORTLAND 3 HOUSTON 1
UFL SCOREBOARD
MICHIGAN 26 MEMPHIS 12
DC 18 BIRMINGHAM 11
TOP NATIONAL HEADLINES
MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
AUBURN TAKES DOWN MICHIGAN STATE; ALL NO. 1 SEEDS MAKE FINAL FOUR
ATLANTA — A hush came over the otherwise raucous State Farm Arena midway through the second half of Sunday’s NCAA Tournament South Region final.
The heavy Auburn fan contingent held its breath as superstar Johni Broome left for the locker room after falling on his elbow. In his absence, No. 1 Auburn held its lead over No. 2 Michigan State — before Broome returned, knocked down a 3-pointer and eventually celebrated a 70-64 victory for the Tigers, who clinched a spot in next Saturday’s Final Four.
The All-American Broome collected 25 points and 14 rebounds and freshman Tahaad Pettiford added 10 points off the bench for Auburn (32-5), which advanced to the program’s second Final Four (2019), where the Tigers face conference foe Florida.
Broome, who was cleared after undergoing X-rays, was more than happy to return and push the Tigers over the finish line.
“I went to the locker room. I checked my arm out. The Doc said nothing’s wrong, you’re good. Nothing serious,” Broome said. “So, at that moment, I just wanted to help my teammates.
“If that’s coming back out and playing and hitting one shot and grabbing the rebound, I was going to do it.”
Auburn’s win completes a No. 1 seed sweep in the Final Four, the first time since 2008 that all four top seeds advanced to the national semifinals. Duke and Houston will join Auburn and Florida next week in San Antonio.
Not only does it prolong what’s been a “chalk-filled” tournament, but it also assures the Southeastern Conference a team in the national championship for the first time since Kentucky in 2014. This is an area of importance for Auburn coach Bruce Pearl.
“How the SEC does really matters to me. It genuinely matters to me,” Pearl said. “Basketball wasn’t holding up its end for a while. It was Kentucky. It was a Billy Donovan-coached Florida team, and then every now and then, maybe Arkansas or Tennessee would have a run.
“There are now 16 basketball programs in the SEC that are all committed to being competitive in men’s basketball. The league has done a great job, and unfortunately, there will only be one SEC team playing for the national championship on Monday.”
The Tigers, who fell 90-81 at home to Florida on Feb. 8, are aware of the challenge awaiting them in San Antonio.
“Florida has a great team. They were good enough to beat us at home,” Auburn forward Chaney Johnson said. “It’s another team in the way of us getting to the national championship. So, we’ve just got to continue putting our head down, continue staying humble, continue staying hungry.
“Just go out there and play with great effort and great energy.”
The Spartans (30-7) were led by Jaxon Kohler’s 17 points and 11 rebounds, followed by Jaden Akins’ 15 points and Jase Richardson’s 11.
After trailing by 15 points in the first half and nine at halftime, Michigan State cut its deficit to 35-30 on Jeremy Fears Jr.’s layup in the opening minutes of the second. The Tigers then pushed the margin back to double figures on Chad Baker-Mazara’s 3-pointer and Dylan Cardwell’s layup.
Frankie Fidler’s reverse layup later pulled the Spartans within nine, but Pettiford hit a triple to extend Auburn’s advantage to 50-38 with 12:03 left. After contesting Fidler at the rim, Broome’s awkward fall forced the All-American to head for the locker room.
In Broome’s absence, Michigan State sliced its deficit to eight, but Broome later returned and connected on a pivotal 3-pointer to give Auburn a 60-48 edge with 4:41 remaining.
Kohler knocked down a trey to pull the Spartans within seven with 1:40 left, but Denver Jones’ driving layup and subsequent free throws pushed the margin to 11.
Akins made two 3-pointers down the stretch for Michigan State, but it was only window dressing as Auburn earned its program-record 32nd win.
“For the 30th year, I’m not sure I’ve ever been prouder of a team,” Spartans head coach Tom Izzo said. “There’s so much coach speak and things that go on in programs all over, but these guys gave me everything they had. I drained them of everything. They should take a week off. There’s nothing left in them.”
Broome asserted his low-post dominance early, scoring Auburn’s first six points, before Richardson’s three-point play knotted the score at six. Coen Carr’s dunk gave the Spartans their first and only lead of the game, but Miles Kelly’s back-to-back midrange jumpers began a 17-0 run for the Tigers — which included Broome’s 3-pointer to extend Auburn’s lead to 23-8.
Fidler then scored five of Michigan State’s 7-0 spurt to pull the Spartans within eight at the 8:41 mark. Kohler’s second 3-pointer of the first half later cut Auburn’s lead to five, but Pettiford and Broome followed with layups, helping the Tigers take a 33-24 halftime lead.
“I felt going in that we were better,” Pearl said. “I felt like I had better players. That’s not a criticism at all. I told our guys right now, we haven’t beaten a team yet that I thought was better than us. That’s why we’re the overall No. 1 seed. We’re going to the Final Four with our four one-seeds.
“The four teams that advanced, I think they’re the four best teams in the country. That doesn’t obviously always happen.”
HOUSTON CLAMPS DOWN ON TENNESSEE, CLINCHING RETURN TO FINAL FOUR
INDIANAPOLIS — LJ Cryer delivered 17 points, seven rebounds and four assists as No. 1 seed Houston dominated early and pulled away late for a 69-50 victory over No. 2 Tennessee in the Midwest Region final Sunday.
The Cougars (34-4) claimed their first Final Four berth since 2021 by throttling the Vols with the nation’s best defense. Houston’s man-to-man harassed Tennessee (30-8) into missing its first 14 3-point attempts — and 22 of its first 27 shots overall — to build a 22-point lead that never got smaller than 10.
“Houston, they do what they do,” said Tennessee coach Rick Barnes. “That’s why they’re where they are. That’s the standard of their program. (The) first half obviously got away from us.”
Houston’s quest for its first NCAA title game appearance since 1984 will continue Saturday in San Antonio against Duke. The only other meeting between the Blue Devils and Cougars came in last year’s Sweet Sixteen — when Duke claimed a 54-51 win in Dallas.
Emanuel Sharp scored 11 of his 16 points in the final 10 minutes for Houston, which never trailed. The Cougars, who won their 17th game in a row, owned the boards by a 42-35 margin while forcing Tennessee into 28.8 percent shooting from the field and 5-of-29 from 3-point range.
“In the program, we know how much we work hard,” said Sharp, who was voted the region’s Most Outstanding Player. “Especially Coach Sampson. That’s the main person for me. It feels great to get him back here because he deserves it. He’s the best coach ever. Ever. He comes in every day with the same energy, the same intensity, and that’s what makes him great.”
Jordan Gainey produced 17 points off the bench and Chaz Lanier added 17 to pace Tennessee, which came one step shy of its first Final Four appearance for the second year in a row.
“Houston’s a tough team,” said Lanier, who finished 4-of-18 from the field and 2-of-12 on 3-point attempts. “We knew they were going to be super-aggressive and physical coming out. They just got the best of us.”
Tennessee’s offensive struggles were foreshadowed on the game’s first possession when Lanier’s 17-foot pullup came up well short of the rim. Houston came down and Joseph Tugler soared over the rim for an easy putback, which foretold the Cougars’ dominance on the board.
As the first 10 minutes unfolded, the Volunteers kept firing 3-pointers in vain while the Cougars kept scoring in the paint.
Houston turned a 4-2 edge into a 15-4 lead with 11:37 left in the first half when Cryer blew past Cade Phillips for a layup that forced Tennessee coach Rick Barnes to call a timeout. At that juncture, the Vols stood 1-for-11 from the floor (0-of-7 on 3-pointers) while Houston already had 12 points in the paint.
Lanier, who entered the game averaging 22.0 points per NCAA Tournament game, finally got on the board with a 15-foot jumper with 8:09 left in the half. That pulled the Vols within 22-8, but Houston responded with a Terrance Arceneaux 3-pointer and 15-foot baseline jumper that forced another Barnes timeout with his team shooting 3-of-21 from the field.
When Zakai Zeigler finally cashed a 3-pointer with 39 seconds left in the first half — ending their 0-for-14 start from long range — the pro-Tennessee crowd issued a muted mixture of roars, exhales and Bronx cheers.
Houston carried a 34-15 lead into halftime, which inspired Tennessee to start pressing full-court to force the action.
Gainey did his best to get the Vols back into it — drilling a 3-pointer, a putback, a driving scoop and another 3-pointer in a 2:23 stretch — to slice Houston’s lead to 44-30 with 13:19 to go.
The Vols got as close as 50-40 on Darlinstone Dubar’s free throw with 5:42 left. Sharp answered 13 seconds later with a triple.
Gainey slashed to the hoop but rimmed his lefty layup. Sharp and Mylik Wilson responded with 3-pointers to boost the lead to 59-42 with 4:04 to play and send some Tennessee fans to the exits — ignoring the reminder by the public address announcer about the severe weather and tornado watch blanketing the Indianapolis area like the Houston defense.
WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
GABRIELA JAQUEZ’S HEROICS LEAD UCLA PAST LSU TO FIRST FINAL FOUR
Gabriela Jaquez delivered on a key sequence that helped No. 1 seed UCLA hold off third-seeded LSU and send the Bruins to their first-ever Final Four with a 72-65 decision on Sunday in the Spokane Region 1 final.
UCLA (34-2) led throughout the second half and by as many 14 points, but LSU went on repeated runs that had the Tigers within striking distance down the stretch. An 8-0 Tigers run late in the fourth quarter made the score 56-53 with 3:24 remaining.
Lauren Betts, who faced suffocating double- and triple-teams throughout her 17-point, seven-rebound performance, split a pair of free throws to push the Bruins lead back to four. Then, after LSU failed to score on the ensuing possession, Jaquez got to the foul line to sink a pair of foul shots.
On the other end, Kailyn Gilbert missed a shot and Jaquez snagged a deflection for the rebound. Jaquez then fed Betts in the low post from the wing, relocated to the corner, regained the ball from Betts and fired in a 3-pointer.
Jaquez’s shot extended the UCLA lead to an insurmountable nine-point margin and put an exclamation point on her team-high 18-point, eight-rebound performance.
LSU (31-6) got a game-high 28 points from Flau’jae Johnson. Aneesah Morrow added 15 points, but the Bruins limited the nation’s leading rebounder to seven boards before Morrow fouled out.
Morrow also came out for a stretch in the third quarter after a collision with teammate Sa’Myah Smith gave Morrow a broken nose. For her part, Smith finished with 10 rebounds and helped limit UCLA’s Betts to 7-of-14 shooting from the floor.
Betts did her part for the Bruins defensively with six blocked shots. UCLA also got three steals from Jaquez.
The Bruins went just 21-of-55 on field-goal attempts. However, with 10-of-24 coming from 3-point range — led by Timea Gardiner’s 5-of-8 for 15 points off the bench — UCLA withstood LSU’s 25-of-67 shooting for the game.
SOUTH CAROLINA BEATS DUKE, HEADS TO 5TH STRAIGHT FINAL FOUR
Chloe Kitts scored eight of her 14 points in the fourth quarter, and defending national champion South Carolina came up with a critical defensive stop to outlast Duke en route to a fifth consecutive Final Four appearance with Sunday’s 54-50 win in the Birmingham Region 2 Elite Eight.
The No. 1 overall seed Gamecocks (34-3) led by a basket in the final minute after second-seeded Duke’s Oluchi Okananwa scored with 58 seconds remaining. South Carolina looked to extend its advantage to two possessions, but on a baseline inbounds play after the ball was knocked loose from Raven Johnson, Bree Hall ran into a Blue Devils defender to pick up an offensive foul.
The resulting turnover gave Duke (29-8) the ball with a chance to tie or take the lead. A ball screen to free up Ashlon Jackson gave her some space, but not enough to get off a clean 3-point look.
Jackson’s attempt failed to draw rim, and Hall made up for the turnover on the offensive foul by securing what proved to be the game-winning rebound. Kitts added a pair of free throws to seal the win and continue South Carolina’s pursuit to be the first back-to-back national champions since UConn from 2014-2016.
Sania Feagin scored 12 points for South Carolina and grabbed a game-high eight rebounds. Raven Johnson finished with seven points and five rebounds for the Gamecocks.
Duke’s Toby Fournier led all scorers with her 18 points off the bench. Jackson scored 13 points and doled out a game-high six assists.
The Blue Devils held a 41-30 advantage on the glass, led by Okananwa’s seven, but Duke could only convert 19 offensive boards into 12 points. Meanwhile, South Carolina forced 19 Blue Devils’ turnovers the Gamecocks turned into 14 points.
Feagin’s three steals led South Carolina’s defensive effort.
NBA NEWS
NBA ROUNDUP: SEVEN EJECTED AS WOLVES DOWN PISTONS
Julius Randle scored 26 points on 9-for-18 shooting and the Minnesota Timberwolves rallied for a 123-104 win over the Detroit Pistons in a game that featured a physical fracas Sunday in Minneapolis.
Anthony Edwards added 25 points and Rudy Gobert posted 19 points and a season-high 25 rebounds for the Timberwolves. Malik Beasley scored 27 to lead the Pistons, Tim Hardaway Jr. finished with 20 points and Jalen Duren notched 13 points and 11 boards.
The game was marred by a skirmish in the second quarter that led to seven ejections. The sequence started when Pistons guard Ron Holland II fouled Timberwolves forward Naz Reid on a layup attempt. Reid took exception to the foul and shook his finger in Holland’s face.
A melee ensued after Donte DiVincenzo came to support Reid and Holland shoved him. DiVincenzo grabbed Holland and yanked him to the ground, and within moments a large crowd of players and coaches formed beyond the baseline as both teams continued grabbing and shoving.
Reid, DiVincenzo and assistant coach Pablo Prigioni were ejected for Minnesota. Holland, Isaiah Stewart, Marcus Sasser and head coach J.B. Bickerstaff were ejected for Detroit.
Rockets 148, Suns 109
Jalen Green recorded 33 points, Alperen Sengun added 16 points and nine rebounds, and Houston ran away with the road win over Phoenix.
Eight players scored in double figures for the Rockets, including Amen Thompson, who went for 12 points, 10 boards and nine assists. Fred VanVleet had 13 points and seven assists for Houston, which won its third straight.
Devin Booker paced the Suns with 28 points. Kevin Durant had 11 to go along with seven rebounds before he exited in the third quarter after spraining his ankle in a collision with Jabari Smith Jr.’s foot. Durant will undergo an MRI on Monday, per Phoenix coach Mike Budenholzer. Monte Morris finished with 10 points.
Cavaliers 127, Clippers 122
Donovan Mitchell had 24 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists to lead Cleveland to a home win over Los Angeles and secured the Cavaliers’ third 60-win regular season in franchise history.
Jarrett Allen added 25 points and 12 boards for Cleveland, which never trailed. Evan Mobley contributed 22 points, seven rebounds and three blocks for the Cavs, who have won 60 games in a season for the first time since 2010. The franchise record is 66 wins set the year before.
Norman Powell paced the Clippers with 34 points, with James Harden chipping in with 24 points, eight boards and eight assists.
Knicks 110, Trail Blazers 93
OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges scored 28 points apiece as host New York rallied from a 14-point deficit to defeat Portland and earn its fourth win in five games.
Karl-Anthony Towns added a 10-point, 11-rebound double-double and Josh Hart (14 points, nine assists, eight rebounds) almost secured a triple-double for the Knicks. Landry Shamet chipped in with 11 points off the bench and Precious Achiuwa added 10.
Deni Avdija scored 33 points for the struggling Trail Blazers, who fell 4 1/2 games behind the Sacramento Kings for 10th place in the West. Shaedon Sharpe had 23 points, Toumani Camara notched 16 and Anfernee Simons added 15 in the loss.
Hawks 145, Bucks 124
A career-high 36 points from Zaccharie Risacher set the tone as Atlanta rallied from an early first-quarter deficit and raced away with the road win over Milwaukee.
Trae Young logged 19 points and 19 assists for the Hawks, who snapped a two-game skid to grab the No. 7 spot in the Eastern Conference playoff chase. Dyson Daniels scored 22 and Georges Niang had 17.
The Bucks, who dropped their fourth straight, were led by Giannis Antetokounmpo, who had 31 points. Kevin Porter Jr. chipped in with 28, while Kyle Kuzma scored 25. Milwaukee led 44-37 after the first quarter but was then outscored 81-48 over the next two periods.
Warriors 148, Spurs 106
Brandin Podziemski poured in 27 points, hitting a career-high seven 3-pointers to lead a balanced offensive attack as visiting Golden State rolled past slumping San Antonio to move into sixth place in the Western Conference standings.
Moses Moody added 20 points for the Warriors, with Buddy Hield scoring 19, Draymond Green scoring 14 and Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler III racking up 13 points each. Golden State is 18-4 with Butler in the lineup since his trade to the Bay Area on Feb. 6.
The Spurs never seriously challenged the Warriors while giving up a season-high point total and dropping their fourth straight outing. They were led by reserve Keldon Johnson’s 19 points, while Sandro Mamukelashvili racked up 14 points and 11 rebounds, Malaki Branham added 13 points, Devin Vassell scored 12 and Julian Champagnie had 11.
Raptors 127, 76ers 109
RJ Barrett delivered 31 points to pace six double-digit scorers as Toronto notched a road victory over Philadelphia.
Toronto extended its winning streak to four games despite a quiet game from Scottie Barnes (nine points on 4-of-12 shooting). Ja’Kobe Walter picked up the slack with 17 points, while Jamison Battle chipped in with 16 points off the bench and Jamal Shead added 11 points and nine assists.
Lonnie Walker IV scored 23 points to pace Philadelphia, which lost its eighth straight game while playing without virtually all of its key players. Jalen Hood-Schifino contributed 18 points and Ricky Council IV pitched in with 17 points and 11 boards for the Sixers, who dropped all four meetings with the Raptors this season.
Pelicans 94, Hornets 94
Jose Alvarado hit a go-ahead three-point play with 31.1 seconds left and Keion Brooks Jr. added a layup to seal a win for host New Orleans over Charlotte.
Down one late after a Nick Smith Jr. 3-pointer, Alvarado made a lay-up as he was fouled, and he made the free throw to put New Orleans on top 96-94. The Hornets’ ensuing inbounds pass then sailed out of bounds, setting up a drive-and-dish from Alvarado to Brooks to ice the win.
Brooks paced the Pelicans with 17 points, Antonio Reeves had 16 and Kelly Olynyk scored 13. Miles Bridges had 20 for the Hornets, with Smith scoring 19 and Jusuf Nurkic finishing with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
BASEBALL NEWS
MLB ROUNDUP: D-BACKS RIDE 8-RUN EIGHTH PAST CUBS
Lourdes Gurriel Jr. hit a game-tying two-run homer and Josh Naylor doubled in the go-ahead run, all in an eight-run eighth inning, to lift the Arizona Diamondbacks to a 10-6 victory over the Chicago Cubs in Phoenix on Sunday afternoon.
Alek Thomas and Corbin Carroll walked to open Arizona’s eighth inning before Geraldo Perdomo hit a two-run double off Eli Morgan (0-1), and Gurriel tied the game on a 416-foot homer to left-center. Gabriel Moreno singled and scored on Naylor’s double to deep center for a 7-6 lead, before Eugenio Suarez was intentionally walked.
Naylor and Suarez pulled off a double-steal before pinch-hitter Ryne Nelson — a pitcher — grounded a single through the drawn-in infield for his first career hit and RBI as Naylor scored. Suarez was thrown out at home on the play, but Nelson took second on the throw and scored on Thomas’ single to make it 9-6. Carroll then doubled in Thomas.
Kyle Tucker, Seiya Suzuki and Dansby Swanson homered for the Cubs, who received five scoreless innings from left-hander Matthew Boyd but could not hold a 3-0 lead after six innings. Boyd gave up four singles and three walks in his Cubs debut, while Arizona’s Justin Martinez (1-0) pitched two-thirds of an inning for the win.
Yankees 12, Brewers 3
Jazz Chisholm Jr. hit two homers and Aaron Judge went deep again for host New York, which continued its potent early-season ways by routing Milwaukee to complete a three-game sweep.
Ben Rice also homered for the Yankees, who outscored the Brewers 36-14 in the series, during which they hit 15 homers — tied with the 2006 Detroit Tigers for the most ever by a team in its first three games of a season.
Tim Hill (1-0) earned the win by striking out three over 1 1/3 perfect innings in relief of starter Marcus Stroman, who gave up three runs on five hits and one walk while striking out three over 4 2/3 innings. Brewers starter Aaron Civale allowed five runs on four hits and one walk while striking out two over three innings. Civale exited with a left hamstring injury in the third inning.
Padres 5, Braves 0
Nick Pivetta allowed just one hit over seven shutout innings as host San Diego completed a four-game sweep of Atlanta.
Pivetta (1-0) walked none and fanned four in an 82-pitch masterpiece that saw him face the minimum 21 hitters. Orlando Arcia lined a single to right to lead off the third, but a double play ball off Chadwick Tromp’s bat ended the inning.
Jason Adam and Jeremiah Estrada finished the shutout as San Diego blanked Atlanta over the final 22 innings of the series. Offensively, Fernando Tatis Jr. went 2-for-3 and reached base four times, knocking in a run, scoring twice and while stealing his third base of the season. The Padres collected five doubles and swiped four bases.
Cardinals 9, Twins 2
Victor Scott II and Pedro Pages hit three-run homers as St. Louis defeated visiting Minnesota to complete a three-game sweep.
Nolan Gorman went 3-for-4 with a homer and three runs for the Cardinals, who outscored the Twins 19-6 in the series. Alec Burleson added a two-run double. St. Louis starter Andre Pallante (1-0) allowed two runs on four hits before a rain delay ended his outing after five innings. Pallante struck out three and walked two.
Steven Matz took over, blanking the Twins for four innings to earn his first career save. Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol picked up his 250th career victory. For the Twins, Willi Castro went 2-for-4 with a homer and a double. Starter Bailey Ober (0-1) allowed eight runs on eight hits and three walks in 2 2/3 innings.
Mariners 2, Athletics 1
Julio Rodriguez hit a 438-foot two-run homer and Bryan Woo continued his mastery of the Athletics as host Seattle earned a split of the season-opening four-game series.
Woo (1-0) allowed one run on three hits over six innings, with two walks and five strikeouts. The native of Alameda, Calif., which is adjacent to the Athletics’ former home of Oakland, improved to 6-0 in seven career starts against the A’s with a 0.72 ERA — up from 0.57 entering the day. Andres Munoz struck out two in the ninth for his second save of the season.
Tyler Soderstrom led off the fourth inning with a solo home run to left-center field to give the A’s a 1-0 lead. It was Soderstrom’s third solo shot of the series. A’s lefty JP Sears (0-1) was the hard-luck loser. He allowed two runs on five hits over 6 2/3 innings, with no walks and seven strikeouts.
Blue Jays 3, Orioles 1
Tyler Heineman hit his second career home run, Chris Bassitt pitched a resourceful six innings and Toronto defeated visiting Baltimore.
George Springer had two RBIs to help the Blue Jays split the season-opening four game series. The Orioles were 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position, which helped Bassitt allow just one run in six innings.
Baltimore starter Tomoyuki Sugano, making his major league debut after a distinguished career in Japan, allowed two runs, four hits and two walks with one strikeout in four innings before leaving with a hand cramp. He made one warmup pitch prior to the fifth before a trainer was summoned to the mound.
Giants 6, Reds 3
Matt Chapman belted a two-run homer and turned in several key defensive plays to lead visiting San Francisco to a win over Cincinnati.
Robbie Ray (1-0), who retired the first 15 Reds batters, allowed three hits and three runs over 5 1/3 innings, striking out four and walking one. Heliot Ramos homered and drove in a pair while Camilo Doval earned his first save with a scoreless ninth for the Giants, who won the rubber game of the three-game series.
Cincinnati starter Nick Martinez (0-1) was equal to Ray, retiring the first 13 San Francisco batters. But Martinez gave up two homers in the fifth and was charged with four hits and four runs over six innings, striking out five and walking one. In the sixth, Austin Wynns hit a two-run shot and Matt McLain followed with a homer.
Nationals 5, Phillies 1
Josh Bell hit a three-run homer, Nathaniel Lowe added a two-run shot, and Washington beat visiting Philadelphia to avert a three-game sweep.
Left-hander Mitchell Parker (1-0) gave up seven hits with two walks and five strikeouts over 6 1/3 scoreless innings. Lowe had three hits and Paul DeJong had two doubles among his three hits for Washington, which put just one runner on base in the first three innings against Phillies starter Aaron Nola (0-1).
The Phillies broke the shutout in the ninth inning on a single, two walks and a groundout. Kyle Finnegan finished for his first save. Nola gave up five runs on six hits over 5 1/3 innings. He struck out eight batters with no walks while throwing 95 pitches.
Angels 3, White Sox 2
Jack Kochanowicz threw six innings of two-run ball and Kyren Paris hit a go-ahead home run in the eighth inning, helping Los Angeles defeat host Chicago.
Nolan Schanuel finished with a pair of hits for the Angels, who won their second game in a row and clinched the season-opening three-game series.
Luis Robert Jr. and Matt Thaiss each tallied two hits for the White Sox, while starter Davis Martin threw six innings and allowed two runs (none earned) and four hits in his season debut.
Marlins 3, Pirates 2
Derek Hill single-handedly manufactured Miami’s third walk-off win in the first four games of the season via an infield single, stolen base, throwing error and wild pitch in a thrilling victory and a series triumph over visiting Pittsburgh.
In a game that featured Andrew McCutchen homering for a 17th consecutive season, the Marlins stunned Pirates two-time All-Star closer David Bednar (0-2) for the game-winner in the last of the ninth for the second time in the series. The other walk-off win, which occurred Saturday, came in the 12th.
Miami’s Anthony Bender (1-0), who worked around a leadoff walk in the top of the ninth, was credited with the win. Nick Fortes hit an RBI double and Griffin Conine ripped a solo shot on the day the Marlins inducted his father, Jeff, into their Hall of Fame as its first member.
Guardians 6, Royals 2
Tanner Bibee allowed two hits over 5 2/3 shutout innings and Kyle Manzardo, Gabriel Arias and Daniel Schneemann each homered to lead visiting Cleveland to a win over Kansas City in the rubber game of their three-game series.
Bibee, scratched as Cleveland’s Opening Day starter after coming down with a case of acute gastroenteritis, showed no effects from the illness. He walked two and struck out two and retired 13 batters in a row before being lifted after walking Bobby Witt Jr. in the sixth inning. One of the two hits Bibee (1-0) allowed was a double to Hunter Renfroe in the second inning that left fielder Steven Kwan lost in the sun.
Manzardo and Arias both finished with two hits, two RBIs and a run while Kwan went 3-for-5 with an RBI and a run. Schneemann reached base four times with three walks and a homer for the Guardians. Witt had an RBI single, Vinnie Pasquantino tripled and Maikel Garcia and Renfroe each doubled for Kansas City.
Rays 6, Rockies 4
Tampa Bay pinch hitter Junior Caminero hit a go-ahead RBI single in a four-run sixth inning of a 6-4 home win over Colorado. It was the Rays’ first series win at Steinbrenner Field, their home for the 2025 season.
The Rays’ Brandon Lowe hit his first home run and collected two RBIs, and Jonny DeLuca went 3-for-4 with two stolen bases. Starter Taj Bradley (1-0) gave up two runs on five hits while striking out seven over six strong innings. Pete Fairbanks earned his first save.
Colorado’s Nick Martini was 3-for-4 with an RBI and Mickey Moniak hit a two-run homer as a pinch hitter. Starter Ryan Feltner allowed two runs on four hits over five innings with five strikeouts. Luis Peralta (0-1) took the loss, giving up one hit and two earned runs while recording one out.
Rangers 3, Red Sox 2
Wyatt Langford and Adolis Garcia each hit a solo home run in the bottom of the sixth inning to help Texas defeat Boston in Arlington, Texas.
Both home runs came against Boston starter Richard Fitts and came after Boston took a 2-1 lead in the top of the sixth. Garcia also homered in Saturday’s 4-3 victory over Boston. Fitts (0-1) went six innings and surrendered three runs on six hits. He struck out four.
Shawn Armstrong (1-0) earned the win despite allowing two runs (one earned) in one inning of relief. Luke Jackson struck out Alex Bregman with runners on first and second to end the game. It was Jackson’s second save.
NHL NEWS
NHL ROUNDUP: ALEX OVECHKIN 5 GOALS FROM ALL-TIME MARK
With his 890th goal, Capitals sniper Alex Ovechkin moved within five goals of breaking Wayne Gretzky’s all-time record, but host Washington lost to the Buffalo Sabres 8-5 on Sunday.
Ovechkin, who also collected a pair of assists, will resume his pursuit of the record on Tuesday in Boston against the Bruins. Washington has nine games left in the regular season.
Buffalo’s Alex Tuch had two goals and an assist, Tage Thompson scored twice and Jack Quinn added a goal and two assists. Connor Clifton, JJ Peterka and Jason Zucker had two assists each, and James Reimer made 24 saves for the Sabres, who picked up their sixth win in the last nine games.
For Washington, Jakob Chychrun scored twice to hit the 20-goal mark for the first time, Dylan Strome notched two helpers and Logan Thompson made 15 saves in the loss.
Penguins 1, Senators 0 (OT)
Sidney Crosby scored a power-play goal at 1:16 of overtime and Tristan Jarry made 31 saves for his first shutout of the season to lead Pittsburgh past visiting Ottawa.
Crosby, who drew a hooking penalty on Ridly Greig with three seconds left in regulation, roofed a one-timer off an Erik Karlsson pass from the center of the right circle past the glove side of Anton Forsberg for the game-winner. The Penguins snapped a three-game winless streak (0-2-1).
It was the 97th career game-winning goal for Crosby, passing Mats Sundin for 12th in NHL history. It was Jarry’s 20th career shutout. Forsberg stopped 34 of 35 shots for Ottawa.
Jets 3, Canucks 1
Kyle Connor had a goal and an assist, Mason Appleton and Cole Perfetti each tallied, and Winnipeg pulled away with a home win over Vancouver.
Connor Hellebuyck made 23 saves for the Jets, who picked up their third straight win. Nikolaj Ehlers, Adam Lowry and Vladislav Namestnikov each had an assist.
Pius Suter netted the lone Cancucks goal that put Vancouver on top 1-0 with just over a minute left in the opening period. Thatcher Demko recorded 24 saves.
Maple Leafs 3, Ducks 2
Steven Lorentz scored the go-ahead goal midway through the third period and Toronto extended its lead in the Atlantic Division to three points with a win over host Anaheim.
Max Domi and Mitch Marner added goals for the Maple Leafs, who have points in four straight games (3-0-1). Joseph Woll made 29 saves in the win.
After Toronto built a 2-0 lead, Leo Carlsson and Sam Colangelo responded with the Ducks’ goals. Lukas Dostal made 20 saves in the defeat.
Utah Hockey Club 5, Blackhawks 2
Defenseman Mikhail Sergachev and Alexander Kerfoot scored 31 seconds apart late in the second period, fueling Utah’s victory over host Chicago.
Kerfoot had two assists, Sergachev added one and Kailer Yamamoto, Logan Cooley and defenseman Nick DeSimone also scored a goal to help Utah snap its three-game skid (0-2-1). Defenseman John Marino notched two assists and Karel Vejmelka made 27 saves while appearing in his 17th consecutive game.
Joe Veleno and Ryan Donato each scored a goal and Arvid Soderblom turned aside 26 shots for the skidding Blackhawks, who have lost 10 of their last 11 games (1-9-1). Chicago defenseman Sam Rinzel and forward Oliver Moore made their respective NHL debuts after signing their entry-level contracts on Saturday.
Hurricanes 6, Islanders 4
Dmitry Orlov netted the go-ahead goal midway through the third period, Seth Jarvis added the second of his two scores, and Carolina held off New York for its 11th win in 13 games in Raleigh, N.C.
Mark Jankowski, Logan Stankoven and Sebastian Aho all scored for the Hurricanes, while Pyotr Kochetkov was credited with 27 saves — including 12 in the third period.
Pierre Engvall had two goals to lead the Islanders, who have lost five straight. Kyle Palmieri and Anders Lee each tallied, while Bo Horvat dished out two assists. Marcus Hogberg recorded 24 saves for New York.
Canadiens 4, Panthers 2
Nick Suzuki had a goal and two assists for Montreal in a win against Florida in Sunrise, Fla.
Juraj Slafkovsky had a goal and an assist, Patrik Laine and Brendan Gallagher also scored, Lane Hutson totaled three assists and Sam Montembeault made 24 saves for the Canadiens, who moved into the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. In the finale of a four-game trip, Montreal snapped a five-game skid (0-3-2).
Sam Reinhart and Seth Jones scored, Aleksander Barkov had two assists and Sergei Bobrovsky made 18 saves for the Panthers (44-26-3, 91 points), who missed a chance to retake first place in the Atlantic Division.
GOLF NEWS
HYO JOO KIM BEATS LILIA VU IN PLAYOFF TO CAPTURE FORD CHAMPIONSHIP
Hyo Joo Kim of South Korea made an 8-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole to defeat Lilia Vu and win the Ford Championship on Sunday in Chandler, Ariz.
Kim started the day four shots off the pace and charged up the leaderboard with an 8-under-par 64. Vu took her to a playoff by birdieing the 17th hole and parring the 18th, tying Kim at 22-under 266 with a round of 68.
They replayed the par-4 18th at the Cattail Course at Whirlwind Golf Club, and after Vu landed her second shot far from the hole, Kim played a perfect approach that left her pin high for birdie.
Vu couldn’t convert from long range and Kim made the winning putt for her first return to the winner’s circle since October 2023. According to the Golf Channel broadcast, Kim will also rise into the top 10 of the Rolex Rankings this week.
“It has been a while since the last win, and I worked hard in the wintertime and it was a surprise that it came so quickly, the win,” Kim said through a translator.
Kim holed five birdies on the front nine and made another pair at Nos. 10-11 to go 7 under through 11 holes. She bogeyed the par-5 12th to lose some steam, but a birdie putt from off the green at No. 16 and a two-putt birdie at the par-5 17th boosted her to 22 under.
“The feeling was great today and I just thought one hole at a time, one birdie at a time,” said Kim, who won her seventh career LPGA title.
Kim had to wait as Vu, the 54-hole leader, finished her round. Vu played a terrific shot out of a greenside bunker at the 17th, setting up a tap-in birdie to tie the lead.
“At one point I was like, ‘OK, I got to start making birdies,’ and kind of knew that when I think of one shot at a time and just trying to birdie that hole, it kind of works out,” Vu said. “So, I mean, I’m not too afraid of the leaderboard. I feel like I don’t want it to control you, so I’m not afraid of it.”
Vu struggled at No. 18 and had around 7 feet for par to force the playoff, but she knocked it in with ease.
Allisen Corpuz fired a 65 and finished one stroke outside the playoff, alone in third at 21 under. Thailand’s Jeeno Thitikul (66) was fourth at 20 under and Lindy Duncan (66) took fifth at 19 under.
STEVE ALLAN EARNS BREAKTHROUGH WIN AT GALLERI CLASSIC
Steve Allan of Australia got off to a fast start to his final round and secured his first PGA Tour Champions title Sunday by winning the Galleri Classic at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, Calif.
Allan, who entered the day with a one-shot edge, made five birdies on the front nine Sunday and played the back nine in even par for a 5-under 67. He saved a par 5 at the 18th to shoot 15-under 201 for the tournament, one better than Tag Ridings.
Allan, 51, only got into the field because Steve Stricker withdrew Monday due to a bad back. He capitalized on his opportunity.
“The guys that win (on tour) are playing really well,” Allan said. “You saw Stephen Ames, Steve Alker, Steve Stricker — all the Steves — but some of the scores they shot were great. You’re looking at genuinely good golf.
“So like I said, I knew I had to step it up a little bit this year, otherwise I was going to be doing the same thing, and the first few weeks weren’t that good, so this was nice that it came together.”
It was a long time coming for Allan, who played on the PGA Tour, the European Tour and in his native Australia during his career.
“Funny story, I won the Australian Open in 2002 and it was my second year, four years after my first win,” Allan said, “and I told my girlfriend, now my wife, ‘It won’t be four years until I win again.’
“Unfortunately it’s been 23 years. It’s a big relief to get a win.”
Allan said he had his chances between Nos. 10-13 to add more distance between himself and the pack, but he missed some birdie opportunities. Ridings made it close when he made strings of three birdies at Nos. 9-11 and against at 14-16.
Ridings carded a 67 and finished the day where he started — one behind Allan.
Steve Flesch (64), Spaniard Miguel Angel Jimenez (65) and New Zealand’s Steven Alker (67) tied for third at 13 under.
MIN WOO LEE HANGS ON FOR FIRST PGA WIN AT HOUSTON OPEN
Australia’s Min Woo Lee scrambled for a par on the final hole to hold off a collection of hard-charging pursuers and win on the PGA Tour for the first time, capturing the Texas Children’s Houston Open on Sunday at Memorial Park Golf Course.
Lee shot a final-round 3-under-par 67, using a magnificent putt from off the green on the final hole that led to a tap-in par. His 20-under 260 was good enough, as World No. 1 golfer Scottie Scheffler (63) and Gary Woodland (62) finished a stroke back.
Lee was in the last group and his tee shot on the final hole went into the rough. His approach left him off the green before he delivered in a big moment.
The 26-year-old began the day with a four-shot lead, but it was far from a comfortable round.
Scheffler had four consecutive birdies on the back nine before finishing with back-to-back pars in his bogey-free round.
After playing the first 10 holes in 5 under, Woodland seemed to have his momentum squashed with a bogey on No. 13. But his birdie on the 15th and an eagle on the next hole put him back on track, and he wrapped up the round with a birdie. He had to wait for Scheffler and Lee to finish to learn his fate.
Finland’s Sami Valimaki (62) finished fourth at 17 under, followed by Wyndham Clark (64), Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy (64), Canadian Taylor Pendrith (65) and Argentina’s Alejandro Tosti (68) at 15 under.
Scheffler hasn’t won yet this year and is just a couple of weeks away from the Masters, where he is the defending champion.
Woodland, a four-time winner on the tour, was seeking his first victory since the 2019 U.S. Open.
Woodland moved into second place by going 4 under through eight holes, trailing Lee by four shots. Woodland closed within two shots through 10 holes on the way to his lowest 18-hole score on tour since 2018.
Half the field teed off on the 10th hole, so there were some fast-changing sequences on the leaderboard.
TENNIS NEWS
JAKUB MENSIK STUNS NOVAK DJOKOVIC IN MIAMI FOR FIRST TITLE
Czech teen Jakub Mensik notched his first ATP Tour title in memorable fashion, shocking former world No. 1 Novak Djokovic 7-6 (4), 7-6 (4) on Sunday night in the final of the Miami Open.
Mensik, 19, overcame a nearly six-hour rain delay, denying the Serbian star his 100th tournament title and becoming the second-youngest player to win the event behind Carlos Alcaraz, who was 18 when he won in 2022.
“To be honest, I don’t know what to say. It feels incredible, obviously,” Mensik said in his on-court interview. “It was probably the biggest day of my life and I did super, which I’m really glad (about), to show the performance and keep the nerves outside of the court before the match. I feel just super happy, and I think that the feelings will come later.”
Djokovic, 37, who was seeking his seventh Miami title, was already in the ATP Top 100 rankings in 2005, the year Mensik was born. Djokovic, who defeated Mensik last year in the Shanghai quarterfinals in their only previous matchup, heaped praise on his young opponent in Miami.
“This is Jakub’s moment — moment of his team, moment of his family. Congratulations, unbelievable tournament,” Djokovic said. “It hurts me to admit it, but you were better! In the clutch moments, you delivered the goods (with) unbelievable serving and just a phenomenal effort mentally as well to stay tough in a difficult moment.”
The 24-time Grand Slam champion was dealing with an apparent right eye issue that seemed to hamper him throughout the match. He put in eye drops during changeovers and was seen reaching toward the eye.
Meanwhile, Mensik — in his first ATP Masters 1000 final — was coming off a semifinal win over No. 4 seed Taylor Fritz and rode that momentum into a 3-0 lead in the opening set.
Djokovic knotted the first set at 4-all and bounced back from being down 4-5 and 5-6 to force a tiebreaker. However, Mensik took control early, grabbing a 5-0 lead and forcing Djokovic into mistakes. The 40-time ATP Masters 1000 champion pulled to within 6-4, but the rising young Czech, ranked No. 54 entering the tournament, closed out the set with an overhead smash.
In the second set, Djokovic rebounded to keep the pressure on, but the Czech never let up with his serve as he won 77 percent of his first-serve points in the match, per Infosys ATP stats. He also collected 14 aces to just seven for Djokovic, and compiled seven more winners — 29 to 22.
“It was not the first time I’ve played against Novak,” Mensik said. “There is no harder task in tennis than to beat him in the finals. But of course I felt really great and it’s my time, so I just tried to focus on the match like I did before in previous rounds.”
Menisk will rise to a career-best No. 24 in Monday’s ATP rankings, two years after he was ranked 390th in the world.
He also became the first Czech player to win an ATP Masters 1000 event since Tomas Berdych prevailed in 2005 in Paris.
MEN’S COLLEGE HOCKEY
PENN STATE: MEN’S HOCKEY DOWNS UCONN IN OT THRILLER, ADVANCES TO FIRST-EVER FROZEN FOUR
ALLENTOWN, Pa. – No. 12 Penn State advances to its first-ever Frozen Four after sophomore Matthew DiMarsico (Wexford, Pa.) scored the overtime winner to lift the Nittany Lions past No. 7 UConn, 3-2, in the Allentown Regional Final at the PPL Center on Sunday evening.
Penn State will face Boston University in the second national semifinal at 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 10 at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Mo.
HOW IT HAPPENED
UConn (23-12-4) opened the scoring early in the first period as Joey Muldowney sent a wrister past the blocker of Nittany Lion junior net-minder Arsenii Sergeev (Yaroslavl, Russia) from the high slot, between the rings, at the 3:09 mark.
Penn State responded with a goal from its fourth line as a strong forecheck behind the Husky net from freshman Keaton Peters (Sussex, Wis.) and graduate student Tyler Paquette (Collegeville, Pa.) produced the turnover and Paquette found sophomore Dane Dowiak (Pittsburgh, Pa.) below the far dot and he one-touched the puck inside the near post for the 1-1 score at 13:27 of the first period.
The Huskies grabbed the lead midway through the second frame on a fluke play as a flick of the wrist by Tabor Heaslip from the blue line fluttered and bounced multiple times and Sergeev never had eyes on it as it slipped just inside the near post for the 2-1 edge at the 11:27 mark.
The Nittany Lions wasted little time finding the equalizer as freshman classmates Charlie Cerrato (Fallston, Md.) and JJ Wiebusch (Verona, Wis.) connected once again with the latter picking the corner from the far dot for the 2-2 score at the 11:57 mark.
After a back-and-forth overtime frame Cerrato made a play at the blueline to juke a defender before slipping a behind-the-back pass to sophomore Matt DiMarsico (Wexford, Pa.) cutting into the slot and he ripped a wicked wrister shortside past the blocker of UConn goaltender Callum Tung for the golden goal and 3-2 victory at 17:56 of the extra session.
GOALTENDING
Sergeev improves to 19-8-4 on the year after making 42 saves, one off his career-high, in the victory while Tung finishes the year 10-4-1 after stopping 38 shots in the loss.
Sergeev’s 19 wins are now the third-most in a single-season by a Nittany Lion goaltender.
NOTES
UConn held the slim 44-41 edge in shots on goal including a 28-13 edge in the third period and overtime. Neither team converted on the one powerplay chance they each had in the contest.
After scoring a pair of goals on Friday night, Dowiak now has goals in back-to-back games for the first time in his Nittany Lion career.
With one assist, senior Simon Mack (Brockville, Ontario) now has 64 career points to rank third all-time for Nittany Lion defenseman scoring.
Wiebusch and Cerrato both extend their career long point streaks to eight games while the former now has a five-game goal streak with seven goals over his last five games. Wiebusch’s 14 goals this season are now tied with Casey Bailey for the seventh-most by a Penn State rookie all-time.
Mack now has 26 assists on the season to rank tied for eighth for single-season assists in Penn State history and the most by a Nittany Lion defenseman.
With a pair of assists, Cerrato tallies his 15th multi-point effort of the season to tie for the team lead while his 27 assists are the second-most by a rookie and rank tied for third in a single-season.
Penn State improves to 4-3 all-time in the NCAA Tournament while advancing to the first Frozen Four in program history.
For more information on the 2024-25 season, visit the men’s hockey page at GoPSUsports.com or call 1-800-NITTANY Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.
DENVER DOWNS NO. 1 BOSTON COLLEGE TO ADVANCE TO FROZEN FOUR
MANCHESTER, N.H. – The University of Denver hockey team punched its ticket to the program’s 20th NCAA Frozen Four.
The No. 3-seed Pioneers defeated the No. 1-overall seed Boston College Eagles 3-1 on Sunday night to win the NCAA Northeast Regional Final at SNHU Arena and advance to their sixth national semifinal in the last nine tournaments.
Denver will face West Region No. 1 seed and fellow NCHC-foe Western Michigan in the Frozen Four on Thursday, April 10 at 3 p.m. MT at Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Missouri.
Goaltender Matt Davis made 35-of 36 saves in the victory and had a 106:32 shutout streak of BC that dated back to a pair of meetings last year, including a shutout of the Eagles in the 2024 NCAA National Championship Game.
Sophomore Zeev Buium was named the region’s Most Outstanding Player and had an assist on freshman James Reeder’s game-winning goal at 2:59 of the second period. The Hobey Baker Award finalist secured the victory with an empty-net marker with 4.4 seconds remaining.
Sophomore defenseman Eric Pohlkamp opened the scoring with 1:41 left in the first period, burying a one-time shot off passes from forwards Jack Devine and Aidan Thompson. Samu Salminen also had a helper in the contest on Reeder’s marker.
Teddy Stiga tallied the only goal for Boston College, ending Davis’ shutout streak with 53 seconds left in the second frame. Eagles goalie Jacob Fowler made 22 saves in the loss.
Buium thought he tallied earlier in the game at 11:46 of the second period to stretch the Pios’ lead to 3-0, but the goal was overturned after BC challenged for offsides.
The Pioneers went 0-for-2 on the power play, while BC was unsuccessful in its lone man advantage.
Sunday’s rematch was the eighth time that two teams met in the national tournament after playing in the NCAA Championship the prior year. It was the first time that the defending champion earned the victory in the rematch.
UP NEXT: The Pioneers’ Frozen Four matchup with Western Michigan will also be a championship rematch, as those squads played in the NCHC Frozen Faceoff Championship Game on March 22 in St. Paul, Minn.
POSTGAME NOTES
Zeev Buium was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Northeast Regional and was joined on the All-Tournament Team by fellow defenseman Eric Pohlkamp, forwards Carter King and Aidan Thompson and goaltender Matt Davis.
The Pioneers are now 5-1 in national tournament games against Boston College, winning each of the last three meetings.
Denver is now 46-25 all-time in the national tournament and 17-3 in its last 20 NCAA games.
Eric Pohlkamp tallied his 11th goal of the season, tying his total from his freshman season in 2023-24 at Bemidji State.
The Pioneers improved to 3-0 in Sunday games this season.
Matt Davis had a 106:32 shutout streak of the BC Eagles that stretched across three games, dating back to Oct. 21, 2023 at BC.
Davis earned his 63rd career victory, tying Peter Mannino for fifth play on the school’s all-time wins list.
Zeev Buium now owns 98 career points as a sophomore defenseman.
Denver is now 2-2 all-time in NCAA Tournament games in Manchester, New Hampshire.
TOP INDIANA HEADLINES
MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL TRACKER-INDIANA TIES
Luke Almodovar, So., St. Francis, Ind./NAIA (Noblesville): 20.0 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 1.0 apg
Landen Babusiak, R-Fr., Stetson (Hanover Central/Bosco Institute): 1.0 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 0.5 apg
Reggie Bass, Jr., Lindenwood (Tech): 12.2 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 2.7 apg
Flory Bidunga, Fr., Kansas (Kokomo): 5.9 ppg, 5.4 rpg
Jalen Blackmon, Sr., Miami, Fla. (Marion): 6.9 ppg, 1.2 rpg, 1.4 apg
Jayden Brewer, Jr., FIU (Ben Davis): 14.5 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 1.7 apg
Kanon Catchings, Fr., BYU (Overtime Elite/Brownsburg): 7.2 ppg, 2.2 rpg
Tayshawn Comer, Jr., Evansville (Cathedral): 16.2 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 4.1 apg
Ryan Conwell, Jr., Xavier (Pike): 16.5 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 2.5 apg
DaJohn Craig, So., Oregon (Lawrence Central): 1.9 ppg, 0.7 rpg, 0.5 apg
AJ Dancler, So., Le Moyne (Southport): 15.1 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 3.4 apg
Koron Davis, Jr., Lafayette (Gary Bowman): 8.7 ppg, 1.7 rpg, 0.4 apg
Micah Davis, Fr., Eastern Kentucky (Franklin): 0.8 ppg, 0.3 rpg, 0.3 apg — COMMITTED TO IU INDY
Tae Davis, Jr., Notre Dame (Warren Central): 15.1 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 1.8 apg
Owen Dease, Jr., Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (Evansville Reitz): 7.5 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 1.3 apg
Keaton Dukes, Jr., Purdue Fort Wayne (Wawasee): 1.5 ppg, 0.3 rpg
Jaxon Edwards, Jr., St. Bonaventure (Cathedral): 3.0 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 0.5 apg
Michael Eley, Jr., Tulane (Veritas Prep – from Fort Wayne): 8.0 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 0.8 apg
Gus Etchison, Sr., Marian/NAIA (Hamilton Heights): 19.8 ppg, 3.3 rpg
Maximus Gizzi, Sr., Huntington/NAIA (New Palestine): 10.6 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 3.7 apg
Landin Hacker, Jr., Bellarmine (Center Grove): 5.5 ppg, 1.4 rpg, 0.9 apg
Cameron Haffner, Jr., Evansville (Westfield): 12.7 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 1.4 apg
Brit Harris, Jr., SC Upstate (Michigan City Marquette/Bosco Institute): 11.6 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 2.7 apg
Nick Hittle, Sr., Southern Indiana (Culver Academy): 4.5 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 0.5 apg
Curt Hopf, Jr., Bellarmine (Barr-Reeve): 4.1 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 0.8 apg
J.R. Konieczny, Jr., Notre Dame (South Bend St. Joseph): 4.3 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 0.8 apg
Jalen Jackson, Jr., Purdue Fort Wayne (FW Northrop): 19.2 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 3.1 apg
Shilo Jackson, Jr., Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (North Central): 5.4 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 0.4 apg
Kamari Jones, Fr., Western Carolina (Lawrence Central): 3.0 ppg, 0.8 rpg, 0.3 apg
RaSheed Jones, So., Coastal Carolina (Marion): 11.6 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 2.1 apg
Jeffrey ‘JT’ Langston Jr., Fr., Southern Utah (San Gabriel Academy – from Fort Wayne): 6.4 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 0.6 apg
Jordan Lomax, Fr., Purdue Fort Wayne (Brownsburg): N/A
AJ Lux, Fr., Bellarmine (Crown Point): 3.3 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 0.5 apg
David Meriwether, East Tennessee State (Lawrence North): 1.3 ppg, 2.0 rpg
Okechukwu Okeke, Sr., FIU (East Chicago Central): 4.7 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 0.1 apg
Quimari Peterson, Sr., East Tennessee State (Gary West Side): 19.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 3.7 apg
Zach Reed, r-So., Bellarmine (Brebeuf Jesuit): 3.5 ppg, 1.0 rpg, 0.3 apg
JaQualon ‘JQ’ Roberts, So., Vanderbilt (Bloomington North): 1.0 ppg, 0.8 rpg
Ron Rutland III, Fr., IU Indy (Crispus Attucks): 2.2 ppg, 0.5 rpg, 0.6 apg
Tyler Schmidt, Sr., Valparaiso (Victory Christian): 10.1 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 1.6 apg
Sheridan Sharp, So., Southern Illinois (Ben Davis): 4.5 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 2.3 apg
Tyler Shirley, Sr., Florida A&M (Pebblebrook Ga., from Gary): 3.1 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 0.6 apg
Billy Smith, Jr., Bellarmine (Brebeuf Jesuit): 14.0 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 2.6 apg
Isaiah Stafford, Sr., Valparaiso (Crispus Attucks): 16.9 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 2.1 apg
Jahni Summers, So., Indiana State (Evansville Harrison): 5.7 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 0.6 apg
Tucker Tornatta, Fr., UIndy (Evansville Memorial): 7.6 ppg, 5.8 rpg
Cayden Vasko, So., Central Michigan (Lowell/Bosco Institute): 7.4 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 2.6 apg
Jalen Washington, Jr., North Carolina (Gary West Side): 5.7 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 0.5 apg
Ashton Williamson, Fr., FIU (Gary 21st Century): 7.3 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 2.7 apg
Harold Woods, Jr., Northeastern (Hammond): 11.8 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 2.4 apg
INDIANA MEN’S GOLF
IU TO PLAY DON BENBOW BUTLER SPRING INVITATIONAL
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The Indiana Hoosiers men’s golf program will send four individuals to the Don Benbow Butler Spring Invitational hosted by Butler. The 54-hole event will begin on Monday, March 31.
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
Don Benbow Butler Spring Invitational • Indianapolis, Ind.
Highland Country Club
Par 70 • 6,566 yards
Live Scoring via Scoreboard
TEAMS COMPETING (15)
Ball State, Bradley, Butler, Cleveland State, DePaul, Detroit Mercy, Evansville, Green Bay, INDIANA, Indian Hills, IU Indianapolis, Loyola Chicago, Miami (Ohio), Oakland, Purdue Fort Wayne, and Youngstown State
INDIANA LINEUP
*Neri Checcucci
*Robert Bender III
*Kieran Hogarth
*Taneesh Sirivolu
*Competing as an individual
TOURNAMENT NOTES
• The tournament will feature 36 holes of continuous play on Monday with the final 18 to be played on Tuesday. Both days will feature a shotgun start at 9 a.m. ET.
• Indiana players will be paired with individuals from Ball State, Butler, and Miami (Ohio).
• The tournament is named in honor of the late Don Benbow, who was inducted into the Butler Athletics Hall of Fame for his contributions as a standout football student-athlete, golf and football coach, and his time at Butler as an athletics administrator.
PURDUE SOFTBALL
BOILERS FALL IN GAME TWO TO HUSKERS
LINCOLN, Neb. – The Boilers (17-16, 2-7 Big Ten) took a 6-0 loss to No. 20 Nebraska (26-8, 6-1 Big Ten) on Sunday night in Lincoln. A tightly-contest pitcher’s duel through five, the Huskers plated five runs in the sixth to seal the victory.
Julia Gossett picked up seven strikeouts on the day, while Sage Scarmardo and Khloe Banks earned the only two hits of the game for Purdue.
BOILER BITS (at #20 Nebraska)
Offensive Highlights:
Sage Scarmardo: 1-for-3
Khloe Banks: 1-for-3
Pitching Breakdown:
Julia Gossett (L, 4-6): 5.0 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 1 BB, 7 K, 24 BF
Emma Bailey: 1.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 6 BF
HOW IT HAPPENED
In the top of the first, Scarmardo earned the first hit of the game, a line-drive single to left field, but the Boilers were unable to plate any runs in the inning. In the bottom half of the first, the Huskers plated the first run of the game on two hits, including a single up the middle.
For the next four innings, Julia Gossett mowed down batters in the Husker lineup, picking up seven strikeouts, with a streak in which she retired eight Nebraska batters in a row.
The Huskers led off the bottom of the sixth with a triple to the right field wall and plated their second run of the game after a single in shallow left field. The Huskers then went on to add four more runs on six hits in the inning.
Down to their last at bat, the Boilers put a runner on second after Gossett walked, and pinch runner Braxton McCauley advanced on a passed ball, but back-to-back strikeouts and a ground out ended the game.
UP NEXT
The series with No. 20 Nebraska will close out with a single-game Monday, Mar. 31 at 5:00 p.m. ET.
PURDUE BASEBALL
COOK GOES 4-FOR-4 TO CAP 10-HIT SERIES BUT UCLA COMPLETES SWEEP
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – No. 24 UCLA opened the game with three straight singles in a three-run first inning and didn’t let up throughout the day, pounding out 19 hits to defeat Purdue Baseball 16-3 Sunday at Alexander Field.
The Bruins (22-5, 10-2 Big Ten) completed a three-game series sweep in their first appearance in West Lafayette, moving back into a first-place tie with Iowa atop the Big Ten Conference standings. UCLA scored 37 runs in the series while posting a .385 team batting average. Defensively, the visitors turned eight double plays, all of the ground ball variety.
While the Boilermakers (20-7, 3-6 Big Ten) lost consecutive games this weekend for the first time this season, they’ve also dropped six of their last seven games in Big Ten play dating back to March 9. Since sweeping Michigan State at Alexander the weekend of April 12-14 last season, Purdue has lost 10 of its last 12 home games in Big Ten play.
Lukas Cook went 4-for-4 Sunday, recording three hits for the third game in a row and posting his second four-hit game of the current 12-game homestand. He finished the series 10-for-14 with 10 singles.
Cook connected for the fourth of Purdue’s four consecutive singles to open the fifth inning as the Boilermakers finally got to UCLA starter Landon Stump. Brandon Rogers and Ty Gill ignited the rally. They also hit safely in all three games, finishing the weekend with six hits apiece. Keenan Spence and Rogers both made diving catches in the outfield to prevent runs from scoring.
Cook, Rogers and Gill accounted for 22 of Purdue’s 35 hits (22-for-37, .595) in the series. Unfortunately, the rest of the team was 13-for-70 (.186). Scoring 20 runs in a three-game series against a top-25 opponent is certainly a respectable showing for a lineup, but the Bruins found a way to close out the first two games when the Boilers had late opportunities to at least force extra innings. And run prevention in Big Ten series finale has been an issue for Purdue this month, surrendering a combined 38 runs in game 3 losses to Minnesota, Michigan and UCLA.
On this Sunday, UCLA scored five times in the fourth inning and punctuated the sweep with a six-run top of the eighth. The Bruins also posted a pair of five-run innings in Saturday’s 13-12 slugfest. Dating back to the March 21 series opener vs. Michigan, opponents have scored four or more runs in an inning nine times at Alexander.
Aaron Manias’ single in the fourth inning extended his on-base streaks to nine consecutive games in both all contests and Big Ten play. But leadoff man Albert Choi was kept off base for the first time as a Boilermaker, ending his on-base streak at 26 games. Spence was held hitless in Big Ten play for the first time since April 28, 2024, ending a 13-game conference hit streak.
Purdue’s season-long homestand concludes with a midweek game vs. Northern Illinois, which has been moved up one day to Tuesday due to storms in the forecast for the originally scheduled Wednesday date. Start time is still pending and will be either 4 or 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday.
NOTRE DAME WOMEN’S LAX
IRISH FALL TO #2 NORTH CAROLINA
SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The No. 20 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (6-6, 1-5) fell to No. 2 North Carolina Tar Heels (11-0, 6-0) at Arlotta on Sunday afternoon in a 14-3 loss in just over three quarters of play. The officials confirmed the game was called early due to severe weather.
Kristen Shanahan, Meghan O’Hare, and Katie Mallaber each netted a goal for the Irish. Franny O’Brien and Grace Weigand each recorded 2 ground balls. Isabell Pithie finished with a team-best 3 ground balls and 7 saves on the day.
While the Tar Heels scored first, the Irish answered right back when Mallaber dished it to Shanahan for the first Irish goal of the day. North Carolina responded with another, but the Irish had an answer, yet again – this time Mallaber took it herself as she netted it to make it an even 2-all at 11:14.
The Tar Heels went on to score four unanswered goals to take a 6-2 advantage before Morrissey found O’Hare on the cut to make it 6-3 with 9:01 remaining in the second period.
North Carolina led 9-3 at halftime and netted five goals in the third to lead 14-3 heading into the fourth.
The game was only able to go just shy of a minute into the fourth quarter before going into a delay due to severe weather. The officials confirmed the game was called due to weather.
UP NEXT
The Irish will host No. 4 Stanford on Saturday, April 5 at Arlotta at 1:00 PM.
NOTRE DAME BASEBALL
IRISH FALL IN TWINBILL EFFORT AGAINST NO. 4 SEMINOLES
SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The Notre Dame baseball team played tough in both ends of a doubleheader against No. Florida State but came up shy in a 4-2 (7 innings) game one and a 17-9 battle in game two.
The Irish struck first in the opener, which was scheduled for seven innings. Jared Zimbardo led off the bottom of the first with a single. Parker Brzustewicz drew a walk, and Bino Watters and Carson Tinney were each hit by a pitch to plate Zimbardo for the quick 1-0 lead.
The Seminoles plated an unearned run in the top of the second, but the Irish regained the momentum in the bottom half of the inning. Jayce Lee drilled a one-out solo home run over the right field wall for a 2-1 Notre Dame lead. The defense, meanwhile, forced Florida State into stranding a runner in the top of the third.
Florida State pushed a pair of runs across in the top of the fourth to gain a 3-2 lead. The top of the fifth inning saw Jayce Lee make a leaping catch at the wall to snag a ball at the top of the fence and shut out the Seminoles in the frame.
Jared Zimbardo drew a walk in the fifth, and Bino Watters hit a lead-off single in the sixth. Both innings, however, ended without a run for the Irish. The Seminoles added a run in the top of the seventh for a 4-2 advantage, and the opener ended by that same score as Notre Dame was unable to get the last-inning rally going.
Rory Fox went 6.0 on the mound with five strikeouts and allowed just one hit while suffering the loss. Oisin Lee went 1.0 with two strikeouts.
Jayce Lee was 1-for-3 with a home run for the Irish. Jared Zimbardo was 1-for-2 with a hit, a run, and a walk. Bino Watters and Estevan Moreno each had a hit, and Carson Tinney had an RBI for the home side.
Game two saw Florida State take a 14-0 lead through two-and-a-half innings of play. The Irish fought their way back into contention. The bottom of the third started off with Jayce Lee drawing a walk and Jared Zimbardo dropping a single into center field. A fly ball by Parker Brzustewicz moved Lee into scoring position with runners on the corners. Bino Watters drilled a single off of the pitcher to plate Lee, and Estevan Moreno belted a single off the wall in left field to drive in Zimbardo. Davis Johnson drew a walk to load the bases, and Connor Hincks worked the count before earning a walk to score Watters.
The Seminoles put a run in the scoring column in both the fourth and fifth, but the Irish countered with a big five-run sixth inning. Keenan Mork struck out a pair in the top half of the sixth to get a three-up, three-down effort defensively. In the offensive end of the inning, Nick DeMarco got things going with a lead-off walk. Jayce Lee tripled to center field to drive in DeMarco. Two batters later, Parker Brzustewicz laced a single to center field as Lee scored on the play. Bino Watters went the other way with a two-run home run for a big spark. Estevan Moreno punched a single up the middle and ultimately got to third after a ground out and a wild pitch. Noah Coy added a single to right field to drive in Moreno with two outs gone for the fifth run of the inning.
A three-up, three-down effort by Justin Mayes Jr. in the top of the seventh included a pair of strikeouts as the Irish quickly got back up to bat. Jayce Lee started off the inning by reaching on an error, and Parker Brzustewicz drove in Lee with a fielder’s choice two batters later to make it a 16-9 game.
Clark Gilmore made his Notre Dame debut in the top of the eighth and retired a pair of batters before Brady Koester induced a come-back grounder to force the Seminoles into stranding a pair of runners on base. The Irish had a chance to add to the scoring column in the bottom of the eighth after Brady Gumpf drilled a double down the left field line, but a line drive snag ended the scoring chance. Florida State added a run in the top of the ninth. The Irish continued to battle down the stretch. Jared Zimbardo drew a walk, and Parker Brzustewicz pushed a single into right field to put a pair on base. The duo both advanced on a wild pitch to get into scoring position, but back-to-back outs ended the game by the 17-9 final score.
Dylan Heine shouldered the pitching loss for the Irish. Heine, DJ Helwig, Keenan Mork, Justin Mayes Jr., and Brady Koester each recorded two strikeouts on the mound.
Bino Watters was 2-for-6 with a home run, three RBI, and two runs scored at the dish in game two. Parker Brzustewicz added a 2-for-5 effort with two RBI, a walk, and a run. Estevan Moreno and Brady Gumpf each had a pair of hits. Moreno picked up an RBI and a run, and Gumpf had a double for the Irish. Jayce Lee had a triple, scored three runs, and drove in one. Nick DeMarco tallied a hit and scored a run. Noah Coy and Jared Zimbardo each posted a hit. Coy drove in a run, and Zimbardo scored once.
The Irish (14-11) take a break from ACC play as they host a pair of mid-week contests. Notre Dame faces Western Michigan on Tuesday, April 1 before Eastern Michigan visits Frank Eck Stadium on Wednesday, April 2. Both games are slated to start at 5:00 p.m. ET. Admission is free for all home Notre Dame baseball regular season contests.
BUTLER BASEBALL
BUTLER WINS SERIES FINALE OVER NIU 15-10
The Bulldogs collected their third-straight win on Sunday with a 15-10 victory over Northern Illinois. Their 15 runs came off 17 hits and allowed BU to win the weekend series three games to one.
Ryan Drumm and Jack Bello each had four RBI’s in the win. Drumm, Bello, and Tommy Townsend all homered and Drumm also added a triple.
Danny Barbero and AJ Solomon were solid near the end of the order. Barbero was in the box score with two doubles and Solomon had three hits.
The top of the order was equally as impressive with Drumm, Moroknek, Bello and Townsend supplying 10 hits!
The win on the mound went to Andrew Hendrickx while the loss went to Parker Schuring. Seven total Bulldog arms were used on Sunday with no one throwing more than two frames.
The Bulldogs will ride this momentum into next week with a Tuesday game at Eastern Illinois. Conference play also fires up next week with a three-game series at Xavier.
BUTLER MEN’S BASKETBALL
BUTLER OPENS INAUGURAL COLLEGE BASKETBALL CROWN WITH MONDAY TIP AGAINST UTAH
Butler and Utah will meet Monday afternoon in the opening game of the inaugural College Basketball Crown – a single-elimination, 16-team tournament in Las Vegas; the event is founded by AEG and FOX Sports. The Bulldogs have not played since March 13 when they fell to top seed St. John’s in the quarterfinals of the BIG EAST Tournament.
Butler (14-19) vs. Utah (16-16)
College Basketball Crown Round of 16
Monday, March 31 • 12PM PT
MGM Grand Garden Arena • Las Vegas
TV: FS1 • Tim Brando, Donny Marshall & Nick Bahe
Butler Basketball Live (Audio) with @MarkMinner & Nick Gardner (@n_gardner): Varsity Network App & TuneIn
• In KenPom rankings through the games of March 27, Butler ranks 75th, which is one spot ahead of Utah (76).
• Butler is shooting 36.6 percent from three-point range on the season, which is good for 49th nationally; on the other end of the court, the Bulldogs defend the three-point line well, allowing opponents to hit only 31.3 percent of their attempt from behind the arc (which is 56th nationally).
• Butler ranks tenth in the country, committing only 13.5 fouls per game. The Bulldogs’ three most recent opponents have combined to attempt only 13 total free throws.
• Jahmyl Telfort earned All-BIG EAST Third Team honors, as announced by the conference prior to the league tournament. Telfort is among the BIG EAST leaders in a number of categories: scoring average (ninth), assists (11th), field goal percentage (seventh), free throw percentage (seventh), and minutes played (fourth).
• The Bulldogs opened the BIG EAST Tournament with a 75-69 win over Providence March 12; Pierre Brooks II led the Bulldogs with 25 points; his 11 made field goals set a career-high and tied the season-high for a Butler player. Brooks has nine 20-point games on the season.
• Patrick McCaffery went 4-for-7 from three-point range in the BIG EAST quarterfinal loss to St. John’s. He is shooting 41.5 percent from behind the arc this season. McCaffery has hit multiple three-pointers in 21 games this season.
• Andre Screen ranks eighth in the BIG EAST at 1.33 blocks per game; his 5.9 rebounds per game are 13th in the conference.
• Butler is 9-0 this season when scoring 80 or more points, including all six of their BIG EAST wins.
• Butler has shot at least 50 percent from the field in each of its six BIG EAST wins.
• Butler limited Providence to 38-percent shooting in the March 12 BIG EAST Tournament win; Butler’s defense also accounted for a season-high 10 steals as the Friars committed 13 turnovers, which tied the season-high for a Butler opponent.
• Butler committed only one turnover in the regular season finale at Creighton March 8. Villanova also had only a single turnover in their Dec. 21 game at Creighton. Prior to the two occurrences this season, the last BIG EAST team to have only one turnover in a game was Louisville, which had one turnover Feb. 7, 2007 against Georgetown (Rick Pitino was the coach of that Louisville team).
• Butler is averaging only 8.0 turnovers per game over the last seven contests (despite two of those games being against St. John’s and their defense that ranks 12th nationally in turnovers forced).
• Telfort has scored 529 points this season, putting him just outside the Top 25 in Butler program history for points scored in a single season (535 points ranks 25th).
• Brooks and Telfort are in their respective second seasons at Butler; in 66 games played for Butler, both players have registered 988 career points.
• Telfort went over 2,000 career points in the Feb. 26 game against St. John’s. Telfort currently has 2,083 career points and is 15th in career scoring among active players who have spent their entire collegiate careers at Division I schools.
• The Bulldogs defeated Northwestern and No. 25 Mississippi State in taking the Arizona Tip-Off title over Thanksgiving.
What Happened in Vegas…
• Butler has played in two events in Las Vegas previously: the 2016 Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational and the 2021 Maui Invitational (which was played in Las Vegas that year due to the COVID-19 pandemic).
• Butler won the 2016 Las Vegas Invitational, posting wins over Vanderbilt and Arizona; the Bulldogs then immediately traveled to Salt Lake City from Vegas for a game against Utah that started a home-and-home series.
An Update on Utah
• The Utes are 16-16 on the season and finished 8-12 in Big 12 play. They are led by interim coach Josh Eilert, but have hired alum and current Dallas Mavericks assistant coach Alex Jensen to lead the program moving forward.
• Utah has 11 players who average at least 9.6 minutes per game and no Ute averages 30 minutes per game.
• Gabe Madsen is the team’s leading scorer at 15.1 points per game. He has attempted 300 three-pointers this season (in 32 games); that is currently seventh in the nation.
• The team’s average of 17.5 assists per game is sixth nationally; Utah pulls down 39.8 rebounds per game, which is 14th in the country.
The Series with the Utes
• The two teams first played during the 1964-65 season, which is Utah’s only win in the four previous match-ups.
• Butler’s three wins have come in the 2010 Diamond Head Classic in Hawaii as well as a home-and-home series Nov. 28, 2016 (in Utah) and Dec. 5, 2017 (at Hinkle).
Series: Butler Leads, 3-1
Streak: Butler, W3
At Neutral Site: Butler, 1-0
First Meeting: 1964-65 Season; Utah, 95-66 (at Utah)
Last Meeting: Dec. 5, 2017; Butler, 81-69 (at BU)
PURDUE FT. WAYNE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
MASTODON WBB SET FOR WNIT GREAT 8 CLASH WITH CLEVELAND STATE
FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Purdue Fort Wayne women’s basketball team will play Cleveland State for the fourth time this season, this time with a trip to the WNIT Fab 4 on the line. The Mastodons and Vikings will clash in the Gates Sports Center on Monday night (March 31) at 7 p.m.
Game Day Information
Who: Cleveland State Vikings
When: Monday, March 31 | 7 PM
Where: Fort Wayne, Ind. | Gates Sports Center
Live Stats: Link
Watch: ESPN+
Tickets: Link
Game Notes: Purdue Fort Wayne | Cleveland State | Horizon League
Know Your Foe
Cleveland State is 26-9, and since falling to the Mastodons in the semifinal of the Horizon League championship, the Vikings won two close games in the WNIT. CSU beat Coppin State 72-70 in overtime and Duquesne 55-52 thanks to a 3-pointer in the final minute from Filippa Goula.HL Player of the Year Mickayla Perdue is scoring 20 points per game, while Jordana Reisma is leading the country at 68.2 percent shooting on 14.8 points per game.
Series History
Cleveland State leads the series 16-3, but Purdue Fort Wayne won two of the three games this season against the Vikings. Cleveland State is the only team to beat Purdue Fort Wayne at home this year, and the Mastodons have never beat the Vikings in Fort Wayne.
In The WNIT…
Purdue Fort Wayne has scored exactly 87 points and allowed exactly 61 points in both games in the WNIT this season. Amellia Bromenschenkel is averaging 19.5 points and Audra Emmerson is pouring in 17.5 points per game. Jordan Reid and Lauren Ross are both adding around 11 points per game as well. The ‘Dons are shooting 52.9 percent from the floor and 44.47 percent from 3-point range.
Making History
Lauren Ross’ 47.3 percent from 3-point range is the 32nd-best in NCAA history for a single season while meeting the 3-point percentage minimum of 2.5 makes per game.
Making History x2
Lauren Ross is leading the country in 3-point percentage and free throw percentage this season. She would be the first player in NCAA history to lead the nation in both categories in the same season dating back to at least 2001, given available records.
Chasing 1,000
Audra Emmerson needs 20 points to reach 1,000 for her career.
Familiar Vikings
Purdue Fort Wayne and Cleveland State split the regular season and the Mastodons beat the Vikings in Indianapolis in the Horizon League Championship semifinal. In those meetings, Lauren Ross averaged 16.3 points per game while shooting 50 percent from 3-point range. As a team, the ‘Dons shot 42.9 percent from 3-point range against the Vikings on 11.0 triples per game. On the other side, CSU got 24.3 points per game out of Mickayla Perdue.
Amellia Tripleschenkel
Over the last seven games, Amellia Bromenschenkel shot 65.3 percent from 3-point range. In league and postseason games, she is at 45.5 percent from deep.
On Butler…
In the Mastodons’ Super 16 matchup against Butler, the ‘Dons finished the game at 60 percent shooting (33-of-55), their highest in a game since 2017. After going 7-for-16 in the first quarter, the ‘Dons finished the game making 14 of their last 15 shots.
Net Positive
Purdue Fort Wayne has the highest NET ranking of all teams in the WNIT field with a ranking of 88.
Literally Free
Lauren Ross has missed just one of her last 51 free throws dating back to the fourth quarter of the IU Indy game on December 11.
On the Semifinal…
Purdue Fort Wayne beat Cleveland State 83-65 in the semifinal round of the Barbasol Horizon League Championship to move on to the championship game. The Mastodons had 26 assists, which is a season-high and top-10 mark in program history. They hit 15 3-pointers, one shy of the Horizon League Championship record. It was also the fourth time this season with 15 or more 3-pointers, all of which are top-10 marks in program history. Lauren Ross had six of the Mastodons’ 15 3-pointers. The Mastodons hit 10 3-pointers in the first half, tying a program record.
Program Records
Purdue Fort Wayne has set new program records in points (2,670), field goals (973), 3-point field goals (329), rebounds (1,245) and steals (334) this season.
Finishing Strong
In the last 11 games, Audra Emmerson averaged 11.4 points per game while shooting 45.0 percent (50-of-111) from the floor and 43.2 percent (29-of-67) from beyond the arc.
She’s Not Done Yet!
Amellia Bromenschenkel recorded double-digit scoring performances in eight each of the last nine games. She averaged 14.6 points per game in that stretch.
Fort Wayne’s Own
Over her last 10 games played, Sydney Graber is shooting 68.9 percent (31-of-45) from the floor.
She Can Reid The Defense
Over the last 13 games, Jordan Reid averaged 10.2 points per game while shooting 57-of-104 (54.8 percent).
Shooters Shoot
Lauren Ross’ 47.5 percent clip from 3-point range and 94.6 percent from the free throw line are both the best in the country. Her 3.06 triples per game rank seventh nationally.
Road Warriors
Purdue Fort Wayne is 11-5 on the road this season and owns a 9-1 record in Horizon League road games. The Mastodons’ 11 road wins is the best mark in program history.
Dubs
Purdue Fort Wayne has 27 wins this season, which is the most wins for the program in a season at any level.
Ross Has the Sauce
Through 35 games, Lauren Ross is shooting 46.5 percent from the floor, 47.3 percent from 3-point range and 94.7 percent from the line. If those percentages hold, she would be one of 17 players to shoot 45/45/90 while meeting the 3-point percentage minimums since the 3-point line was added to college basketball.
Some is Schwiet, More Is Schwieter
Renna Schwieterman is shooting 53.2 percent (41-of-77) from 2-point range this season.
Rankings Respect
Per the NET and Bart Torvik, Purdue Fort Wayne has a national ranking of 88 and 89, respectively.
Home Sweet Gates
The Mastodons are 15-1 at home this season. In its home games this season, Purdue Fort Wayne is scoring 79.3 points per game and has an average margin of victory of 23.8 points per game. The Mastodons are shooting 46.9 percent from the floor and 38.7 percent from 3-point range in Fort Wayne.
Career-Bests For Freezy
Sydney Freeman is shooting 42.6 percent from the floor and 35.9 percent from 3-point range, both of which are career-best marks. Her mark of 67 steals is also a career-best.
League Leaders
Purdue Fort Wayne leads the Horizon League in scoring margin (16.5), points per game (76.3), 3-pointers taken and made per game (24.8, 9.5), 3-point percentage (37.9), 3-point defense (29.2), turnover margin (6.11), turnovers forced per game (18.54) and bench points per game (22.5).
Lively Lineup
Lauren Ross, Amellia Bromenschenkel, Audra Emmerson and Sydney Freeman have started all 35 games this season.
Magic Numbers 70 and 80
Under head coach Maria Marchesano, the Mastodons are 48-8 when they score 70 points or more and 22-3 when they hit 80.
Last Time Out
After trailing by 13 early, Purdue Fort Wayne scored 50 points in the middle two quarters to beat Butler 87-61 in front of a crowd of 1,015 fans in the Gates Sports Center.
Next Time Up
With a win, Purdue Fort Wayne will play Buffalo in the Fab 4. A win in that game would mean a berth to the WNIT championship game on Saturday (April 5).
EVANSVILLE BASEBALL
FLAHERTY HITS WALK-OFF HOME RUN FOR UE TO TAKE SERIES OVER VALPARAISO
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – After leading for eight innings, the University of Evansville baseball team rallied back and won its final game against the Valparaiso Beacons 5-4 with a walk-off home run.
The Purple Aces led early but faced a similar situation as Saturday as Valparaiso battled back to tie the game in the top of the ninth. But UE learned from its second game of the series as the team won both the game and the series in the bottom of the ninth. Graduate catcher and pinch hitter Matt Flaherty (Lake Zurich, Ill. / Bellarmine) hit his first home run of the year to win the game for Evansville with two outs on the board in the 5-4 victory.
“It was a great series win at home,” said Head Coach Wes Carroll following the game. “Flaherty had a big swing of the bat to secure the series win for us. And [starting pitcher Owen] Byberg was outstanding giving us a chance in the rubber match. We need to take the momentum from this weekend and run with it.”
The Aces had a strong start to Sunday’s game as they took down the Beacons in order and scored a run in the first inning. Center fielder Ty Rumsey (Evansville, Ind. / North HS) scored on a wild pitch after getting on base with an error to give UE a 1-0 lead. Evansville had an almost identical second inning, starting with a three up and three down top and scoring one run in the bottom.
Rumsey recorded the Aces’ second hit of the game to score second baseman Drew McConnell (Blue Springs, Mo. / Blue Springs HS). McConnell moved around the bases in three at-bats as he got on base with a walk, moved to second on a balk, and was put on third by a flyout from right fielder Harrison Taubert (Casper, Wyo. / Northeast CC). UE followed the established formula in the third inning, facing the minimum batters in the top of the inning and scoring a run in the bottom.
Starting pitcher Owen Byberg (Barrie, Ontario) had a strikeout in every inning while adding two in the third for four strikeouts in only 33 pitches. While in the bottom of the third after a video review, Taubert connected on his fifth long ball of the season out to left center. The solo home run from the right fielder was the third of the series for Evansville after one in both Friday and Saturday’s games.
Valparaiso had its first hit of the game in the top of the fourth, but the Aces took the next two batters down in order to go back on offense. UE had its first empty inning in the bottom of the fourth as all three batters had putouts in the field. Evansville’s offense stayed quiet for three innings while the Beacons’ bats began to get going.
It was déjà vu for the Aces after the fifth inning as Valpo began to score in the back half of the game. The Beacons added a run in the sixth and seventh innings to make it a one-run game. UE was able to get back a run in the bottom of the seventh as third baseman Drew Howard (Ferdinand, Ind. / Forest Park HS) led off with a triple to right center. Howard then scored right after as Rumsey picked up his second RBI with a sacrifice fly.
But Valparaiso answered right back with a solo home run to lead off the eighth and again make it a one-run game. Evansville didn’t add an insurance run in the bottom of the inning as catcher Kaleb Wilkey (Manhattan, Ill. / Lincoln-Way West HS) was stranded at second after hitting a double just past the shortstop. The Beacons tied the game up in the top of the ninth as they strung together a single and a double for their fourth run.
After the tying run scored, the Aces were able to strand Valpo’s go-ahead run with a strikeout from reliever Parker MacCauley (Paducah, Ky. / Tennessee Tech) and a ground out to McConnell. UE needed a run as they returned to offense to avoid its third extra innings game of the season.
Evansville’s first two batters in the ninth recorded outs, bringing the ninth down to Flaherty’s at-bat. Flaherty did not start on Sunday but instead entered as a pinch hitter after shortstop Brodie Peart (Markham, Ontario) pitched in the eighth inning. The graduate player faced two pitches before he connected on a bomb past the left-field fence to win the game for the Aces. It was Flaherty’s first home run of the season, UE’s second of the game, and Evansville’s fourth of the weekend.
First baseman Cal McGinnis (Kimberly, Wis. / Bradley) was the only Aces player with multiple hits on Sunday in front of his high school team, who were in town to watch UE while playing local baseball teams over spring break. Seven other Evansville batters recorded a hit, while Rumsey had two RBIs. On the mound MacCauley earned his first victory in an Aces uniform as he pitched 1.0 inning with a strikeout, no walks, and two hits. Byberg had the longest outing for UE at 5.2 innings, allowing only four hits and one run while striking out six batters and allowing a single walk.
Evansville hosts one more team at The Braun in its first homestand of the season. The Aces play the second game of their home-and-home series with Southeast Missouri on Tuesday evening. UE welcomes SEMO to the River City for a 6 p.m. first pitch on Tuesday, April 1.
SOUTHERN INDIANA BASEBALL
SLACK, SCREAMING EAGLES WALK OFF TO SERIES WIN
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana junior shortstop Clayton Slack singled in the winning run in the bottom of the ninth to lift the Screaming Eagles to an 8-7 victory over the University of Arkansas at Little Rock Sunday afternoon at the USI Baseball Field. USI is 12-15 overall and 4-2 in the OVC after the second game of the series, while Little Rock goes to 10-18, 1-5 in the OVC.
USI was in a hole to start the game as Little Rock scored five times in the top of the first to lead 5-0. USI junior designated hitter Cole Kitchens pushed the Eagles’ first run of the game across in the bottom of the first with an RBI single that extended his hitting streak to 16 games.
The 16-game streak is the longest by any Screaming Eagle since Logan Brown produced a 21-game stretch in 2018.
The Trojans re-extended the lead back to five runs with a tally in the second before the Screaming Eagles exploded for four runs in the third to pull to within one, 6-5. Slack led the charge in the four-run frame with a two-run single to finish the scoring in the inning.
In the top of the fifth, the Trojans threatened to take command once again, loading the bases with no one out, but USI junior left-hander Jake Porter struck out the side to preserve USI’s one-run deficit.
USI pulled ahead for the first time, 7-6, with a tally to tie the score in the fifth and another in the sixth on an RBI double by Kitchens. Little Rock tied the game in the seventh, 7-7, with a home run and set the stage for Slack and USI in the ninth.
In the ninth, Kitchens reached on an error, while sophomore pinch runner Anthony Umbach pinch ran and advanced to second when junior third baseman Patrick McLellan reached on a walk. Umbach advanced to third on a fly out by junior first baseman Kannon Coakley and scored the 8-7, USI game-winner on the single by Slack.
On the mound, USI senior right-hander Ian Anderson picked up his second win in relief. Anderson (2-0) pitched four innings, allowing one run on one hit, while striking out two.
Porter preceded Anderson to the mound, throwing three scoreless relief innings, allowing four hits and a walk. He also struck out a season-high six batters.
Up Next for the Eagles:
The Screaming Eagles continue their seven-game homestand Tuesday when they renew an old Great Lakes Valley Conference rivalry with Northern Kentucky University at the USI Baseball Field. USI leads the all-time series with NKU, 48-45, after losing all four of a GLVC series in Highland Heights, Kentucky, in 2012.
The last time NKU was at the USI Baseball field, the Screaming Eagles took three of four from the Norse in 2011.
NKU, which currently plays in the Horizon League, is 15-11 overall after posting a 6-2 win over the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee to avoid a three-game series sweep in Highland Heights.
Following the midweek game on Tuesday, the Screaming Eagles finish the homestand with a three-game series against the Eagles of Morehead State University April 4-6.
Morehead State, which was picked to finish fourth in the OVC this season, is 9-16 overall and 1-5 in the OVC after losing two of three with Eastern Illinois University this weekend in Morehead, Kentucky. The MSU Eagles, who have lost six of the last seven games, visit Ohio University Tuesday before coming to Evansville.
VALPO BASEBALL
VALPO RALLIES TO GET EVEN, BUT UE TAKES RUBBER MATCH ON WALK-OFF HOMER
The Valparaiso University baseball team came from behind for the second straight day, only this time host Evansville rebounded to win 5-4 on a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth on Sunday afternoon at Braun Stadium. The Beacons had six extra-base hits including a home run by senior Connor Giusti (Hoffman Estates, Ill. / Fremd) and two doubles apiece by Kevin Denty (Tinley Park, Ill. / Marian Catholic) and Austin Amburgey (Miamisburg, Ohio / Miamisburg).
How It Happened
The leadoff Ace in the bottom of the first reached on an error and eventually came around to score an unearned run, crossing the dish on a wild pitch.
Evansville extended the lead in the second, when a walk and a balk set up a run-scoring single up the middle by Ty Rumsey to make it 2-0.
The Aces added another on a solo shot by Harrison Taubert in the third. Catcher Kade Reinertson (Huxley, Iowa / Ballard Community) cut down a runner at second on the pitch before the home run, a key out to prevent a multi-run shot.
Valpo packed the sacks in the fifth thanks to a double by Amburgey and a pair of hit batters, but the Beacons stranded the max.
In an inning that started in a torrential downpour, Valpo got on the board in the sixth as Amburgey’s second double of the game drove in a run to make it 3-1.
Valpo moved a step closer in the seventh as Denty drove in a run with his second double of the day. The Beacons had a chance to score the tying run in that inning, but the runner from second was out at the plate on a single to right to end the inning.
Valpo starter Spencer Boynton (Tampa, Fla. / Seffner Christian) kept the Beacons in the game by putting up zeros in each of his final three frames as Evansville did not score in the fourth, fifth or sixth. The Aces did add one against the Beacon bullpen in the seventh as Drew Howard tripled and scored to make it 4-2.
Giusti led off the eighth inning with a home run, cutting the lead to 4-3.
Righty Adam Guazzo (Huntley, Ill. / Huntley) posted a zero in the bottom of the eighth to keep it a one-run deficit.
After a one-out single by Reinertson in the top of the ninth, Valpo scored the tying run on a double by Case Sullivan (Carmel, Ind. / Carmel) to level the score at four.
Matt Flaherty hit a pinch-hit walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth.
Inside the Game
Boynton received no decision despite a quality outing, allowing three runs (two earned) on six hits and three walks over six innings.
Denty tied his season high with three hits, recording two doubles and a single. He is up to seven doubles on the season.
Amburgey had one total double in 15 games this season before doubling twice on Sunday.
Giusti’s home run was his second of the series, fifth of the season, 12th of his Valpo career and 22nd of his collegiate career.
Reinertson reached base three times including twice being hit by a pitch.
This was Valpo’s third one-run game of the season, all losses (at Memphis, at Indiana State).
Valpo dropped two of three but the Beacons have captured one win in six straight weekend series including the last four against two Big Ten opponents (including the defending Big Ten regular-season champions), the defending Missouri Valley Conference regular-season champs and the defending MVC Tournament champs.
Up Next
The Beacons (6-17, 2-4) will finally play a game at Emory G. Bauer Field on Tuesday as Milwaukee comes to town for a 3 p.m. first pitch. Admission is free and the game will air on ESPN+.
INDIANA SMALL COLLEGE WEB SITES
UINDY ATHLETICS: https://athletics.uindy.edu/
MARIAN ATHLETICS: https://muknights.com/
INDIANA WESLEYAN ATHLETICS: https://iwuwildcats.com/
EARLHAM ATHLETICS: https://goearlham.com/
WABASH ATHLETICS: https://sports.wabash.edu/
FRANKLIN ATHLETICS: https://franklingrizzlies.com/
ROSE-HULMAN ATHLETICS: https://athletics.rose-hulman.edu/
ANDERSON ATHLETICS: https://athletics.anderson.edu/landing/index
TRINE ATHLETICS: https://trinethunder.com/landing/index
BETHEL ATHLETICS: https://bupilots.com/
DEPAUW ATHLETICS: https://depauwtigers.com/
HANOVER ATHLETICS: https://athletics.hanover.edu/
MANCHESTER ATHLETICS: https://muspartans.com/
HUNTINGTON ATHLETICS: https://www.huathletics.com/
OAKLAND CITY ATHLETICS: https://gomightyoaks.com/index.aspx
ST. FRANCIS ATHLETICS: https://www.saintfranciscougars.com/landing/index
IU KOKOMO ATHLETICS: https://iukcougars.com/
IU EAST ATHLETICS: https://www.iueredwolves.com/
IU SOUTH BEND ATHLETICS: https://iusbtitans.com/
PURDUE NORTHWEST ATHLETICS: https://pnwathletics.com/
INDIANA TECH ATHLETICS: https://indianatechwarriors.com/index.aspx
GRACE COLLEGE ATHLETICS: https://gclancers.com/
ST. MARY OF THE WOODS ATHLETICS: https://smwcathletics.com/
GOSHEN COLLEGE ATHLETICS: https://goleafs.net/
HOLY CROSS ATHLETICS: https://www.hcsaints.com/index.php
TAYLOR ATHLETICS: https://www.taylortrojans.com/
VINCENNES ATHLETICS: https://govutrailblazers.com/landing/index
“SPORTS EXTRA”
TODAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY
March 31
1961 — The Pacific Coast League’s proposal to use a designated hitter for the pitcher was rejected by the Professional Baseball Rules Committee by a vote of 8-1.
1968 — Seattle, the American League’s second new team, announced its nickname — the Pilots.
1994 — The Chicago White Sox assign NBA superstar Michael Jordan to the Double-A Birmingham Barons of the Southern League.
1995 — Major league baseball players end their strike when Federal judge Sonia Sotomayor of U.S. District Court in Manhattan rules against the owners in the labor dispute.
1996 — The Seattle Mariners beat the Chicago White Sox 3-2 in 12 innings in major league baseball’s season opener, the first major league game played in March.
1998 — The Tampa Bay Devil Rays and Arizona Diamondbacks looked like expansion teams in their first games. The Devil Rays fell behind 11-0 in an 11-6 loss to Detroit at Tropicana Field, and the Diamondbacks dropped a 9-2 decision to the Colorado Rockies at Bank One Ballpark. Milwaukee dropped a 2-1 decision at Atlanta in the Brewers’ first game since becoming the only team to switch leagues this century.
2001 — The Pittsburgh Pirates move into PNC Park, losing to the New York Mets, 4 – 3, in an exhibition game.
2003 — The Cincinnati Reds played their first regular season game at the Great American Ballpark. The Pittsburgh Pirates spoiled the day with a 10-1 win.
2008 — The Chicago Cubs unveil a statue of Ernie Banks outside of Wrigley Field.
2009 — The Detroit Tigers cut DH Gary Sheffield, who is one home run shy of 500 for his career.
2013 — The Houston Astros, coming off consecutive 100-loss seasons, made an impressive debut in the American League, trouncing the Texas Rangers 8-2 in the major league opener. Having switched from the National League to the AL in the offseason, the Astros earned their first opening day victory since 2006 and the 4,000th regular-season win in franchise history.
April 1
1931 — Pitcher Virne Mitchell, 17, signed with the Chattanooga club of Tennessee, becoming the first woman to play for an otherwise all-male baseball team.
1942 — Major league owners decide not to allow furloughed players in the military to play.
1969 — The Seattle Pilots trade minor league OF Lou Piniella to the Kansas City Royals. Piniella will go on to win American League Rookie of the Year.
1970 — An investment group headed by Bud Selig bought the Seattle pilots for $10.8 million.
1972 — The first collective players strike in major league history began. The strike lasted 12 days and canceled 86 games.
1988 — For the first time since 1956, the Special Veterans Committee does not elect anyone to the Hall of Fame.
1989 — A. Bartlett Giamatti took over as baseball commissioner.
1996 — Longtime umpire John McSherry collapses and dies from a heart attack on Opening Day at Cincinnati’s Riverfront Stadium, in the 1st inning of a game between the Reds and Expos. The game is cancelled.
2001 — The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Texas Rangers 8-1 when the major league baseball season opened in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
2008 — The New York Yankees set a major league record by winning their 11th straight home opener.
2013 — Bryce Harper homered in his first two at-bats, Stephen Strasburg retired 19 batters in a row and the defending NL East champion Washington Nationals opened the season with a 2-0 victory over the Miami Marlins. Harper, the reigning NL Rookie of the Year, hit solo shots over the out-of-town scoreboard in right-center field off Ricky Nolasco in the first and fourth innings.
2013 — Clayton Kershaw launched his first career home run to break a scoreless tie in the eighth inning, then finished off a four-hitter that led the Los Angeles Dodgers over the San Francisco Giants 4-0 on opening day. Kershaw became the first pitcher in the majors to homer on opening day since Joe Magrane of St. Louis in 1988. He was the first pitcher to throw a shutout and hit a home run in an opener since Bob Lemon for Cleveland in 1953.
2018 — Three days after starting at DH on Opening Day in his major league debut, Japanese phenom Shohei Ohtani makes his debut on the mound, pitching 6 innings in leading the Angels to a 7 – 4 win over the Athletics.
2024 — Ronel Blanco of the Astros throws the earliest no-hitter in major league history in terms of calendar date as he defeats the Blue Jays, 10 – 0. He walks the first batter of the game, George Springer, but retires the next 26 batters in a row before walking Springer again with two outs in the 9th. He then gets Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to ground out to second to end the game, which is also the first career win for Houston manager Joe Espada.
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April 2
1931 — Virne Beatrice “Jackie” Mitchell, the first woman in professional baseball, pitched against the New York Yankees in an exhibition game in Chattanooga. Babe Ruth waved wildly at the first two pitches and took a third strike. Lou Gehrig timed his swing to miss three straight pitches. Tony Lazzeri, after trying to bunt, walked and Mitchell left the game.
1952 — Hall of Fame outfielder Monte Irvin of the New York Giants broke his ankle in an exhibition game. Irvin played just 46 games that season.
1976 — The Oakland Athletics trade two key members from their recent World Series championship teams, sending OF Reggie Jackson and P Ken Holtzman to the Baltimore Orioles.
1984 — The New York Mets lost to the Cincinnati Reds 8-1 for their first opening-day defeat in 10 years.
1995 — The longest strike in major league history comes to an end. Having the first 23 days of this major league season canceled and 252 games of the last season lost, the owners accept the players’ March 31st unconditional offer to return to work. The players’ decision to return to work is made after a US District Court issued an injunction restoring terms and conditions of the expired agreement. Teams will play 144-game schedules. The strike had begun on August 12, 1994.
1996 — St. Francis of Illinois pummeled Robert Morris 71-1, with Robert Morris coach Gerald McNamara ending the after four innings.
1997 — For the first time, the salary of one player — Albert Belle — exceeded the payroll of an entire team — the Pittsburgh Pirates. Belle, the game’s highest-paid player for 1997 at $10 million, made $928,333 more than the whole Pirates payroll of $9,071,667.
1998 — By hitting a home run at Bank One Ballpark, Ellis Burks sets a major league record by having homered in 33 different stadiums.
2001 — For the first time in major league history, a Japanese position player participates in a regular season game. Seattle Mariners outfielder Ichiro Suzuki, hitless in his first three at-bats, singles in the 7th inning to ignite a two-run rally, and bunts for another single in the 8th in his debut at Safeco Field. He will go on the be both the American League Rookie of the Year and MVP this year.
2001 — Roger Clemens became the AL strikeout king, getting five to pass Walter Johnson as the Yankees beat Kansas City 7-3 in their season opener. Clemens fanned Joe Randa for his 3,509th career strikeout.
2003 — Alex Rodriguez became the youngest player to hit 300 home runs, connecting for a three-run drive in the Texas Rangers’ 11-5 loss to the Anaheim Angels. Rodriguez at 27 years, 249 days old, surpassed Hall of Famer Jimmie Foxx (27 years, 328 days).
2003 — The Detroit Tigers became the first team to have four pitchers make their major league debuts in the same game — Jeremy Bonderman, Wilfredo Ledezma, Chris Spurling and Matt Roney. The Tigers lost 8-1 to the Minnesota Twins.
2007 — Tampa Bay’s Elijah Dukes homered in his first big league at-bat in a 9-5 loss to the New York Yankees.
2008 — Kevin Youkilis plays his 194th consecutive error-free game at first base, breaking Steve Garvey’s 23-year-old major league record.
2010 — The Minnesota Twins open their new ballpark, Target Field, with an 8 – 4 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals in an exhibition game.
2011 — Ichiro Suzuki breaks the franchise hit record for the Seattle Mariners in the Mariners’ 6 – 2 win over Oakland. Ten years to the day after his first major league hit, Ichiro collects safety number 2,248, passing Edgar Martinez, with an infield single that drives in the winning run in the 9th.
2011 — Ian Kinsler of Texas became the first major leaguer with leadoff homers in each of his team’s first two games. Kinsler hit the first of four homers by the Rangers in a 12-5 victory over the Boston Red Sox.
2012 — Matt Cain and the San Francisco Giants agreed to a $127.5 million, six-year contract, the largest deal for a right-handed pitcher in baseball history.
2017 — Madison Bumgarner hit two homers but the Arizona Diamondbacks scored twice with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning off new San Francisco closer Mark Melancon to beat the Giants 6-5 in a wild season opener. Bumgarner retired his first 16 batters and became the first pitcher to hit two home runs on opening day. He struck out 11 with no walks in seven innings.
2019 — Returning to Washington, D.C. for the first time since signing a record free agent contract with the Phillies in the spring, Bryce Harper is back. He collects 3 hits, including a 458-foot two-run homer to lead the Phillies to an 8 – 2 win over the Nationals.
2021 — Commissioner Rob Manfred announces that the 2021 All-Star Game will not be staged in Atlanta, GA, as planned, but will be moved to another location to be determined, in response to the state of Georgia’s adoption of rules aimed at restricting the voting rights of African-Americans. This follows only two days after President Joe Biden stated he supported such a move, given the discriminatory nature of Georgia’s law.
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April 3
1923 — In Chicago, Ill., two Black Sox sue the White Sox. Swede Risberg and Happy Felsch seek $400,000 in damages and $6,750 in back salary for conspiracy and injury to their reputation in the aftermath of the scandalous 1919 World Series court case. Their suit will be unsuccessful.
1966 — The New York Mets sign University of Southern California star P Tom Seaver to his first contract.
1974 — The Cincinnati Reds defeated the Atlanta Braves 7-6 in 11 innings before a crowd of 52,000 at Riverfront Stadium. In his first at-bat, Hank Aaron hit a three-run homer off Jack Billingham. It was his 714th, tying Babe Ruth’s career record. The Braves had considered keeping Aaron on the bench for the season-opening series in Cincinnati so that he could attempt to tie the record four days later in Atlanta. But commissioner Bowie Kuhn would not allow it and ordered the Braves to put Aaron into the lineup for at least two of the three games.
1985 — A major league owners’ proposal is agreed to by the Players Association. The American and National leagues playoff formats are changed to best-of-sevens.
1987 — The Chicago Cubs trade starting pitcher Dennis Eckersley to the Oakland Athletics for three minor leaguers. Eckersley will emerge as the game’s dominant closer, saving 291 games over the next eight seasons.
1988 — George Bell became the first player to hit three home runs on opening day, leading the Toronto Blue Jays past the Kansas City Royals 5-3. Bell, bitter throughout spring training with his move to designated hitter, homered three times in that role off Bret Saberhagen.
1989 — Ken Griffey, Jr. of the Seattle Mariners makes his major league debut.
1994 — Chicago’s Karl Rhodes hit three solo home runs off Dwight Gooden in a 12-8 loss to the New York Mets on opening day at Wrigley Field. Rhodes became the second player to homer three times in an opener.
1998 — Mark McGwire tied Willie Mays’ National League record by hitting a home run in each of his first four games of the season. McGwire launched a towering three-run shot in the sixth inning of an 8-6 victory over the San Diego Padres.
1999 — America’s pastime opened in Mexico for the first time. The Colorado Rockies beat the Chicago Cubs 8-2 in baseball’s first season opener away from the United States and Canada.
2000 — A new major league record for Opening Day is set with five players having multiple home run games.
2001 — Hideo Nomo became the fourth pitcher in major-league history to throw a no-hitter in both leagues in Boston’s 3-0 victory over Baltimore. Nomo, who threw the first no-hitter in Colorado’s Coors Field on Sept. 17, 1996, for Los Angeles, walked three and struck out 11 in the first no-hitter in the 10-year history of Camden Yards. Nomo joined Cy Young, Jim Bunning and Nolan Ryan as the only pitchers with no-hitters in both leagues.
2003 — Sammy Sosa of the Chicago Cubs became the 18th player to hit 500 career homers, connecting for a solo shot in a 10-9 loss to Cincinnati. He became the fifth player to reach 500 homers before his 35th birthday. Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron, Willie Mays and Jimmie Foxx were the others.
2005 — Dmitri Young became the third player to hit three homers on opening day, and Jeremy Bonderman won as the youngest opening day starter in the major-leagues since 1986 to lead Detroit over the Royals 11-2.
2005 — In his first outing for the New York Yankees, Randy Johnson allows a run and five hits in six innings as New York open the major league season with a 9 – 2 win.
2006 — Seattle Mariners rookie Kenji Johjima, the first catcher from Japan to start a major league game, hits a home run for his first hit.
2015 — MLB suspends P Ervin Santana, who signed the largest free agent contract in Twins history this off-season, for 80 games for testing positive to the anabolic steroid stanozolol.
TODAY IN SPORTS HISTORY
March 31
1923 — The Ottawa Senators of the NHL completes a two-game sweep of the WCHL’s Edmonton Eskimos with a 1-0 victory to win the Stanley Cup for the third time in four years. Harry “Punch” Broadbent scores the goal.
1931 — Notre Dame football coach Knute Rockne and seven others die in a plane crash in a wheat field near Bazaar, Kansas. During his 13 years at Notre Dame, the 43-year-old coach, led the “Fighting Irish” to 105 victories, 12 losses, five ties and three national championships.
1968 — The American League’s new franchise in Seattle chooses Pilots as its nickname.
1973 — The Philadelphia Flyers tie an NHL record for most goals in one period, scoring eight goals in the second period of a 10-2 win over the New York Islanders.
1973 — Ken Norton scores a stunning upset by winning a 12-round split decision over Muhammad Ali to win the NABF heavyweight title. Norton, a 5-1 underdog, breaks Ali’s jaw in the first round.
1975 — UCLA beats Kentucky 92-85 for its 10th NCAA basketball title under head coach John Wooden. Wooden finishes with a 620-147 career record after announcing his retirement two days earlier.
1976 — Cleveland Cavaliers beat Jazz to clinch club’s first ever NBA playoff berth.
1980 — Larry Holmes scores a TKO in the eighth round over Leroy Jones to retain his WBC heavyweight title in Las Vegas.
1980 — Mike Weaver knocks out John Tate in the 15th round to win the WBA heavyweight title in Knoxville, Tenn.
1982 — NBA and NBAPA reach 4-year agreement on return for minimum & maximum payrolls, the first of its kind in team sports.
1984 — Mike Bossy becomes first player in NHL history to record 7 straight 50 goal seasons.
1985 — Old Dominion beats Georgia in the 4th NCAAW National Championship.
1986 — Freshman center Pervis Ellison hits two free throws with 27 seconds left to seal Louisville’s 72-69 victory over Duke in the NCAA basketball championship.
1990 — 20-year old C Joe Sakic becomes the youngest player in NHL history to score 100 points in a season
1991 — Tennessee edges Virginia 70-67 in overtime for its third NCAA women’s basketball title. It’s the first overtime in the NCAA’s 10-year history.
1991 — Amy Alcott wins the Dinah Shore golf tournament with a record eight-shot victory over Dottie Mochrie.
1994 — Chicago White Sox assigns former NBA superstar Michael Jordan to the Birmingham Barons of Class AA Southern League.
1995 — Major league baseball players end their strike.
1997 — Martina Hingis becomes the youngest No. 1 player in tennis history. The 16-year-old Swiss sensation, who claimed her fifth title of 1997 at the Lipton Championships on March 29, supplants Steffi Graf in the WTA Tour rankings.
1998 — Expansion clubs, Tampa Bay Devil Rays and Arizona Diamondbacks both suffer losses in their MLB debuts.
2002 — UConn women’s basketball team beat Oklahoma, 82-70; Huskies conclude perfect season (39-0).
2002 — Andre Agassi wins his 700th career match and captures his second straight Key Biscayne Title.
2005 — Tarence Kinsey hits a 3-pointer with 1.3 seconds left to lift South Carolina to a 60-57 victory over Saint Joseph’s for the NIT championship.
2012 — Ray Whitney passes 1,000 career points with a goal and assist in Phoenix’s 4-0 victory over Anaheim.
2013 — In one of the biggest upsets in the history of the NCAA women’s tournament, sixth-seeded Louisville stuns defending national champion Baylor in the regional semifinals, 82-81. It’s the end of a remarkable college career for Baylor’s Brittney Griner, a record-setting 6-foot-8 post player who ended up as the second-highest scoring player in NCAA history.
2013 — Pete Weber ties Earl Anthony by winning his 10th major Professional Bowlers Association title with a 224-179 win over Australian Jason Belmonte in the Tournament of Champions.
2017 — UConn’s record 111-game winning streak comes to a startling end when Mississippi State pulls off perhaps the biggest upset in women’s basketball history, shocking the Huskies 66-64 on Morgan William’s overtime buzzer beater in the national semifinals.
2018 — Anthony Joshua beats Joseph Parker by unanimous decision to become a three-belt world heavyweight boxing champion. Joshua adds Parker’s WBO belt to his WBA and IBF titles, and moves within one belt of becoming the first undisputed champion since Lennox Lewis in 2000.
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April 1
1930 — American golfer Bobby Jones starts his Grand Slam season by winning the Southeastern Open.
1938 — Joe Louis knocks out Harry Thomas in the fifth round in Chicago to retain his world heavyweight title.
1940 — Governor Herbert Lehman of New York signs the Dunnigal bill, which legalizes pari-mutuel wagering and outlaws bookmakers at the state’s racetracks.
1954 — Detroit Red Wings right wing Gordie Howe scores 2 goals and an assist, and sets a Stanley Cup playoff record for fastest goal from the start of a game (:09).
1972 — The first collective player’s strike in major league history begins at 12:01 a.m. The strike lasts 12 days and cancels 86 games.
1973 — Boston’s John Havlicek connects on 24 field goals and finishes with 54 points the Celtics defeat Atlanta, 134-109, in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
1978 — NY Islanders RW Mike Bossy becomes first NHL rookie to score 50 goals in a season.
1981 — Edmonton C Wayne Gretzky has an assist (his 103rd) to break Bobby Orr’s 10-year mark for most assists in a single NHL season.
1984 — Southern Cal beats Tennessee 72-61 for the NCAA women’s basketball title.
1985 — Villanova shocks Georgetown with a 66-64 victory to win the NCAA basketball title. The Wildcats, led by Dwayne McClain’s 17 points, shot 79 percent from the field, making 22 of 28 shots, and added 22 of 27 free throws.
1989 — Jim McAllister of Glassboro State hits four home runs and drives in nine runs in four at-bats in a 21-5 five-inning rout of Delaware State.
1990 — Betsy King holds on for a two-stroke victory over Kathy Postlewait to win the LPGA Dinah Shore tournament.
1991 — Duke ends years of frustration with a 72-65 victory over Kansas for its first national title in five championship game appearances and nine trips to the Final Four.
1992 — A week before the Stanley Cup playoffs are set to begin, the NHL players strike for the first time in the league’s 75-year history. The strike lasts 10 days.
1996 — Kentucky wins its first national title in 18 years with a 76-67 victory over Syracuse.
1999 — Detroit Pistons G Joe Dumars becomes 10th player in NBA history to play 1,000 games with the same team.
1999 — Philadelphia 76ers head coach Larry Brown wins his 900th pro game.
2000 — Michelle Kwan wins her third World Figure Skating title by pushing through all seven triple jumps. The triple toe-triple toe lifts Kwan above Russians Irina Slutskaya and last year’s champion, Maria Butyrskaya.
2001 — 20th NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship: Notre Dame beats Purdue, 68-66.
2002 — With Juan Dixon and Lonny Baxter leading the way, Maryland wins its first national championship with a 64-52 victory over Indiana.
2007 — Morgan Pressel becomes the youngest major champion in LPGA Tour history with a game well beyond her 18 years, closing with a 3-under 69 at the Kraft Nabisco Championship. Pressel plays her final 25 holes over Mission Hills without a bogey as Suzann Pettersen blew a four-shot lead with four holes to play.
2007 — American super swimmer Michael Phelps smashes his own world record in the 400m individual medley (4:06.22) to win his record 7th gold medal at the World Championships.
2011 — Jarome Iginla scores his second goal of the game with 5:03 left to reach 1,000 points and help Calgary rally to beat St. Louis 3-2.
2016 — Golden State Warriors consecutive home winning streak ends at 54 games.
2018 — Arike Ogunbowale hits a 3-pointer with a tenth of a second left to give Notre Dame a 61-58 win over Mississippi State and its first women’s national championship since 2001. Notre Dame, trailing 30-17 at halftime, pulls off the biggest comeback in title game history, rallying from a 15-point deficit in the third quarter and a five-point deficit in the final 1:58.
2020 — All England Lawn Tennis Club cancels Wimbledon for the first time since World War II because of the COVID-19 pandemic; entire grass-court season abandoned.
April 2
1939 — Ralph Guldahl beats Sam Snead by one stroke to capture the Masters golf tournament.
1969 — Toronto center Forbes Kennedy sets a Stanley Cup playoff record for most penalties in one game with 8.
1978 — Czech tennis star Martina Navratilova wins her first WTA Tour Championship.
1980 — Wayne Gretzky becomes the youngest player to reach 50 goals at 19 years and 2 months of age.
1983 — New York Islander Mike Bossy becomes the first player to score 60 or more goals in three consecutive seasons.
1984 — Georgetown, led by junior center Patrick Ewing and freshman forward Reggie Williams, beats Houston 84-75 to win the NCAA championship in Seattle. Houston becomes the second team to lose in two consecutive finals.
1985 — Edmonton C Wayne Gretzky sets an NHL record with his 34th career hat trick.
1986 — The 3-point field goal, at 19 feet, 9 inches, is adopted by the NCAA.
1989 — 8th NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship: Tennessee beats Auburn, 76-60.
1990 — UNLV pounds Duke 103-73 to win its first NCAA championship and extend the Blue Devils’ streak to eight Final Four appearances without a title. The Runnin’ Rebels become the first team to score more than 100 points in a championship game and the 30-point margin is the largest ever.
1995 — Connecticut caps an unbeaten season by defeating Tennessee 70-64 for the NCAA women’s championship. The Huskies, 35-0, become the winningest basketball team for one season in Division I.
2000 — Connecticut wins its second women’s national championship with a 71-52 victory over Tennessee. The top-ranked Huskies beat No. 2 Tennessee for the second time in three meetings this season.
2001 — New York Yankees pitcher Roger Clemens becomes American League all-time strikeout leader.
2001 — Seattle outfielder Ichiro Suzuki has 2 hits and becomes first Japanese position player to play in a regular season MLB game.
2001 — 63rd NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship: Duke beats Arizona, 82-72.
2003 — At 27 years, 249 days Texas Rangers infielder Alex Rodriguez becomes the youngest MLB player to hit 300 home runs.
2005 — Bubba Stewart becomes first African-American to win a major motor sports event when he takes out the Monster Energy AMA Supercross C’ship event in Irving, Texas.
2007 — The Florida Gators keep their stranglehold on the college basketball world with an 84-75 victory over Ohio State for their second straight national championship. The Gators are the first team to repeat since Duke in 1991-92.
2010 — Basketball superstar Kobe Bryant signs a three-year contract extension with the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers worth $87 million.
2011 — The Detroit Red Wings clinch their 20th straight playoff berth with a 4-3 victory over Nashville. The Red Wings extend the longest active playoff streak among North America’s four major professional sports and extend their NHL record with 11 straight seasons with 100 points.
2012 — Doron Lamb scores 22 points as Kentucky wins its eighth men’s national championship, holding off Kansas for a 67-59 victory.
2013 — Shoni Schimmel scores 24 points and giant-slaying Louisville claims another big upset, beating second-seeded Tennessee 86-78 and earning the school’s second trip to the Women’s Final Four.
2014 — The Sacramento Kings beat the Los Angeles Lakers 107-102 to give the Lakers their 50th loss of the season. The last time the Lakers had 50 or more losses was 1974-75 (30-52).
2016 — Villanova advances to the national championship game with the biggest margin of victory in Final Four history, overwhelming Oklahoma in a resounding 95-51 victory. The margin topped 34-point Final Four wins by Cincinnati over Oregon State in 1962 and Michigan State over Penn in 1979.
2017 — 36th NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship: South Carolina defeats Mississippi State, 67-55.
2018 — Pernilla Lindberg makes a 30-foot birdie putt on the eighth extra hole to win the ANA Inspiration for her first professional victory. Lindberg finishes off Inbee Park on the par-4 10th, the fourth playoff hole at Mission Hills.
2018 — Villanova wins its second men’s national championship in three years after a 79-62 victory over Michigan. Donte DiVincenzo comes off the bench to score 31 points for the Wildcats. Villanova wins all six games by double digits over this tournament run, joining Michigan State (2000), Duke (2001) and North Carolina (2009) in that company.
2019 — OKC guard Russell Westbrook becomes 2nd player in NBA history to have 20+ points, rebounds and assists in a game; records 20-20-21 in 119-103 win over LA Lakers.
2023 — Caitlin Clark scores 41 points in the Final Four for Iowa against South Carolina.
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April 3
1923 — “Black Sox” sue White Sox (unsuccessfully) for back salary.
1930 — The Montreal Canadiens win the NHL Stanley Cup with a two-game sweep of the Boston Bruins.
1933 — Ken Doraty’s overtime goal gives the Toronto Maple Leafs and 1-0 victory over the Boston Bruins in semifinals of the Stanley Cup playoffs. The goal comes at one hour, 44 minutes and 46 seconds of the overtime beyond the one-hour regulation game.
1966 — P Tom Seaver signs with the NY Mets.
1975 — Bobby Fischer stripped of world chess title for refusing to defend it, title awarded to Russian Anatoly Karpov.
1977 — Jean Ratelle of the Boston Bruins scores his 1,000th point with an assist in a 7-4 triumph over the Toronto Maple Leafs.
1982 — Buffalo’s Gil Perrault scores his 1,000th point with an assist in a 5-4 victory over the Montreal Canadiens.
1983 — 2nd NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship: USC beats Louisiana Tech, 69-67.
1987 — Chicago Cubs trade Dennis Eckersley to Oakland A’s.
1988 — Louisiana Tech wins the NCAA women’s basketball championship with a 56-54 come-from-behind victory over Auburn.
1988 — Amy Alcott shoots a 1-under 71 to win the Dinah Shore by two shots over Colleen Walker.
1988 — Mario Lemieux wins NHL scoring title, stopping Gretzky’s 7 year streak.
1989 — Michigan beats Seton Hall 80-79 in overtime to win the NCAA basketball championship. Rumeal Robinson hits two free throws with three seconds left for the Wolverines. It’s the first time that a first-year coach, Steve Fisher, wins the national title.
1991 — Bo Jackson signs 1-year contract with Chicago White Sox.
1993 — For the first time in its 157-year history, the Grand National steeplechase is declared void because of a false start. Esha Ness crosses the line first, but most of the jockeys are unaware a false start is called and the majority of the 39-horse field continue the 4½-mile race around the Aintree course even though nine stay behind at the start line.
1994 — Charlotte Smith’s 3-pointer at the buzzer gives North Carolina a 60-59 victory over Louisiana Tech in the NCAA women’s basketball championship game.
1995 — UCLA wins its first national basketball championship in 20 years and record 11th NCAA title, keeping Arkansas from repeating with an 89-78 victory.
1996 — St Francis Fighting Saints scores college baseball run record with 71.
2000 — 62nd NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship: Michigan State beats Florida, 89-76.
2004 — St. Louis clinches its 25th consecutive NHL playoff berth, the longest in major league sports, with a 4-1 win over Nashville.
2006 — Joakim Noah dominates UCLA with 16 points, nine rebounds and a record seven blocks to key a 73-57 blowout for Florida’s first national title in men’s basketball.
2006 — Steve Yzerman scores his final NHL goal (#692).
2007 — After a nine-year title drought, Tennessee and coach Pat Summitt are NCAA champions. The Lady Vols capture an elusive seventh national title, beating Rutgers 59-46.
2010 — Bernard Hopkins wins a brutal unanimous decision over Roy Jones Jr. in their long-delayed rematch, emphatically avenging his loss in the famed champions’ first fight nearly 17 years earlier.
2012 — Brittney Griner scores 26 points and grabs 13 rebounds to help Baylor finish off an undefeated season with an 80-61 win over Notre Dame in the women’s national championship game. Baylor becomes the first team in NCAA history to win 40 games.
2017 — Justin Jackson delivers the go-ahead three-point play and North Carolina scores the last eight points for a 71-65 win over Gonzaga and an NCAA title that heartbreakingly eluded the Tar Heels last year. It’s an ugly game, filled with 44 fouls and 52 free throws. Carolina was down 2 with 1:40 left when Jackson took a pass under the bucket from Theo Pinson, made a layup and got fouled. The free throw made it 66-65, and after a Gonzaga miss on the other end, Isaiah Hicks made a shot to help North Carolina start pulling away to the school’s sixth title.
2019 — San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich is ejected after an NBA record low 63 seconds in the Spurs 113-85 loss in Denver; receives 2 technical fouls in a verbal confrontation with a referee.
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April 4
1921 — The NHL champion Ottawa Senators beat the Pacific Coast Hockey Association champion Vancouver Millionaires 2-1 to win the Stanley Cup 3 games to 2.
1937 — Byron Nelson shoots a 283 to win the Masters by two strokes over Ralph Guldahl.
1938 — Henry Picard beats Ralph Guldahl and Harry Cooper by two strokes to capture the Masters.
1959 — France beats Wales, 11-3 at Stade Colombes to win the Five Nations Rugby Championship outright for the first time.
1974 — Hank Aaron ties Babe Ruth’s home-run record by hitting his 714th.
1983 — Lorenzo Charles scores on a dunk after Derek Whittenburg’s 35-foot desperation shot falls short to give North Carolina State a 54-52 triumph over Houston in the NCAA championship.
1985 — Tulane University cancels its basketball season.
1986 — Edmonton’s Wayne Gretzky breaks his own NHL single-season points record with three assists to increase his total to 214. He scored 212 points in 1981-82.
1987 — New York’s Denis Potvin, the highest-scoring defenseman in NHL history, scores his 1,000th point.
1988 — Danny Manning scores 31 points and grabs 18 rebounds as Kansas wins its second NCAA championship with an 83-79 victory over Oklahoma.
1989 — Kareem Abdul-Jabbar plays final NBA game.
1989 — NY Yankee Tommy John ties record of playing 26 seasons.
1993 — Sheryl Swoopes shatters the women’s championship game record by scoring 47 points to lead Texas Tech to an 84-82 victory over Ohio State.
1993 — Mario Andretti, at 53, wins the Valvoline 200 in Phoenix to become the oldest driver to win an Indy car race and the first driver to win a race in four different decades.
1994 — Arkansas wins its first men’s national championship with a 76-72 victory over Duke, depriving the Blue Devils of a third title in four years.
1997 — Anaheim Ducks clinch their 1st-ever playoff berth.
1997 — Braves officially open Turner Field.
1998 — Mark McGwire ties Willie Mays’ National League record by hitting a home run in each of his first four games. McGwire launches a towering three-run shot in the sixth inning of an 8-6 victory over the San Diego
2001 — Hideo Nomo becomes the fourth pitcher in major league history to throw a no-hitter in both leagues in Boston’s 3-0 victory over Baltimore.
2003 — Sammy Sosa of the Chicago Cubs becomes the 18th player to hit 500 career homers, connecting for a solo shot in a 10-9 loss to Cincinnati.
2004 — Carolina’s Brad Fast beat Florida goalie Roberto Luongo with a wrist shot to tie the game at 6-6 late in the third period. It’s the final tie game in NHL history.
2005 — North Carolina defeats Illinois to win the NCAA Division I men’s basketball championship. Sean May has 26 points and the Tar Heels don’t allow a basket over the final 2 1/2 minutes to defeat Illinois 75-70.
2006 — 25th NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship: Maryland beats Duke, 78-75 OT.
2011 — Kemba Walker scores 16 points and Alex Oriakhi has 11 points, 11 rebounds and four blocked shots to lead Connecticut to a 53-41 win over Butler in the men’s NCAA championship game. g 2015 — The United States defends their women’s world hockey championship with a 7-5 win over Canada.
2016 — Kris Jenkins hits a 3-pointer at the buzzer to lift Villanova to the national title with a 77-74 victory over North Carolina — one of the wildest finishes in the history of the NCAA Tournament. Jenkins’ shot comes moments after Marcus Paige hit a double-clutch 3 from beyond the arc to tie the game at 74 with 4.7 seconds left.
2021 — 39th NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship: Stanford Cardinal defeat Arizona Wildcats, 54–53.
TV SPORTS MONDAY
| MLB SPRING TRAINING | TIME ET | TV |
| Kansas City at Milwaukee | 2:10pm | FanDuel Sports WI FanDuel Sports KC |
| Minnesota at Chi. White Sox | 2:10pm | Twins.TV CHSN |
| Boston at Baltimore | 3:05pm | MASN NESN |
| Colorado at Philadelphia | 3:05pm | Rockies.TV NBCS-PHI |
| NY Mets at Miami | 6:40pm | FanDuel Sports FL SNY |
| Texas at Cincinnati | 6:40pm | FanDuel Sports Ohio RSN |
| Pittsburgh at Tampa Bay | 7:05pm | FanDuel Sports Sun ATTSN-PIT |
| Washington at Toronto | 7:07pm | MASN2 Sportsnet |
| LA Angels at St. Louis | 7:45pm | FanDuel Sports West FanDuel Sports MW |
| San Francisco at Houston | 8:10pm | SCHN NBCS-BAY |
| Cleveland at San Diego | 9:40pm | Padres.TV CleGuardians.TV |
| Detroit at Seattle | 9:40pm | FanDuel Sports DET ROOT |
| Chi. Cubs at Athletics | 10:05pm | MARQ NBCS-CA |
| Atlanta at LA Dodgers | 10:10pm | FanDuel Sports South SNLA |
| NBA REGULAR SEASON | TIME ET | TV |
| Utah Jazz vs Charlotte Hornets | 7:00pm | KJZZ Fanduel Sports CHA |
| Sacramento Kings vs Indiana Pacers | 7:00pm | FanDuel Sports IND NBCS-CA |
| Los Angeles Clippers vs Orlando Magic | 7:00pm | FanDuel Sports SoCal FanDuel Sports FL |
| Miami Heat vs Washington Wizards | 7:00pm | FanDuel Sports Sun MNMT |
| Chicago Bulls vs Oklahoma City Thunder | 8:00pm | CHSN FanDuel Sports OKC |
| Boston Celtics vs Memphis Grizzlies | 8:00pm | TNT MAX |
| Brooklyn Nets vs Dallas Mavericks | 8:30pm | YES KFAA |
| Houston Rockets vs Los Angeles Lakers | 10:00pm | TNT MAX |
| NHL REGULAR SEASON | TIME ET | TV |
| Minnesota Wild vs New Jersey Devils | 7:00pm | ESPN+ MSGSN FanDuel Sports North |
| Nashville Predators vs Philadelphia Flyers | 7:00pm | ESPN+ FanDuel Sports South NBCS-PHI |
| Calgary Flames vs Colorado Avalanche | 8:30pm | ESPN+ ALT Sportsnet |
| Dallas Stars vs Seattle Kraken | 10:00pm | ESPN+ Victory+ KONG |
| SOCCER | TIME ET | TV |
| Serie A: Hellas Verona vs Parma | 12:30pm | Paramount+ |
| Serie A: Lazio vs Torino | 2:45pm | Paramount+ |
| La Liga: Celta de Vigo vs Las Palmas | 3:00pm | ESPN+ |