CLASS 4A
Michigan City
Mishawaka 68 East Chicago Central 52
Crown Point 55 Warsaw 42 OT
New Castle
Fishers 66 Kokomo 52
Logansport
Fort Wayne Wayne 79 Fort Wayne North 69
Greenfield
Lawrence North 69 Avon 50
Southport
Ben Davis 70 New Palestine 59
Southridge
Jeffersonville 70 Evansville Harrison 65
Southport
Center Grove 68 Franklin 56
CLASS 3A
Triton
Fairfield 41 Hammond Noll 39
SB Washington
South Bend St. Joseph 53 John Glenn 38
Logansport
Peru 62 West Lafayette 46
Lapel
Delta 39 Fort Wayne Concordia 37
Greenfield
Guerin Catholic 56 Indianapolis Washington 39
Lebanon
Danville 61 Northview 39
Seymour
Scottsburg 84 Batesville 46
Southridge
Evansville Bosse 56 Southridge 45
CLASS 2A
Triton
Wabash 50 Westview 45
North Judson
North Judson 47 Gary 21st Century 43
Lapel
Wapahani 65 Tipton 41
Frankfort
Fort Wayne Blackhawk 64 Lafayette Central Catholic 48
Lebanon
Park Tudor 83 Irvington Prep 44
Martinsville
Parke Heritage 51 Northeastern 37
Seymour
Forest Park 58 Switzerland County 53
Washington
Brownstown Central 67 Sullivan 41
CLASS 1A
SB Washington
Marquette Catholic 57 Demotte Christian 32
North Judson
Elkhart Christian 58 Tri-County 57
New Castle
Liberty Christian 77 Seton Catholic 72
Frankfort
Fort Wayne Canterbury 57 North Vermillion 38
Martinsville
Greenwood Christian 49 Oldenburg Academy 42
Washington
Bethesda Christian 68 Clay City 50
Loogootee
Barr-Reeve 50 Christian Academy 43
Evansville Christian 72 Trinity Lutheran 42
2023-24 GIRLS GYMNASTICS STATE TOURNAMENT
- CROWN POINT 113.150
- VALPARAISO 109.250
- FW DWENGER 108.850
- COLUMBUS NORTH 107.825
- BEDFORD NORTH LAWRENCE 107.600
- FW CARROLL 107.100
- ANGOLA 105.400
- LAKE CENTRAL 104.650
- BLOOMINGTON SOUTH 101.025
RESULTS: https://www.ihsaa.org/sites/default/files/documents/2023-24%20Gymnastics%20State%20Results.pdf
MEN’S TOP 25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL SCORES
#16 ALABAMA 92 ARKANSAS 88 OT
KANSAS STATE 65 #6 IOWA STATE 58
#10 CREIGHTON 69 VILLANOVA 67
#17 SOUTH CAROLINA 93 MISSISSIPPI STATE 89 OT
TULSA 76 #24 S. FLORIDA 70
#1 HOUSTON 76 #14 KANSAS 46
#15 KENTUCKY 85 #4 TENNESSEE 81
#8 MARQUETTE 86 XAVIER 80
TEXAS TECH 78 #11 BAYLOR 68
#7 NORTH CAROLINA 84 #9 DUKE 79
#13 AUBURN 92 GEORGIA 78
#2 CONNECTICUT 74 PROVIDENCE 60
#22 UTAH STATE 87 NEW MEXICO 85
#20 BYU 85 OKLAHOMA STATE 71
USC 78 #5 ARIZONA 65
ELSEWHERE:
VIRGINIA TECH 82 NOTRE DAME 76
INDIANA STATE 94 NORTHERN IOWA 72
WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL TOP 25 SCORES
#9 CONNECTICUT 86 PROVIDENCE 53
IOWA STATE 67 #17 BAYLOR 62
#14 NOTRE DAME 82 #11 VIRGINIA TECH 53
#25 FAIRFIELD 83 RIDER 54
#19 OKLAHOMA 69 TCU 53
#10 NORTH CAROLINA STATE 69 FLORIDA STATE 43
#1 SOUTH CAROLINA 74 TENNESSEE 73
#3 IOWA 95 MICHIGAN 68
#6 TEXAS 76 KANSAS 60
#21 CREIGHTON 72 SETON HALL 65
#8 LSU 75 OLE MISS 67
#16 KANSAS STATE 65 WEST VIRGINIA 62
ELSEWHERE:
DRAKE 96 INDIANA STATE 64
BALL STATE 71 BUFFALO 50
MISSOURI STATE 77 VALPARAISO 66
NEBRASKA 78 MARYLAND 68
NORTHERN IOWA 67 EVANSVILLE 46
NBA SCOREBOARD
LA CLIPPERS 112 CHICAGO 102
CHARLOTTE 110 BROOKLYN 99
DALLAS 142 DETROIT 124
BOSTON 117 PHOENIX 107
SAN ANTONIO 126 GOLDEN STATE 113
DENVER 142 UTAH 121
PORTLAND 128 TORONTO 118 OT
NHL SCOREBOARD
CAROLINA 4 NEW JERSEY 2
NASHVILLE 2 COLUMBUS 1
BUFFALO 3 EDMONTON 2
BOSTON 5 PITTSBURGH 1
FLORIDA 5 CALGARY 1
TAMPA BAY 7 PHILADELPHIA 0
TORONTO 3 MONTRÉAL 2
SAN JOSE 2 OTTAWA 1
NY RANGERS 4 ST. LOUIS 0
VANCOUVER 5 WINNIPEG 0
VEGAS 5 DETROIT 3
DALLAS 4 LOS ANGELES 1
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
HOUSTON 9 WASHINGTON 4
DETROIT 8 PITTSBURGH 5
TORONTO 3 PHILADELPHIA 5
BALTIMORE 10 ATLANTA 3
MINNESOTA 10 NY YANKEES 7
NY METS 9 ST. LOUIS 3
SAN FRANCISCO 5 OAKLAND 1
LA DODGERS 7 TEXAS 1
CHICAGO CUBS 5 COLORADO 0
KANSAS CITY 6 ARIZONA 5
LA ANGELS 5 CLEVELAND 4
SEATTLE 7 MILWAUKEE 5
CHICAGO WHITE SOX 1 SAN DIEGO 1
CINCINNATI 7 ARIZONA 5
OAKLAND 4 MILWAUKEE 2
BOSTON 4 TAMPA BAY 0
MIAMI 4 WASHINGTON 1
MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER
SEATTLE 0 PHILADELPHIA 0 SUSPENDED
TORONTO 1 CHARLOTTE 0
PORTLAND 2 NEW YORK CITY 1
COLUMBUS 2 CHICAGO 1
MINNESOTA 3 ORLANDO CITY 2
NEW YORK RED BULLS 2 DALLAS 1
ATLANTA 4 NEW ENGLAND 1
ST. LOUIS 2 AUSTIN 2
COLORADO 2 SALT LAKE 1
LOS ANGELES 0 KANSAS CITY 0
VANCOUVER 2 SAN JOSE 0
COLLEGE BASEBALL SCORES
PURDUE 11 ALBANY 3
PURDUE 6 ALBANY 1
GONZAGA 5 MINNESOTA 3
COASTAL CAROLINA 19 MICHIGAN 6
CAL POLY 19 OHIO STATE 2
WESTERN CAROLINA 9 MICHIGAN STATE 5
LOUISVILLE 10 NORTHWESTERN 2
VIRGINIA TECH 10 NOTRE DAME 5
JACKSON STATE 10 BUTLER 5
TENNESSEE 24 ILLINOIS 1
TROY 8 INDIANA 1
NEBRASKA 13 S. ALABAMA 2
JACKSONVILLE STATE 5 IOWA 4
IOWA 20 JACKSONVILLE STATE 1
PURDUE FORT WAYNE 9 MISSOURI 7
MISSOURI 11 PURDUE FORT WAYNE 1
EASTERN MICHIGAN 6 BALL STATE 2
MISSISSIPPI STATE 8 EVANSVILLE 3
COLLEGE SOFTBALL SCORES
TENNESSEE 5 OHIO STATE 0
FLORIDA STATE 15 PURDUE 9
RUTGERS 7 CAL STATE NORTHRIDGE 4
ST. FRANCIS 6 NEBRASKA 3
NEBRASKA 5 S. ALABAMA 1
INDIANA 3 OAKLAND 0
PITTSBURGH 9 PURDUE 1
BALL STATE 12 NOTRE DAME 3
NOTRE DAME 11 INDIANA STATE 9
NATIONAL SPORTS RELEASES/HEADLINES
NFL NEWS
BRONCOS ARE SENDING RECEIVER JERRY JEUDY TO THE BROWNS FOR TWO DRAFT PICKS, AP SOURCES SAY
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — The Denver Broncos have agreed to send wide receiver and former first-round pick Jerry Jeudy to the Cleveland Browns for a pair of 2024 draft picks, two people with knowledge of the trade told The Associated Press on Saturday.
The people, who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the impending deal wasn’t immediately announced by either team, said the Broncos would receive fifth- and sixth-round picks in next month’s NFL draft when the trade becomes official next week.
The Browns are getting a complement for No. 1 receiver Amari Cooper and another major target and deep threat for quarterback Deshaun Watson.
The Broncos will save $13 million in both cash and salary cap space by moving on from Jeudy. The first of the two draft picks they’re receiving is the first pick of the fifth round. That gives Denver eight selections in the April draft.
The Broncos have cleared nearly $50 million in cap space in the last few days after informing quarterback Russell Wilson they would release him when the new league year begins next week.
Potential landing spots for Wilson include the Steelers and Giants. His next team would have to pay him only the veteran’s minimum of $1.2 million because the Broncos are on the hook for the remainder of his $39 million salary in 2024.
REPORTS: DT CHRIS JONES AGREES TO 5-YEAR, $95 MILLION DEAL WITH CHIEFS
Defensive tackle Chris Jones agreed to a five-year, $95 million deal with the Kansas City Chiefs, ESPN and NFL Network reported Saturday night.
All the money in the first three years of the deal — $95 million — is guaranteed, per the reports. Once pen goes to paper, Jones will have the highest average annual salary for a defensive tackle in NFL history.
Los Angeles Rams star Aaron Donald held the previous record at $31.6 million per year.
Kansas City was able to lock Jones up just before he hit free agency. He is now set to become an unrestricted free agent in 2029.
After the reports of the deal surfaced, Jones took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share his excitement.
“Letssss gooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!” Jones said in a post, which was followed by another that said, “KC….5 more years of greatness! 3x”
Jones, 29, is a five-time Pro Bowl selection and a three-time Super Bowl champion. He appeared in 16 games (all starts) last season, recording 10.5 sacks, 30 tackles and 29 quarterback hits.
In 123 career games (102 starts) across eight seasons with the Chiefs, Jones has amassed 75.5 sacks, 273 tackles, 175 quarterback hits, 12 forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries and one pick-6.
REPORT: CHARGERS OPEN TO TRADING BOSA, MACK, OTHER VETERANS
The Los Angeles Chargers are open to trade offers for edge rushers Joey Bosa, Khalil Mack, and other veterans, sources told Dianna Russini of The Athletic.
Mack ($38.5 million) and Bosa ($36.6 million) are scheduled to have the highest cap hits on the team next season, according to Spotrac. Los Angeles is $20.5 million over the cap. Teams must be cap compliant when the new league year opens Wednesday.
Bosa has dealt with multiple injuries in recent years. He played only 14 games over the last two seasons, totaling nine sacks. The Chargers acquired Mack and a sixth-round pick from the Chicago Bears in 2022 for a second-round selection that turned into safety Jaquan Brisker.
The 33-year-old Mack has played all 34 games for the Chargers over the last two seasons, totaling 124 tackles and 25 sacks.
In December, Los Angeles fired general manager Tom Telesco and head coach Brandon Staley. The club hired Joe Hortiz and Jim Harbaugh to replace the duo. The Chargers last won a playoff game in 2018.
REPORT: STEELERS OPEN TO TRADE OFFERS FOR DIONTAE JOHNSON
The Pittsburgh Steelers are willing to listen to trade offers for wide receiver Diontae Johnson, according to Dianna Russini of The Athletic.
Teams are interested in acquiring the veteran wideout, Russini adds.
Johnson has been with the team since it selected him with the No. 66 pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. He’s entering the final season of a two-year, $36.1-million extension signed in 2022. Johnson is scheduled to have a $15.8-million cap hit in 2024, according to Over The Cap.
The 27-year-old missed four contests last season after suffering a hamstring injury in Week 1. He finished the year with 51 catches for 717 yards and five touchdowns.
Johnson led the Steelers in targets and receiving yards from 2020-22. His best season came in 2021 when he totaled 107 catches for 1,161 yards and eight touchdowns.
The former Pro Bowler reportedly chirped at the Steelers’ coaches and got into a heated argument with teammate Minkah Fitzpatrick following a Week 11 loss to the Cleveland Browns.
Johnson has 391 receptions for 4,363 yards and 25 touchdowns in 77 career games.
BRANDON GRAHAM IS RETURNING TO THE PHILADELPHIA EAGLES FOR A 15TH SEASON
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The Philadelphia Eagles agreed to terms on a one-year contract with veteran Brandon Graham, the club announced Saturday, meaning the defensive end will be back for a franchise-record 15th season.
Graham has 73 sacks in a record 195 career games with the Eagles, including three sacks last season. The 35-year-old is a popular player in the locker room and in the Philadelphia community.
Graham helped clinch the franchise’s only Super Bowl with a late strip sack of Tom Brady in Super Bowl LII, a 41-33 Eagles’ win over the Patriots on Feb. 4, 2018.
Philadelphia drafted Graham No. 13 overall in the 2010 draft out of Michigan. He missed most of the 2022 season with a torn Achilles tendon but came back to post a career-high 11 sacks.
MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
TOP 25 ROUNDUP: NO. 7 NORTH CAROLINA BEATS NO. 9 DUKE, WINS ACC TITLE
Cormac Ryan scored a career-high 31 points and No. 7 North Carolina withstood rallies from No. 9 Duke for an 84-79 road victory, clinching outright possession of the Atlantic Coast Conference championship Saturday night at Durham, N.C.
Ryan, who set the tone with early 3-point shooting, canned six long-range shots, including a clutch late-game dagger as the Tar Heels completed a regular-season sweep of their neighbors. Harrison Ingram, in his first game at Duke’s gym, provided 14 points and 10 rebounds for North Carolina (25-6, 17-3 ACC).
This was the 50th time these teams met with both holding a Top 10 ranking in the stored rivalry, and the Tar Heels have won 26 of those matchups.
Kyle Filipowski poured in 23 points, Jared McCain notched 19 points, Tyrese Proctor had 14 points and Jeremy Roach added 13 points for Duke (24-7, 15-5).
No. 1 Houston 76, No. 14 Kansas 46
Jamal Shead paired 13 points with eight assists to spearhead a dominating performance as the Cougars rolled to a home victory over the Jayhawks in both teams’ regular-season finale.
The Cougars (28-3, 15-3 Big 12) secured the outright Big 12 regular-season title by extending their winning streak to nine games while also claiming their 22nd consecutive home win. Houston led wire to wire in earning the top seed at next week’s conference tournament. Shead added six rebounds to his ledger while L.J. Cryer (11 points, four assists) and J’Wan Roberts (10 points, eight rebounds) contributed to the blowout.
Kevin McCullar Jr. logged 15 scoreless minutes in his return from a knee injury for the Jayhawks. He did not play in the second half. Hunter Dickinson had 11 points and six rebounds for Kansas before departing with a right shoulder injury midway through the second half. Coach Bill Self said afterward that Dickinson dislocated the shoulder.
No. 2 UConn 74, Providence 60
Alex Karaban had 16 points on four 3-pointers as the Huskies rolled over the host Friars in the Big East regular-season finale for each team.
The Huskies (28-3, 18-2) never looked back after an extended 33-5 run over 12:02 to finish the first half and set a Big East record for wins during the conference season. All five UConn starters scored in double figures, including Stephon Castle, who added 14 points.
Devin Carter had a game-high 24 points and 15 rebounds for Providence (19-12, 10-10). Josh Oduro added 13 points and 11 rebounds.
USC 78, No. 5 Arizona 65
Kobe Johnson scored 19 points and headlined a tenacious Southern California defense with six steals and the Trojans held the Wildcats to a season-low point total in a win in Los Angeles.
USC (14-17, 8-12 Pac-12) forced 18 turnovers while limiting Arizona to just 24-of-62 shooting from the floor (38.7 percent) on the night. Boogie Ellis had a quiet night offensively with just five points on 1-of-8 shooting but swiped three steals to contribute on defense. DJ Rodman matched Johnson with the game’s scoring high of 19 points and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds.
Keshad Johnson made four 3-pointers in the second half while trying to jump-start the Wildcats’ comeback effort. He finished with 17 points, matching Oumar Ballo for the team scoring high.
No. 8 Marquette 86, Xavier 80
Kam Jones scored a team-high 30 points while Oso Ighodaro added 24 to lift the Golden Eagles past the Musketeers in Cincinnati in the Big East regular-season finale for both teams.
In a game that featured 11 ties and 14 lead changes, Xavier (15-16, 9-11 Big East) took its final lead, 73-72, on a Dayvion McKnight fastbreak layup with 4:02 left in the game.
On the next possession, Marquette (23-8, 14-6) took the lead for good on a step-back 3 from Jones with 3:34 to go.
Texas Tech 78, No. 11 Baylor 68
Pop Isaacs scored 20 points and Darrion Williams chipped in 16 points and 11 rebounds to help the Red Raiders stun the visiting Bears in Lubbock, Texas, in the regular-season finale for both teams.
Down 54-53 with 7:25 left in the game, the Red Raiders went on a 14-2 run to regain control. They went 7-of-7 from the free-throw line in the final 2:35 to earn their fifth victory over a Top 25 opponent this season.
Isaacs led Texas Tech (22-9, 11-7 Big 12) in scoring despite dealing with foul trouble for most of the second half. Ja’Kobe Walter led the Bears (22-9, 11-7) with 15 points and went 3-of-7 from beyond the arc.
No. 13 Auburn 92, Georgia 78
Denver Jones matched his career high of seven 3-pointers and scored a season-best 21 points and Johni Broome added 14 points as the Tigers built momentum for next week’s SEC tournament with a victory over the visiting Bulldogs.
Jaylin Williams scored 13 points and Dylan Cardwell added 10 as Auburn (24-7, 13-5 SEC) wrapped up a No. 4 seed at next week’s conference showdown while earning a double bye. Chaney Johnson and Broome shared team-high assist honors with five each for the Tigers, who had 29 assists on 33 made baskets from the floor.
Silas Demary Jr. scored 15 points for Georgia (16-15, 6-12), which lost for the 10th time in 12 games. Russel Tchewa had 14 points with 10 rebounds and Noah Thomasson added 12 points for the Bulldogs.
No. 15 Kentucky 85, No. 4 Tennessee 81
Antonio Reeves and Reed Sheppard each scored 27 points as the Wildcats spoiled Senior Day for the Volunteers, building a 14-point second-half lead and holding on for the Southeastern Conference win in Knoxville.
Justin Edwards added 16 for the Wildcats (23-8, 13-5 SEC) and Rob Dillingham chipped in 11 points, including the clinching foul shot with five seconds left to snap Tennessee’s seven-game winning streak. Kentucky won its fifth straight game and avenged a 103-92 home loss to the Volunteers last month in Lexington.
Dalton Knecht starred in defeat for Tennessee (24-7, 14-4) with a game-high 40 points, canning six 3-pointers. Zakai Zeigler added 17 — including 14 in the second half — and nine assists.
Kansas State 65, No. 6 Iowa State 58
Arthur Kaluma scored 23 points to go along with seven rebounds and the Wildcats ended their regular season on a high note on Senior Day in Manhattan, Kan., denying the Cyclones a chance at a share of the Big 12 Championship.
The win gave the Wildcats, whose NCAA Tournament hopes had been fading, another important Quad 1 win ahead of Big 12 Tournament play next week in Kansas City.
Kansas State (18-13, 8-10 Big 12) also got 21 points and five rebounds from Cam Carter. David N’Guessan had a double-double with 11 points and 16 rebounds. Iowa State (24-7, 13-5) saw its four-game winning streak come to an end. Curtis Jones led the team in scoring with 16, while Keshon Gilbert and Tamin Lipsey chipped in 13 apiece.
No. 10 Creighton 69, Villanova 67
Trey Alexander hit a 12-foot step back shot with 0.2 seconds remaining and the Bluejays built a 24-point lead and held on to defeat the host Wildcats in Philadelphia.
Baylor Scheierman led Creighton (23-8, 14-6 Big East) with 18 points, eight rebounds and six assists while Alexander scored 17 points and Ryan Kalkbrenner had 14 points and two blocked shots. Creighton earned the No. 2 seed in the upcoming Big East tournament.
Eric Dixon led Villanova with 25 points and tied the game at 67 after being fouled on a 3-pointer and hitting three free throws with 23.6 seconds left. Justin Moore added 17 for the Wildcats (17-14, 10-10).
No. 16 Alabama 92, Arkansas 88 (OT)
Aaron Estrada struggled throughout but converted a tiebreaking layup with 2:03 remaining in overtime as the Crimson Tide outlasted the visiting Razorbacks in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Mark Sears led the Crimson Tide (21-10, 13-5 Southeastern Conference) with 22 points and Latrell Wrightsell Jr. added 20, including a 3-pointer that forged a 74-74 tie with 21 seconds left in regulation.
Khalif Battle led the Razorbacks (15-16, 6-12) with 22 points but shot 5 of 16. Makhi Mitchell added 18 and Mark finished with 13 as Arkansas shot 44.8 percent and missed 16 of 20 3-point attempts.
No. 17 South Carolina 93, Mississippi State 89 (OT)
B.J. Mack scored seven of his 25 points in overtime and the Gamecocks held off the Bulldogs in Starkville, Miss.
Collin Murray-Boyles added 19 points for South Carolina (25-6, 13-5 SEC). Josh Hubbard scored 28 points and Cameron Matthews had 18 points and 11 rebounds to lead Mississippi State (19-12, 8-10).
Mack made two free throws for a 91-88 lead with 10 seconds left in overtime, and the Gamecocks fouled D.J. Jeffries before he could attempt a 3-pointer. He made one of two free throws before Meechie Johnson made two to complete the scoring with five seconds left.
No. 20 BYU 85, Oklahoma State 71
Fousseyni Traore scored 19 points on 8-of-11 shooting to help the Cougars notch a victory over the Cowboys in Big 12 play at Provo, Utah.
Jaxson Robinson added 17 points and Spencer Johnson contributed 14 points, 10 rebounds and five assists for the Cougars (22-9, 10-8 Big 12). BYU led by as many as 25 points while winning for the eighth time in the past 12 games.
Javon Small established career highs of 34 points and five 3-pointers for Oklahoma State (12-19, 4-14), which lost its fifth consecutive contest. The Cowboys are just 1-9 in true road games.
No. 22 Utah State 87, New Mexico 85
Darius Brown II hit a late game-winning 3-pointer, lifting the Aggies to their first outright Mountain West Conference regular-season championship with a thrilling victory over the visiting Lobos in Logan, Utah.
Ian Martinez led the Aggies (26-5, 14-4 MWC) in scoring with 22 points, including a late monster dunk. Great Osobor added 21 points, 12 rebounds, three blocks, three assists and three steals, while Brown finished with 19 points, nine assists and three steals.
Mustapha Amzil paced the Lobos (22-9, 10-8) with 18 points off the bench. Donovan Dent contributed 17 points, Nelly Junior Joseph added 13 points with 10 rebounds, Jaelen House chipped in 15 points, nine rebounds and six assists and JT Toppin scored 14 in the loss.
Tulsa 76, No. 24 South Florida 70
PJ Haggerty’s career-high 32 points helped spark the Golden Hurricane’s second-half rally to knock off the Bulls, ending the nation’s longest active men’s basketball winning streak in Tulsa, Okla.
Cobe Williams added 23 points — going 5-for-6 on free-throw attempts in the final two minutes — as Tulsa (16-14, 7-11 American Athletic Conference) avenged a Feb. 14 loss to the Bulls. Williams also collected 11 rebounds.
South Florida (23-6, 16-2) had won 15 consecutive games and already clinched the AAC regular-season title, but this might have damaged its quest for an NCAA Tournament bid if it needs to gain entry via an at-large bid. The Bulls managed only 11 points during a 10-minute stretch as Tulsa burst into the lead.
WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
ROUNDUP: NO. 14 NOTRE DAME TOO MUCH FOR NO. 11 VIRGINIA TECH
Sonia Citron scored 19 points to help No. 14 Notre Dame roll past No. 11 Virginia Tech 82-53 on Saturday in the semifinals of the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament in Greensboro, N.C.
By beating the top-seeded Hokies (24-7), the No. 3-seed Irish (25-6) will play in the ACC Tournament final for the first time since 2019.
Maddy Westbeld added 18 points for Notre Dame, Anna DeWolfe scored 14, and ACC Freshman of the Year Hannah Hidalgo piled up 15 points, six assists and six rebounds.
“It was just one of our best performances I felt like this season,” Notre Dame coach Niele Ivey said. “Just the way that we’ve been gelling together and the energy they brought today.”
Georgia Amoore powered Virginia Tech with 24 points, while Olivia Summiel contributed a double-double of 10 points and 18 rebounds.
For the second straight game, the Hokies played without three-time ACC Player of the Year Elizabeth Kitley. Virginia Tech coach Kenny Brooks ruled her out of the conference tournament with a knee injury in the Hokies’ regular-season finale.
Virginia Tech coughed up six turnovers in the second quarter and trailed by 10 points at the break. The Irish started the third frame on a 19-2 run to pull away with a 52-25 lead.
Notre Dame forward Kylee Watson exited the game in the third quarter. She returned to the bench with crutches.
No. 9 UConn 86, Providence 53
Paige Bueckers scored 29 points to help the Huskies beat the Friars in the quarterfinals of the Big East Tournament at Uncasville, Conn.
Bueckers shot 5 of 10 from 3-point range and also had nine rebounds, six assists, three steals and three blocks for UConn (27-5). KK Arnold added 17 points, and Aaliyah Edwards scored 12 points in 24 minutes before exiting the game after getting hit in the face.
Grace Efosa paced Providence (13-20) with 23 points.
UConn trailed by four points early, then closed the first quarter on a 23-6 run. The Huskies won the rebounding margin 37-26.
Iowa State 67, No. 17 Baylor 62
Powered by Addy Brown and Audi Crooks, the No. 4-seed Cyclones topped the No. 5-seed Bears in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Tournament at Kansas City, Mo.
Crooks scored 23 points for Iowa State (19-10) while Brown had 16 points and 12 rebounds. Senior guard Emily Ryan also had a double-double with 12 points and 10 assists, making her the Cyclones all-time leader in career assists.
Dre’una Edwards led Baylor (24-7) with 17 points off the bench, while Bella Fontleroy contributed 14 points.
Baylor led by six points with 3:34 to play after a long 3-pointer from Sarah Andrews before Iowa State closed the game on a 12-1 run.
NBA NEWS
NBA ROUNDUP: LUKA DONCIC SETS TRIPLE-DOUBLE MARK IN WIN
Luka Doncic set an NBA record with his sixth consecutive 30-point triple-double as the Dallas Mavericks rolled past the host Detroit Pistons, 142-124, on Saturday night.
Doncic piled up 39 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. He surpassed Russell Westbrook, who recorded five straight 30-point triple-doubles in 2017.
Kyrie Irving had 21 points and Daniel Gafford supplied 17 points, seven rebounds and four blocks. Tim Hardaway Jr. also scored 17 points for the Mavs.
Cade Cunningham led the Pistons with 33 points, nine rebounds and 10 assists. Simone Fontecchio had 27 points, James Wiseman notched 17 points and 12 rebounds, and Jaden Ivey contributed 17 points and six rebounds.
Hornets 110, Nets 99
Miles Bridges scored 24 points, Brandon Miller racked up 23 points and Charlotte beat visiting Brooklyn, snapping a six-game losing streak.
Nic Richards had 15 points and 11 rebounds and Vasilije Micic supplied 12 points and 10 assists for the Hornets, who shot 54.3 percent from the field and prevailed despite committing 16 turnovers.
Cam Thomas returned from a six-game injury absence to score 31 points for the Nets. He was 12-of-24 shooting from the field, including draining five 3-pointers.
Celtics 117, Suns 107
Jayson Tatum had 29 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, and Jaylen Brown finished with 27 points to help visiting Boston avoid its first three-game losing streak of the season by beating Phoenix.
Tatum scored 22 points in the second half, 13 of them in the fourth quarter.
Phoenix received a season-high 45 points to go with 10 rebounds and six assists from Kevin Durant, who was 18-of-26 from the field. It was Durant’s fifth game with at least 40 points this season.
Spurs 126, Warriors 113
Keldon Johnson scored 22 points and grabbed 11 rebounds and Jeremy Sochan and Malaki Branham added 20 points each as visiting San Antonio rolled to a win over Golden State in San Francisco.
The teams were without their star players, as both the Warriors’ Stephen Curry and the Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama missed the game with respective ankle injuries. San Antonio’s Devin Vassell (left hip contusion) also sat out.
Dominick Barlow scored 19 points and Julian Champagnie had 17 — both season highs — for San Antonio. Tre Jones finished with 11 assists. Klay Thompson had 27 points for Golden State while Jonathan Kuminga scored 26, Trayce Jackson-Davis and Andrew Wiggins scored 11 apiece. The Warriors dropped their second straight and third of their past four games.
Nuggets 142, Jazz 121
Jamal Murray tied his season high with 37 points, Nikola Jokic had 26 points and host Denver beat Utah.
Michael Porter Jr. had 19 points, Christian Braun and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added 13 points each and Peyton Watson had 12 points for Denver. The Nuggets have won eight of nine after the All-Star break and moved into a tie with the Minnesota Timberwolves for the second seed in the Western Conference, a half-game behind the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Keyonte George led Utah with 29 points, Jordan Clarkson scored 22 points, John Collins had 19 points, Collin Sexton chipped in 17 and Brice Sensabaugh finished with 16 points for Utah. Walker Kessler grabbed 11 rebounds in the loss.
Clippers 112, Bulls 102
Paul George scored 22 points and James Harden added a triple-double with 14 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists as Los Angeles turned up its intensity in the third quarter and rallied for a victory over visiting Chicago.
Kawhi Leonard scored 19 points with nine rebounds, Ivica Zubac had 16 points with nine rebounds and Norman Powell added 18 points as the Clippers used a 19-4 run in the third quarter to rally from a 10-point deficit and win for the fourth time in their past five games.
DeMar DeRozan scored 24 points with 10 assists and Nikola Vucevic added 22 points with 11 rebounds for the Bulls in their return to Los Angeles. Both are Southern California alums. Coby White scored 19 points and Ayo Dosunmu added 13 as Chicago saw its three-game winning streak come to an end while dropping the final game of a four-game Western Conference road trip.
Trail Blazers 128, Raptors 118 (OT)
Deandre Ayton scored a season-best 30 points and collected 19 rebounds in his return from injury to lead Portland past visiting Toronto.
Dalano Banton added 25 points and seven rebounds and Anfernee Simons recorded 23 points and seven assists for the Trail Blazers, who ended their nine-game home losing streak. Toumani Camara had 15 points and nine rebounds, Matisse Thybulle contributed 13 points and four steals and Scoot Henderson added 13 points for Portland.
Immanuel Quickley had 29 points and seven assists and Gary Trent Jr. scored 23 points for Toronto, which lost for the fifth time in its past six games. Chris Boucher added 16 points and eight rebounds, Kelly Olynyk had 15 points and eight assists and Jordan Nwora tallied 10 points for the Raptors.
NHL NEWS
NHL ROUNDUP: SHARKS EDGE SENS, GET MAGNUS CHRONA FIRST WIN
Thomas Bordeleau scored both goals and goaltender Magnus Chrona posted his first career win as the host San Jose Sharks claimed a 2-1 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Saturday.
Chrona, making his fifth career appearance, made 31 saves — 13 in a perfect third period — for the milestone moment. The Sharks snapped a nine-game skid in their first game after dealing away a pair of key forwards in Anthony Duclair and Tomas Hertl ahead of the trade deadline. Mikael Granlund collected two assists.
Tim Stutzle scored for the Senators, who are winless in seven games and completed a four-game road trip. Goalie Joonas Korpisalo stopped 19 shots.
San Jose, which also traded away goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen on Friday, had newly acquired goalie Devin Cooley, who was traded from the Buffalo Sabres, serve as backup.
Canucks 5, Jets 0
Nils Hoglander, Elias Pettersson and Pius Suter each collected one goal and one assist as host Vancouver claimed a shutout victory over Winnipeg to solidify its hold on the top spot in the Western Conference.
J.T. Miller and Phillip Di Giuseppe also scored for the Canucks, who have won four straight games in which they have surrendered a total of only three goals. Defenseman Quinn Hughes collected two assists. Winnipeg goalie Connor Hellebuyck made 32 saves
The victory, which opened a nine-game homestand, may have come at a cost. Vancouver’s No. 1 goaltender Thatcher Demko left the game early in the second period for an undisclosed reason after stopping all 12 shots he faced. Casey DeSmith made 10 saves while sharing the shutout.
Lightning 7, Flyers 0
Anthony Duclair had a goal and an assist in his debut for Tampa Bay, which exploded with four first-period markers in jolting visiting Philadelphia.
In the high-scoring first, Victor Hedman (two goals, assist) and Conor Sheary scored at even strength. Nicholas Paul and Brayden Point (assist) registered power-play goals as the Lightning led 4-0 just 10:49 into the teams’ third meeting of the season.
Flyers goalie Felix Sandstrom made eight saves in relief of starter Samuel Ersson, who surrendered four goals on 15 shots.
Sabres 3, Oilers 2 (SO)
Alex Tuch scored the game-winning shootout goal as host Buffalo edged Edmonton.
Tage Thompson and Jacob Bryson scored in regulation for the Sabres, who snapped a three-game losing streak. Goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 30 saves for his first career win over the Oilers.
Ryan McLeod and Warren Foegele scored goals for Edmonton.
Predators 2, Blue Jackets 1
Luke Evangelista scored the tiebreaking goal early in the third period and Kevin Lankinen made 32 saves as Nashville pushed its point streak to 11 games with a victory over host Columbus.
With the score tied at 1-1, Evangelista streaked down the wing with the puck, waited for some support while marked, then unleashed a tough-angled shot that neatly cleared the shoulder of Columbus netminder Daniil Tarasov 4:16 into the third period, extending his career-high goal total to 13.
Tarasov matched a career high with 47 saves and Alexandre Texier scored his 10th marker of the season for the Blue Jackets, who had won three of their previous four games.
Hurricanes 4, Devils 2
Jesperi Kotkaniemi scored the tiebreaking goal early in the third period for Carolina, which went on to beat New Jersey in Newark, N.J.
Kotkaniemi scored on an angled shot after a lengthy battle for the puck deep in the Devils’ zone between New Jersey’s Luke Hughes and Carolina’s Jesper Fast.
Nico Hischier scored in the second and Timo Meier scored an extra-attacker goal with 11.3 seconds remaining for the Devils, who fell to 1-2-0 since Travis Green replaced Lindy Ruff as coach.
Bruins 5, Penguins 1
Pavel Zacha recorded two goals and an assist to lead Boston over visiting Pittsburgh.
Zacha has posted two multi-goal efforts in his past four games, with five goals and two assists during that span.
Kris Letang scored the only Pittsburgh goal while Alex Nedeljkovic made 18 saves as the Penguins lost for the fifth time in six games.
Panthers 5, Flames 1
Vladimir Tarasenko, playing just his second game with his new team, scored two goals and had one assist, leading Florida over Calgary in Sunrise, Fla.
The Panthers also got one goal apiece from Aleksander Barkov, Sam Bennett and Kevin Stenlund. Gustav Forsling had a game-high two assists, and backup goalie Anthony Stolarz made 34 saves to earn the win.
Flames goalie Jacob Markstrom, who started his career with the Panthers, took the loss. He made 26 saves. Yegor Sharangovich scored for Calgary.
Maple Leafs 3, Canadiens 2
Max Domi had a goal and an assist as visiting Toronto defeated Montreal.
Bobby McMann and John Tavares also scored for the Maple Leafs, who have won four of their past six games. Goaltender Ilya Samsonov made 29 saves.
Mike Matheson had a goal and an assist for the Canadiens, while Juraj Slafkovsky had two helpers. Alex Newhook also scored, and Sam Montembeault turned aside 24 shots.
Capitals 4, Blackhawks 1
Sonny Milano scored a goal in his fifth straight game and Charlie Lindgren made 31 saves to lift host Washington to a victory over Chicago.
Hendrix Lapierre, Michael Sgarbossa and Tom Wilson each scored a goal in the first period and Milano converted a two-on-one rush with Aliaksei Protas with 2:36 remaining in the second. Washington superstar captain Alex Ovechkin notched an assist on Wilson’s power-play goal to move into a tie with Hall of Famer Mark Recchi for 14th place on the all-time NHL points list with 1,533.
Tyler Johnson deflected defenseman Jarred Tinordi’s blast from the point to put Chicago on the scoreboard midway through the third period. Petr Mrazek turned aside 22 shots for the Blackhawks, who returned to their losing ways on the road after snapping a 22-game skid (0-21-1) away from home with a 5-2 victory at the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday.
Rangers 4, Blues 0
Igor Shesterkin made 26 saves in his 200th career appearance and New York tied a season high with three power-play goals and beat visiting St. Louis.
The Rangers avoided their second three-game losing streak of the season and improved to 13-3-2 in their past 17 games. New York remained four points ahead of the Carolina Hurricanes in the Metropolitan Division and earned its latest win in the team debuts of Alex Wennberg and Jack Roslovic.
The Blues dropped their third straight and fell to 6-9-1 in their past 16 since a five-game winning streak from Jan. 20-28.
Golden Knights 5, Red Wings 3
Jonathan Marchessault recorded a hat trick, including the game-winning goal with 2:44 to go, as Vegas snapped a four-game losing streak with a victory over slumping Detroit in Las Vegas.
It was the eighth hat trick of Marchessault’s career and his third of the season. He leads the team with 35 goals.
Michael Rasmussen had a goal and an assist and Shayne Gostisbehere and J.T. Compher also scored goals for Detroit, which has lost a season-high five games in a row. Moritz Seider and David Perron each added two assists, and James Reimer finished with 31 saves.
Stars 4, Kings 1
Radek Faksa and Jason Robertson scored 18 seconds apart in the second period to give visiting Dallas the lead, and it pulled away for a win against Los Angeles.
Robertson and Joe Pavelski each had a goal and an assist, Wyatt Johnston also scored and Scott Wedgewood made 26 saves for the Stars, who swept their three-game California trip and have won five in a row overall for the first time this season.
Kevin Fiala scored and Cam Talbot made 31 saves for the Kings, who had won three of four.
BASEBALL NEWS
MLB ROUNDUP: BLUE JAYS ERUPT FOR 8-RUN NINTH, CLOBBER PHILLIES
Will Robertson ripped a grand slam as part of an eight-run ninth that the visiting Toronto Blue Jays used to pummel the Philadelphia Phillies 13-5 on Saturday in Clearwater, Fla.
Eduardo Escobar had a two-run double and Payton Henry added a two-run homer as part of the Blue Jays’ big ninth, which turned a tie game into a blowout.
The Phillies had trailed 5-1 before Edmundo Sosa clubbed a grand slam of his own to knot things in the sixth. However, the Phillies mustered just three singles the rest of the way.
Brendon Little (1-0) got the win with a 1-2-3 eighth.
Twins 10, Yankees 7
Byron Buxton homered, tripled twice, drove in four runs and scored three as host Minnesota outslugged New York in Fort Myers, Fla.
Buxton did his damage against Yankees starter Nestor Cortes (0-1), who gave up six runs on nine hits and a walk in 3 1/3 innings. He struck out six.
Christian Vazquez and Willi Castro had three hits apiece for the Twins, who collected 19 overall, and Carlos Correa drove in two runs. Austin Wells opened the scoring with a two-run homer in the first for New York. The Yankees didn’t score again until the seventh, when Josh VanMeter had a two-run shot of his own.
Astros 9, Nationals 4
Jose Altuve led off the bottom of the first with a home run, Kyle Tucker smacked a three-run blast later in the frame and Houston never looked back in a victory over visiting Washington in West Palm Beach, Fla.
Yordan Alvarez added a solo shot for the Astros, who got four innings of one-run ball out of Jose Urquidy (2-0).
Nationals starter Trevor Williams (0-1) was roughed up for five runs on eight hits in three innings. Riley Adams drove in Travis Blankenhorn with a home run in the sixth for Washington.
Tigers 8, Pirates 5
Host Detroit used a four-run fourth to rally for a win against Pittsburgh in Lakeland, Fla.
Solo shots from Canaan Smith-Njigba and Henry Davis lifted the Pirates to a 4-2 edge in the third, but the Tigers stole momentum an inning later thanks in large part to Keston Hiura’s three-run homer.
Detroit’s outburst made a winner of Joey Wentz (2-1), who allowed one hit in two scoreless innings. He walked one and fanned one while watching his ERA dip to 1.29 in spring training.
Mets 9, Cardinals 3
Left-hander Sean Manaea turned in four shutout innings as visiting New York cruised past St. Louis in Jupiter, Fla.
Manaea (1-1) permitted two hits and three walks while striking out five. Francisco Lindor and William Lugo homered for the Mets, who hung nine unanswered runs on the Cardinals. Lindor also had a sacrifice fly.
St. Louis scored all of its runs in the ninth on a solo shot from Thomas Saggese and a two-run blast from Pedro Pages.
Orioles 10, Braves 3
Coby Mayo hit a two-run homer, doubled and finished with four RBIs as Baltimore defeated host Atlanta in North Port, Fla.
Dean Kremer (2-1) worked four innings for the Orioles, surrendering two runs on four hits with no walks and three strikeouts.
Atlanta left-hander Chris Sale (0-1) gave up three runs and four hits in 3 2/3 innings, with a walk and two strikeouts.
Angels 5, Guardians 4
Jake Marisnick recorded three RBIs and visiting Los Angeles held off a feverish comeback attempt from Cleveland in Goodyear, Ariz.
Marisnick had an RBI single and a two-run homer to help the Angels build a 5-0 cushion. That lead nearly evaporated, though, as the Guardians struck for all four of their runs in the bottom of the eighth.
Kyle Manzardo and Alexfri Planez had run-scoring doubles during Cleveland’s surge. Los Angeles southpaw Tyler Anderson (1-1) allowed four hits over 3 1/3 scoreless innings for the win.
Cubs 5, Rockies 0
Seven relievers combined for a three-hitter, allowing host Chicago to blank Colorado in Mesa, Ariz.
Cubs starter Thomas Pannone (1-0) gave up one hit across three innings before six relievers provided an inning apiece. All five of Chicago’s runs came in the third, starting with Cody Bellinger’s two-run double.
Jameson Hannah and Alan Trejo each hit a double for the Rockies. Dakota Hudson (1-1) was tagged for three runs on three hits in 2 1/3 innings.
Royals 6, Diamondbacks 5
Salvador Perez and Vinnie Pasquantino hit back-to-back home runs in the first to highlight Kansas City’s victory over visiting Arizona in Surprise, Ariz.
Things were tied at 4-4 after the Diamondbacks’ Kevin Newman went deep in the fourth, but Bobby Witt Jr. hit a solo shot in the home half of the inning and Freddy Fermin added an RBI double in the fifth for the Royals.
Arizona starter Tommy Henry (0-2) struggled mightily in his 3 2/3 innings, getting touched up for five runs on 10 hits. He gave up three homers.
Giants 5, Athletics 1
Wade Meckler lined a two-run single to center as part of a five-run rally in the seventh that pushed host San Francisco past Oakland in Scottsdale, Ariz.
Jacob Wilson scored on Ryan Noda’s groundout in the sixth to provide the Athletics with their only run, and it was all Giants from there.
San Francisco starter Jordan Hicks fanned six across three shutout innings, but it was Mason Black (1-0) who ended up coming away with the win. Black allowed one run on three hits in two innings of relief.
Dodgers 7, Rangers 1
Michael Grove picked up six strikeouts in 3 1/3 innings as Los Angeles blew by visiting Texas in Glendale, Ariz.
Grove (1-0) didn’t allow a run, issuing one walk and surrendering one hit. Chris Okey and Chris Owings each had a two-run home run for the Dodgers.
Yerry Rodriguez (0-2) went just two-thirds of an innings for the Rangers, giving up one run on two hits.
Reds 7, Diamondbacks 5
Jake Rogers hit a go-ahead two-run single in the top of the ninth that gave Cincinnati a win over host Arizona’s split squad in Scottsdale.
The Reds went into the final frame trailing 5-4, and Hector Rodriguez tied things up with an RBI double ahead of Rogers’ game-winning hit.
In the eighth, Jack Hurley hit an inside-the-park home run and Jordan Lawlar drove in a run with a double to provide the Diamondbacks with their 5-4 advantage. Lucas Sims (1-0) won despite blowing a save and allowing two runs and three hits in one inning.
White Sox 1, Padres 1
San Diego pitching weathered 11 hits in a tie with visiting Chicago in Peoria, Ariz.
The White Sox went 2-for-9 with runners in scoring position and left 11 on base, only scoring when Eloy Jimenez singled to plate Nicky Lopez in the fifth. Manny Machado had an RBI double in the first for the Padres.
Matt Waldron started and went 4 1/3 innings for San Diego, permitting one run on seven hits. He fanned three without a walk. White Sox counterpart Michael Soroka surrendered one run and two hits in three innings, with one walk and five strikeouts.
Mariners 7, Brewers 5
Julio Rodriguez’s three-run homer helped Seattle edge host Milwaukee in Phoenix.
The Mariners raced out to a 6-0 lead. Juan Baez tried to ignite a Brewers rally with a two-run home run in the seventh, but his blast ended up completing the scoring as Milwaukee failed to draw closer.
In a battle of regular-season rotational stalwarts, Seattle’s Luis Castillo outworked Milwaukee’s Freddy Peralta. Castillo went four scoreless innings, while Peralta logged just 2 2/3 innings, getting shelled for five runs on seven hits.
Athletics 4, Brewers 2
Four relievers combined to allow just one run on three hits in six innings as Oakland clipped visiting Milwaukee in a battle of split squads in Summerlin South, Nev.
Gerardo Reyes (1-0), Michael Kelly and Tyler Ferguson each logged a clean inning out of the bullpen for the Athletics, while Jack O’Loughlin was responsible for the one run and three hits in three innings of relief.
Armando Alvarez had a solo home run for Oakland. The Brewers’ Jeferson Quero drove in a run with a sacrifice fly.
GOLF NEWS
SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER, SHANE LOWRY TIED ATOP ARNOLD PALMER INVITATIONAL
Scottie Scheffler and Shane Lowry of Ireland survived a breezy afternoon to each shoot 2-under-par 70 and claim a share of the lead Saturday at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in Orlando, Fla.
Wyndham Clark fired a 1-under 71 to sit third, with Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama (72), Will Zalatoris (71) and Russell Henley (72) in a three-way tie for fourth.
Scheffler, who won this event in 2022, struggled on the front, going out in 38, but birdied five of his first seven holes on the back nine to surge toward the front.
Zalatoris briefly held a five-shot lead with his four birdies from Nos. 3-8 on the front, but stumbled with a bogey at No. 14 and double-bogeys at Nos. 15 and 18.
Harris English, who enters Sunday in seventh place, and Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy tied for the day’s low round, shooting 68.
McIlroy, in a tie for eighth at 5-under, moved quickly up the board with a blazing, bogey-free 30 on the back nine that included six birdies.
FORMULA ONE RACING
MAX VERSTAPPEN CRUISES TO VICTORY AT SAUDI ARABIAN GP TO EXTEND DOMINANT START TO F1 TITLE DEFENSE
Max Verstappen stayed firmly on course for another season of dominance in Formula 1 on Saturday by winning the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
Even after just two races, and despite turmoil at Red Bull, Verstappen seems in near-total control on the track as he aims for a fourth consecutive title this year. Still, he had to share the attention with 18-year-old Oliver Bearman, who was a surprise seventh in his first F1 race as a Ferrari stand-in.
“A fantastic weekend for the whole team and also for myself. I felt really good with the car,” Verstappen said.
The Dutch driver won easily ahead of his teammate Sergio Perez by 8.6 seconds on the road, 13.6 once a time penalty for Perez was factored in. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was third.
“It was a bit of a boring race because Red Bull were a bit too quick and behind we had a bit of a gap, but we took the maximum points we could today,” Leclerc said.
Verstappen started on pole and held off Leclerc at the first corner, as he did last week at the season-opener in Bahrain which he won, before quickly building his lead.
The only interruption came when Lance Stroll’s crash brought out the safety car. Verstappen came into the pits for a tire change and after the restart easily passed Lando Norris — who hadn’t stopped — to retake the lead.
Perez had a five-second penalty because Red Bull released him from a pit stop into the path of another car, but that didn’t matter since he finished far ahead of Leclerc.
Verstappen has won nine races in a row going back to last season, and 19 of the last 20 races in total. The next race in Australia on March 24 offers him the chance to match his own record of 10 consecutive wins, set last year.
Saturday’s race was the 100th podium finish of Verstappen’s career and his 56th win, a signal of just how dominant his recent title-winning seasons with Red Bull have been.
Bearman was seventh for Ferrari, one day after the British driver was called up as an emergency replacement for Carlos Sainz Jr., who needed an operation to treat appendicitis.
Oscar Piastri took fourth for McLaren, with Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso fifth and George Russell sixth for Mercedes.
Behind Bearman, McLaren’s Lando Norris held off Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton in a fight for eighth place. Nico Hulkenberg was 10th for Haas’ first point in F1 since the Singapore Grand Prix in September.
Verstappen’s second win of the season followed speculation over his future at Red Bull.
Verstappen had suggested Friday that he might reconsider his relationship with the team if his mentor Helmut Marko were to leave Red Bull, but Marko told German broadcaster Sky Sport on Saturday that he was staying.
“I always said that, what is most important is that we work together as a team and that everyone keeps the peace,” Verstappen said after the race.
“And that’s what we, I think, we all agree on within the team. So hopefully from now onwards that is also fully the case and everyone is trying to focus in the same direction. And I think the positive out of all this is that it didn’t hurt our performances, so it’s a very strong team.”
The team’s parent company last week dismissed a complaint of alleged misconduct by Red Bull team principal Horner toward a team employee. Verstappen’s father Jos has been sharply critical of Horner, claiming the team could “explode” if he remains in charge.
The employee whose complaint sparked the investigation has since been suspended, a person with information on the matter told The Associated Press on Thursday. The person requested anonymity because Red Bull hasn’t revealed details of the investigation.
INYDCAR
NEWGARDEN GIVES ROGER PENSKE A BREAK WITH A POLE-WINNING RUN AS INDYCAR LEADERSHIP IS QUESTIONED
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Josef Newgarden won the pole for IndyCar’s season-opening race on Saturday, giving Team Penske something to celebrate as its leadership faced criticism throughout the paddock for its management of the series.
It made for a weird day on what is supposed to be a celebratory weekend as IndyCar got back on track after a six month offseason. Instead, the mood was muted.
Reigning IndyCar champion Alex Palou was eliminated in the first round of qualifying, as was Alexander Rossi, who believed he was impeded by another driver and series officials failed to act. Callum Ilott, the fill-in for injured David Malukas, also was eliminated, joining Rossi as two Arrow McLaren Racing drivers knocked out.
Rahal Letterman Lanigan saw Graham Rahal and Pietro Fittipaldi eliminated in the first round, as was Kyle Kirkwood, a two-time race winner last season for Andretti Global.
It all created a shootout between Newgarden and Felix Rosenqvist for the pole for Sunday’s opener. Rosenqvist qualified second in his debut with Meyer Shank Racing, while Pato O’Ward of McLaren was third, followed by Colton Herta of Andretti.
Romain Grosjean of Juncos Hollinger Racing was fifth in his debut with his new team, and Marcus Ericsson finalized the Fast Six shootout in his debut with Andretti.
Newgarden won four races last year including the Indy 500 but failed to score a single pole.
“This is a rock star team,” Newgarden said Saturday. “I don’t want to get too excited about it. We should enjoy it, but we’ve got to get through tomorrow. Tomorrow is what pays the bills.”
Off the track, there is dissension throughout the paddock as multiple team owners are growing restless with Penske Entertainment’s management of the series. Michael Andretti went so far as to call on Roger Penske to sell the series if he doesn’t invest the capital needed to elevate IndyCar’s profile.
“I think there’s a lot of people on the sidelines thinking, ‘This is a diamond in the rough if you do it right.’ But what you need is big money behind it to get it to that level, and if he’s not willing to do it, I think he should step aside and let someone else buy it,” Andretti said.
His public criticism enraged Penske executives, who have had multiple conversations with Andretti officials since his Friday comments. Penske owns both IndyCar and Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Andretti wasn’t alone in venting; Brad Hollinger, co-owner of tiny Juncos Hollinger Racing, on Saturday outpointed the differences between the energy surrounding a Formula 1 race versus the toned-down promotion of IndyCar events.
“We have by far the best product, the racing is spectacular. It’s phenomenal. Just compare it to what’s going on literally right now over in Saudi Arabia — we already know who is going to win the race, who is going to come in second and third,” Hollinger said of Max Verstappen’s 19th win in the last 20 F1 races.
“Here you can have the top 15 to 20 guys fighting for the top position. But the way it is packaged and promoted needs to be dramatically enhanced. And the only way to do that is to get more money into the program.”
Hollinger called for “meaningfully more investment in marketing and social media.
“You go to any race in the world in Formula 1 and the second you get off the airplane, you know a race is there,” Hollinger continued. “Any race that we have, you get off the plane, and half the people don’t even know that there’s a race at the racetrack.”
Asked if he’d shared his thoughts with Penske, Hollinger said, “in so many words, yes,” but he found that Penske was “intensely focused on the Indy 500, and I understand that, I get that.
“But we have 16 other races and they are exciting, they are tremendous, and could explode (IndyCar).”
Penske received support from Chip Ganassi, his top rival in the series. Ganassi outpointed that Penske took ownership of IndyCar and IMS just two months before the COVID-19 shutdown and he kept the series afloat and continued to pay teams their bonus money even as races were being held without spectators.
“Anybody that can run the Indianapolis Motor Speedway with no fans in the stands? He’s got my vote,” Ganassi said. “He coughed up the money to buy the place, and he coughed it up during COVID and kept the series running. I’m going to give him a pass for a couple years. Let him get back on his feet. I’m not going to sharpshoot him. I don’t want to forget about COVID so quickly and all the effects that had.”
Mark Miles, the CEO of Penske Entertainment, said IndyCar lacks the budgets of F1 and NASCAR and any comparisons are unfair.
“Roger will tell you he’s serious, and we’re looking at ways we can increase our growth more dramatically, but we’re not going to make the same investments that might be made if we had $1 billion a year in TV revenue,” Miles said.
In IndyCar’s attempt at damage control, it announced that its 75-second promotional video has been viewed more that 1.9 million times on YouTube. IndyCar also noted that seven different teams were in the top eight of Friday practice — five different teams comprised the Fast Six qualifying shootout — and Jon Bon Jovi will narrate the race intro for NBC’s broadcast.
Bon Jovi is also riding in the “Fastest Seat in Sports” as he will join Helio Castroneves in IndyCar’s two-seater.
IndyCar said merchandise sales are up 30% this weekend and the crowd for the 20th running of the St. Pete race is expected to be the largest in race history.
NASCAR
LARSON RIDING MOMENTUM INTO NASCAR’S SPRING RACE AT PHOENIX RACEWAY
AVONDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Kyle Larson spent most of the afternoon near the front of the pack during the season finale at Phoenix Raceway, putting himself in position for a second NASCAR Cup Series championship in three years.
When his car lost some of its balance, Larson’s championship hopes wobbled away.
Four months later, Larson returns to Phoenix for another chance to take the checkered flag and build on a strong start to the 2024 season..
“Our team has done a really good job this year of executing with the race cars that we bring,” Larson said. “Our pit crew has been doing a great job. It takes everything to be up front and I think that’s how we can continue our momentum.”
Larson has plenty heading into Sunday’s 312-mile race on Phoenix Raceway’s one-mile tri-oval after winning at Las Vegas last week.
The Hendrick Motorsports driver and the rest of the field will face a few adjustments in the desert.
Hoping to create more competitive racing, NASCAR developed a new short track aerodynamic package for road courses and tracks of a mile or less. The hope is the package along with new, thicker tire treads will create more opportunities for passing on tracks that haven’t had much in the past.
Six teams got a chance to test the new package at Phoenix Raceway in December and the rest of the field got their first taste after unloading this weekend.
“I would say that it was probably a little bit better in traffic,” said Denny Hamlin, who will start on the pole in Sunday’s race. “Very small from what I could tell. Nothing earth-shattering,” he said. “If you got caught behind somebody, you would really get caught behind someone, but that is typical of what we’ve had before.”
The last race at Phoenix, in November, was a four-man battle for the title between Larson, Ryan Blaney, William Byron and Christopher Bell.
Larson, the Cup Series champion in 2021, was first among the Cup contenders off the final pit stop, but got passed by Blaney. Larson never caught him, finishing third, while Blaney won his first NASCAR championship by finishing second in the race behind Ross Chastain.
Larson returns to Phoenix after a strong run at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
The 31-year-old controlled the race and held off Tyler Reddick for his 24th career Cup victory. Larson’s win made Chevrolet a perfect 3 for 3 to start the season and gave Hendrick Motorsports its second win in 2024, with Byron’s Daytona 500 victory.
Larson won his first NASCAR championship at Phoenix in 2021 and has 12 top-10 finishes in 19 starts at the track.
“Phoenix has been a pretty decent track for our team the last few years since I’ve been with Hendrick Motorsports,” said Larson, who qualified 17th for Sunday’s race.
Blaney clearly has good memories at Phoenix after wrapping up his first NASCAR championship in the fall. The Penske driver has finished outside the top 10 just once in his last 10 races and has been in the top four five straight times, including three consecutive runner-up finishes.
But, for all the successes he has had in Phoenix, Blaney has yet to take the checkered flag at the tri-oval.
“It’s a place that’s been really good to us, our whole group, really, for a long time, and especially the last two or three years,” he said. “I’ve had a few seconds there in a row, so hopefully we can figure out how to get one spot better.”
INDIANA SPORTS RELEASES
INDIANA PACERS BASKETBALL
PACERS’ MATHURIN WILL HAVE RIGHT SHOULDER SURGERY AND MISS THE REST OF THE SEASON
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indiana Pacers guard Bennedict Mathurin will have surgery to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder and will miss the rest of the season.
The Pacers said Saturday that the procedure will be performed next week in Los Angeles by Dr. Neal ElAttrache.
Mathurin was averaging 14.5 points in his second NBA season. He was the MVP of the Rising Stars Challenge at All-Star weekend, which was played in Indianapolis.
A first-team selection to the All-Rookie team last season, Mathurin had 19 points Tuesday in a victory at Dallas before he was injured.
The Pacers added that he was expected to fully recover in time for the 2024-25 season.
GAME PREVIEW: PACERS AT MAGIC
The Indiana Pacers (35-29) will be seeking out their first win over the Orlando Magic (37-27) this season on Sunday night.
When the Blue and Gold take on the Magic for the third and final time, it will have been roughly two and a half months since the teams last faced off. As of recently, the Pacers are working through a slump coming out of the All-Star break. Though winning their first two games back, they now have lost four of their last six games coming into Sunday night’s matchup.
Though on paper, Indiana ranks number one in the league in points (123.3 ppg) and assists (30.8 apg) to Orlando’s 110.9 points and 24.5 assists per game, two unexpected stories were written in the previous matchups between the teams when Orlando defeated Indiana in both contests at Gainbridge Fieldhouse earlier this season. The Magic make up for what they lack with their defensive strength, ranking fourth in the league with a 111.3 defensive rating.
On Thursday, the Pacers suffered a close 113-111 defeat to the Minnesota Timberwolves at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Despite shooting 51.2 percent (42-of-82) from the field to Minnesota’s 46.9 percent (46-of-98), the Pacers were ultimately taken out by the best defense in the league who outscored Indiana 66-60 in the paint and outrebounded the home team 48-39.
Pascal Siakam contributed 24 points on 10-of-20 shooting, while Tyrese Haliburton followed close behind with 23 points and 13 assists. In addition, Jalen Smith added 14 points off the bench on a perfect 5-of-5 shooting clip.
Siakam has recorded six 20-point games in the Pacers’ most recent nine matchups and has averaged 20.6 points in his 23 games in a Pacers uniform. Myles Turner has also added significant minutes for the Blue and Gold, contributing four double-doubles and averaging 17 points per game in the Pacers’ most recent eight matchups.
The Pacers will have had two days of rest entering their matchup at Orlando.
The Magic enter the matchup following an unusual 98-74 loss to the New York Knicks Friday night. As of Feb. 14, Orlando had won eight of their last nine games entering Friday night’s contest and were averaging 110 points per game, but ultimately their 34.2 percent shooting (27-of-79) sealed their fate against the Knicks.
All-Star forward Paolo Banchero still ended the contest with a near double-double, recording 23 points and nine rebounds to go along with four blocks. This season, Banchero has averaged a team-leading 22.9 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. When playing Indiana, the forward has averaged 29 points in the two matchups between the teams, supported by a 34-point outing in their most recent contest.
The sibling duo of starting forward Franz Wagner and reserve center Moritz Wagner has been a must-watch this season. Franz Wagner is averaging 20.3 points and 5.5 rebounds per game this season, while his brother ranks 10th in the NBA in points off the bench averaging 11.2 points and 4.5 rebounds per game.
In addition, the Magic have recently jumped to a fifth place ranking in the Eastern Conference, with Indiana holding out at eighth place.
Projected Starters
Pacers: G – Tyrese Haliburton, G – Andrew Nembhard, F – Aaron Nesmith, F – Pascal Siakam, C – Myles Turner
Magic: G – Anthony Black, G – Gary Harris, F – Franz Wagner, F – Paolo Banchero, C – Wendell Carter Jr.
Injury Report
Pacers: Bennedict Mathurin – out (right shoulder sprain), Doug McDermott – out (right calf strain)
Magic: Wendell Carter Jr. – questionable (sore right knee), Jett Howard – out (G League assignment)
Last Meeting
Dec. 23, 2023: Indiana fell to the Orlando Magic for the second time in a month when they were defeated, 117-110, at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in the most recent matchup between the two teams.
Though trailing by 14 points at haltime, 15 third-quarter points from Myles Turner got Indiana back into the game just in time for the start of the fourth frame. The Pacers got close to overtaking the Magic when they tied the game with 10:27 remaining, but Orlando followed up with seven unanswered points to widen the gap again. The Magic held the lead for the remainder of the matchup.
Tyrese Haliburton recorded his 20th double-double of the season as he ended the night with 29 points and 15 assists. Turner followed behind with 24 points and seven rebounds, Buddy Hield notched 20 points and Andrew Nembhard added 17 points.
Indiana went 15-of-34 (44.1 percent) from 3-point range while the Magic made only six 3-pointers on 18 attempts (33.3 percent). The Magic found significant help from the charity stripe as they shot 33-of-41, while the Pacers went 9-of-13.
The Magic were led by Paolo Banchero’s 34 points on 11-of-20 shooting from the floor. Franz Wagner followed behind with 24 points and six rebounds, while Fishers native Gary Harris recorded 15 points.
Noteworthy
This is the third and final matchup between the Orlando Magic and Indiana Pacers this season.
Pacers forward Doug McDermott has missed five straight games due to a right calf strain.
Magic center Goga Bitadze was selected by the Pacers as the 18th pick in the 2019 NBA Draft and played 170 games in Indiana from 2019-23.
Orlando guard Gary Harris graduated from Hamilton Southeastern High School in Fishers, Indiana.
Broadcast Information (TV and Radio Listings >>)
TV: Bally Sports Indiana – Chris Denari (play-by-play), Quinn Buckner (analyst), Jeremiah Johnson (sideline reporter/host)
Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan – Mark Boyle (play-by-play), Pat Boylan (studio host)
Tickets
The Pacers will be back at Gainbridge Fieldhouse to tip off a three-game homestand against DeMar DeRozan and the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday, March 13 at 7:00 PM ET.
FUEL HOCKEY
FUEL FACE KOMETS IN FORT WAYNE ON SUNDAY
INDIANAPOLIS- The Fuel will finish their weekend in Fort Wayne against the Komets on Sunday afternoon, in hopes to gain some momentum and keep their second place spot in the Central division standings.
LAST TIME OUT
The last time these two teams met was last Sunday when the Fuel visited Fort Wayne and fell to them 3-2 despite outshooting them 42-26. Colin Bilek and Seamus Malone were the Fuel’s goalscorers while Bryan Lemos had an assist on each goal. Fort Wayne scored two power play goals so special teams will remain important.
STANDINGS COUNTER
The Fuel currently sit in second place in the Central division with 66 points, just two points ahead of the Wheeling Nailers and three points ahead of Fort Wayne. The Kalamazoo Wings are not too far behind with 61 points as well. The playoff race is still incredibly tight between these four teams and every divisional game makes a huge difference.
BUZZING BILEK
Colin Bilek has been on a tear with the Fuel lately. He leads the team in power play goals with nine and has seven points in their last six games. He comes into this game on a two-game goal streak and leads the team in scoring against the Komets.
INDY ELEVEN
INDY ELEVEN FALLS IN SEASON OPENER AT OAKLAND
HAYWARD, Calif. (Saturday, March 9, 2024) – Indy Eleven fell, 2-1, to USL Championship Western Conference opponent Oakland Roots SC to open the season on the road. It was the lone matchup of the 2024 season for the clubs.
It was Oakland that got on the board first in the match as Jeciel Cedeno found the back of the net in just the third minute of action for the early lead.
The remainder of the first half saw offensive dominance by Indy Eleven with a 13-2 edge in shots, including 4-1 in shots on target, and the equalizer form Indy’s preseason goal leader Jack Blake in the 43rd minute, by way of a cross in from Younes Boudadi.
Oakland scored early again in the second frame as Bryan Tamacas found himself alone inside the 18 with an opportunity in front of goal in what would be the match winner.
The Boys in Blue registered 20 shots in the match, equaling their single-match high in 2023. Blake had a match-high six, while Augi Williams added four.
With the loss, the Boys in Blue fall to 3-3-1 in USL Championship season openers, with all matches coming on the road.
Indy continues its road swing next Saturday at Memphis 901 FC at 4 p.m. ET before returning home March 23 for its home opener against Sacramento Republic FC.
USL Championship Regular Season
Oakland Roots SC 2:1 Indy Eleven
Saturday, March 9, 2024 – 10 p.m. ET
Pioneer Stadium – Hayward, Calif.
2024 USL Championship Records
Indy Eleven: 0-1-0 (-1)
Oakland Roots SC: 1-0-0 (+1)
Scoring Summary
OAK – Jeciel Cedeno 3’
IND – Jack Blake (Younes Boudadi) 43’
OAK – Bryan Tamacas (Irakoze Donasiyano) 51’
Discipline Summary
IND – Jack Blake (caution) 24’
IND – Karsen Henderlong (caution) 25’
IND – Callum Chapman-Page (caution) 41’
IND – Elliot Collier (caution) 70’
OAK – Baboucarr Njie (caution) 89’
IND – Cam Lindley (caution) 90+8’
OAK – Irakoze Donasiyano (caution) 90+8’
Indy Eleven line-up (4-3-3): Yannik Oettl, Aedan Stanley, Adrian Diz Pe, Callum Chapman-Page, Younes Boudadi (Josh O’Brien 75’), Jack Blake, Tyler Gibson (Captain) (Roberto Molina 86’), Cam Lindley, Sebastian Guenzatti, Augi Williams, Karsen Henderlong (Elliot Collier 66’)
Indy Subs: Hunter Sulte, Ethan O’Brien, Diego Sanchez
Oakland line-up: Paul Blanchette, Niall Logue, Gagi Margvelashvili, Camden Riley, Irakoze Donasiyano, Neveal Hackshaw (Napo Matsoso 71’), Baboucarr Njie (Justin Rasmussen 90+1’), Bryan Tamacas, Johnny Rodriguez, Miche-Naider Chery (Daniel Gomez 45’), Jeciel Cedeno
Oakland Subs: Ilya Alekseev, Javier Bedolla-Vera, Thomas Camier, Etsgar Cruz, Trayvone Reid, Timothy Syrel
INDIANA SOFTBALL
COPELAND, STONE LEAD HOOSIERS PAST OAKLAND
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. ––––– A brilliant pitching performance from Brianna Copeland and a fourth-inning two-RBI single from Sarah Stone helped the Indiana softball program remain unblemished at home with a 3-0 win over Oakland on Saturday (March 9) at Andy Mohr Field to open the Indiana Invite.
With the win, the Hoosiers improve their season record to 16-4 with a 5-0 mark at home in 2024.
INDIANA 3, OAKLAND 0
KEY MOMENTS
• Copeland stranded two runners on base in the first inning and only allowed five base runners for the entire game.
• Copeland pitched around a leadoff single in the fourth inning, before Sarah Stone drove in the opening runs of the game with a two-RBI single in the bottom half of the frame.
• Kinsey Mitchell singled to drive in the third run of the game for Indiana
• Copeland struck out the final batter of the game to seal the win.
NOTABLES
• In the circle, Copeland (9-3) struck out eight, allowed four hits and walked just one in the victory. She didn’t allow a base runner to reach third base in the contest.
• Copeland also posted the lone multi-hit game for the Hoosiers with a pair of singles.
• Stone posted her third multi-RBI game of the season and had the lone extra base hit of the game with a double.
• Taylor Minnick pushed her reached base streak to 11 games
• Mitchell was on base twice with a single and a walk.
UP NEXT
Indiana continues the Indiana Invite on Sunday with a single game against IUPUI at 1:30 p.m. The game will be carried on BTN+ and via live audio at IUHoosiers.com/audio. The Sunday schedule will also feature games between Dayton and Oakland (11 a.m.) and Dayton and IUPUI (4 p.m.).
INDIANA WRESTLING
ALL TEN HOOSIERS ALIVE AFTER SESSION I OF BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIPS
COLLEGE PARK, Md. –––– It was a busy start to the 2024 Big Ten Championships as the first round, quarterfinals and the first consolation round were completed through Session I.
After Session I, all ten Hoosiers are still alive in either the championship or consolation brackets of their weight class.
Five Hoosiers won their opening round match, including No. 8 Graham Rooks (149), No. 3 Brayton Lee (157), No. 9 Tyler Lillard (165), No. 10 Roman Rogotzke (184) and No. 6 Nick Willham (285).
Lee was the lone Hoosier to advance to the semifinals. That marks the second year in a row that Indiana has put a wrestler in a Big Ten semifinal (Graham Rooks, 2023).
In the opening round, Rooks won a thriller of an opening match against No. 9 Drew Roberts (Minnesota) in Sudden Victory, 7-4, off a late takedown in the third period and one in overtime.
Right after Rooks won, Lee won a decisive first match over No. 14 Logan Swaw (Illinois) by tech fall, 21-5 (4:21). Lillard followed up with another bonus-point victory, pinning No. 8 Bryce Hepner (Ohio State) (6:56).
No. 10 Roman Rogotzke held off No. 7 Shane Liegel (Wisconsin) in a 2-0 decision and No. 6 Nick Willham defeated No. 11 Jack Jessen (Northwestern) by decision, 4-2.
In the quarters, Lee got the best of No. 6 Chase Saldate (Michigan State), earning two first period takedowns and holding Saldate off to win in a 6-5 decision.
In the opening round of consolation matches, No. 14 Blaine Frazier (125) won handedly over No. 11 Justin Cardani by decision, 6-0. No. 10 Cayden Rooks (133), No. 9 Dan Fongaro (141), No. 8 DJ Washington (174) and No. 10 Gabe Sollars (197) all advanced on bye in the first round of consolation matches.
Through Session I, Indiana has scored 16.0 points as a team and currently is in tenth place in the team race.
TEAM SCORES(THROUGH SESSION I)
Penn State (83.5)
Michigan (70.5)
Iowa (57.5)
Nebraska (46.5)
Minnesota (34.5)
Rutgers (31.5)
Ohio State (28.5)
Maryland (20.5)
Wisconsin (17.0)
Indiana (16.0)
Michigan State (11.5)
Illinois (10.5)
Northwestern (7.5)
Purdue (4.0)
FULL RESULTS (THROUGH SESSION I)
125 – No. 14 Blaine Frazier:
-Round 1: No. 3 Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) def. No. 14 Blaine Frazier (IU): Fall (1:31)
-Consi R1: No. 14 Blaine Frazier (IU) def. No. 11 Justin Cardani (Illinois): Dec. 6-0
133 – No. 10 Cayden Rooks:
-Round 1: No. 7 Braxton Brown (Maryland) def. No. 10 Cayden Rooks (IU): Dec. 6-5
-Consi R1: No. 10 Cayden Rooks (IU) advanced on bye.
141 – No. 9 Dan Fongaro:
-Round 1: No. 8 Jordan Hamdan (MSU) def. No. 9 Dan Fongaro (IU): Dec. 4-2
-Consi R1: No. 9 Dan Fongaro (IU) advanced on bye.
149 – No. 8 Graham Rooks:
-Round 1: No. 8 Graham Rooks (IU) def. No. 9 Drew Roberts (MINN): SV-1, 7-4
-Quarterfinal: No. 1 Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) def. No. 8 Graham Rooks (IU): Fall (3:56)
157 – No. 3 Brayton Lee:
-Round 1: No. 3 Brayton Lee (IU) def. No. 14 Logan Swaw (ILL): TF, 21-5 (4:21)
-Quarterfinal: No. 3 Brayton Lee (IU) def. No. 6 Chase Saldate (MSU): Dec. 6-5
165 – No. 9 Tyler Lillard:
-Round 1: No. 9 Tyler Lillard (IU) def. No. 8 Bryce Hepner (OSU): Fall (6:56)
-Quarterfinal: No. 1 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) def. No. 9 Tyler Lillard (IU): TF, 17-2 (5:48)
174 – No. 8 DJ Washington:
-Round 1: No. 9 Andrew Sparks (MINN) def. No. 8 DJ Washington (IU): Dec. 10-5
-Consi R1: No. 8 DJ Washington (IU) advanced on bye.
184 – No. 10 Roman Rogotzke:
-Round 1: No. 10 Roman Rogotzke (IU) def. No. 7 Shane Liegel (Wisconsin): Dec. 2-0
-Quarterfinal: No. 2 Lenny Pinto (NEB) def. No. 10 Roman Rogotzke (IU): Dec. 14-7
197 – No. 10 Gabe Sollars:
-Round 1: No. 7 John Poznanski (RUT) def. No. 10 Gabe Sollars (IU): Dec. 6-2
-Consi R1: No. 10 Gabe Sollars (IU) advanced on bye.
285 – No. 6 Nick Willham:
-Round 1: No. 6 Nick Willham (IU) def. No. 11 Jack Jessen (NU): Dec. 4-2
-Quarterfinal: No. 3 Lucas Davison (MICH) def. No. 6 Nick Willham (IU): Dec. 4-0
INDIANA MEN’S BASKETBALL
INDIANA BASKETBALL GAME NOTES – GAME 31 VS. MICHIGAN STATE
Opening Tip
• Indiana University is set to close the regular season in its 124th season of competition in men’s basketball on Sunday, March 10, against Michigan State. The Hoosiers (17-13, 9-10 B1G) will take on the Spartans (18-12, 10-9 B1G) at 4:30 p.m. ET at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall on CBS.
• The program will take part in the annual Senior Day festivities, including the 51st edition of senior speeches, following the game.
• Michigan State, under the guidance of Hall of Fame head coach Tom Izzo, are led by fifth-year senior guard Tyson Walker. He ranks fifth in the Big Ten in scoring at 18.0 points per night and third in steals at 1.9 per contest. He is shooting 44.4% (199-of-448) from the floor, 36.4% (51-of-140) from behind the arc, and 73.0% (73-of-100) from the free throw line.
Game Information
Sunday, March 10, 2024 • 4:30 p.m. ET
Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) • Bloomington, Ind.
TV: CBS (Spero Dedes, Jim Spanarkel)
Radio: IU Radio Network (Don Fischer, Errek Suhr, John Herrick)
Series History: Indiana leads, 72-69
Last Meeting: MSU 80, IU 65 on Feb. 21, 2023, in East Lansing
Series History
• Indiana holds a 71-59 series lead over Michigan State. The Hoosiers have won three of the last four played at home.
• The programs split the two matchups last season, each winning on their home floors. At SSAH, IU claimed an 82-69 win behind 31 points, 15 rebounds, and five blocked shots from All-American forward Trayce Jackson-Davis.
• Head coach Mike Woodson averaged 21.4 points in his eight career contests against the Spartans.
Last Time Out
• Sophomore center Kel’el Ware posted a 26-point, 11-rebound double-double to go along with three assists, three blocks, and one steal in Indiana’s 70-58 victory at Minnesota on March 6.
• Freshman forward Mackenzie Mgbako continued his hot-offensive streak with 15 points on 3-of-4 shooting from the 3-point line. He has averaged 17.0 points per game over his last six outings.
• Senior guard Trey Galloway notched his first career double-double with 13 points, 11 assists, and a career-best five steals.
• The Hoosiers held Minnesota to 22-of-57 (38.6%) from the floor and 5-of-26 (19.2%) from the 3-point line. Offensively, Indiana recorded 28 assists on 30 made buckets.
Follow the Gallo-Way
• Senior guard Trey Galloway is one of seven players in the Big Ten to average at least 10.0 points, 4.5 assists, and 1.0 steal per game. He joins A.J. Hoggard (Michigan State), Braden Smith (Purdue), Boo Buie (Northwestern), Ace Baldwin Jr. (Penn State), Tony Perkins (Iowa), and Dug McDaniel (Michigan) on the exclusive list.
• Galloway has dished out 105 total assists (5.5 per game) in Big Ten play to go against just 44 turnovers (2.29 assist-to-turnover ratio). He is tied for second (Bobby Wilkerson, 1975-76) on the IU single-season Big Ten assists list with 105. He trails only Quinn Buckner (106) from the 1974-75 season.
• He handed out a career-high 12 helpers against Northwestern (Feb. 18) and Wisconsin (Feb. 27) to become the first Hoosier since Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas (1980-81) to dish out 12-plus assists in multiple games in a single season. For his career, the Hoosiers are 15-6 in the 21 games ‘Gallo’ has handed out at least five dimes.
• He is averaging a career-best 10.8 points per game, including a career-high 28 points against No. 2/2 Kansas (Dec. 16). He converted 12-of-17 shots in the contest. He scored a Big Ten career-high 25 points (19 in the second half) at Ohio State (Feb. 6) while leading IU to an 18-point comeback victory.
Big Man Transformation
• Sophomore center Kel’el Ware, a transfer from Oregon, has upped his scoring (from 6.6 points to 15.7), rebounds (4.1 to 9.7), assists (0.5 to 1.5), and field goal percentage (45.7% to 59.4%) in his second season. He leads the Hoosiers in rebounds and blocks in 32 minutes per game.
• Ware has scored at least 10 points in 22 games this year after producing just eight such games as a rookie. The 7-footer has ripped down at least 10 boards 14 times this season, including four games over 15 boards.
• In 16 conference games, Ware is averaging a team-best 16.2 points on 62.6% (114-of-182) shooting from the floor and 50.0% (11-of-22) from the 3-point line. He is also averaging 10.5 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per night. He is one of two players (Zach Edey, Purdue) to average a double-double in B1G play.
• Ware tallied a career-high 28 points on 12-of-13 shooting from the floor in an 89-76 win over Harvard (Nov. 26) in Indianapolis. The 92.3% shooting split marked the highest by a Hoosier with at least 10 made field goals this century.
• Against Northwestern, Ware posted 22 points, 16 rebounds, and four blocked shots. He is one of seven players across Division I hoops this season to produce a line with at least 20 points, 15 rebounds, and four blocks.
• Ware tallied 27 points, 11 rebounds, and a career-high five blocked shots against Wisconsin on Feb. 27 to become just the second Division I player to post a 25-point, 10-rebound, 5-block game this season. He made 11-of-12 shots in the contest.
Mack Attack
• Freshman forward Mackenzie Mgbako has made a team-high 46 3-pointers on 34.3% shooting this season. Over the last six games he is averaging 17.0 points on .472/.429/.704 shooting splits.
• The consensus top-10 recruit is averaging 13.6 points and 3.8 rebounds per game in Big Ten play, both figures rank third on the Hoosiers. He has reached double figures in the scoring column in 21 of the last 24 games and scored at least 25 points in three of his last six starts.
• The Roselle Catholic graduate scored 20 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the floor against Northwestern (Feb. 18). Three days later against Nebraska (Feb. 21), Mgbako posted 22 points to go along with seven rebounds. He posted his first career double-double with 12 points and a career-high 12 rebounds at No. 10/11 Illinois (Jan. 27). Mgbako added a career-best 24 points at Maryland (March 3) on 4-of-8 shooting from the 3-point line.
• Among freshmen in the Big Ten, Mgbako is first in total points (364), points per game (12.1), and free throws made (82), second in made 3-pointers (46), and third in total rebounds (117).
Double-Doubles Carry IU in the Twin Cities
• Sophomore center Kel’el Ware (26 points, 11 rebounds) and senior guard Trey Galloway (13 points, 11 assists) each produced double-doubles in IU’s 70-58 victory over Minnesota on March 6.
• The Hoosiers handed out 28 assists on 30 made field goals. The assist total marked the most by a Hoosier team on the road since posting 29 at Western Illinois on Nov. 26, 2005. The last B1G program to chart at least 28 assists in a road conference game was Purdue at Ohio State on Feb. 7, 1998.
IU Comes Back to Beat Maryland in College Park
• Indiana, who trailed 43-33 at the half, hit 12-of-14 shots to open the second stanza and outscored the Terps 50-35 over the final 20 minutes to collect an 83-78 win at Maryland on March 3.
• Freshman forward Mackenzie Mgbako scored a career-best 24 points on 4-of-8 shooting from the 3-point line. He scored 18 in the second half. Sixth-year senior guard Xavier Johnson posted 13 points, six assists, and three rebounds in 31 minutes off the bench.
Double Double, Double Double (CAREER)
Payton Sparks: 22; last vs. Toledo, 3/3/23
Kel’el Ware: 13; last at Minnesota, 3/6/24
Xavier Johnson: 4; last vs. Arizona, 12/10/22
Anthony Walker: 4; last at Clemson, 2/27/21
Malik Reneau: 2; last at Ohio State, 2/7/24
Mackenzie Mgbako: 1; at Illinois, 1/27/24
Trey Galloway: 1; at Minnesota, 3/6/24
Twenty Piece (CAREER)
Xavier Johnson: 21; last vs. North Carolina, 11/30/22
Payton Sparks: 9; last vs. Ohio, 3/9/23
Kel’el Ware: 9; last at Minnesota, 3/6/24
Malik Reneau: 7; last at Penn State, 2/24/24
Trey Galloway: 3; last at Ohio State, 2/7/24
Mackenzie Mgbako: 3; last at Maryland, 3/3/24
INDIANA BASEBALL
OFFENSE GOES QUIET IN SATURDAY DEFEAT
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – After a lead-off home run from junior outfielder Nick Mitchell in the bottom of the first inning, the Indiana Baseball team (8-5) was held scoreless the rest of the way, falling to Troy 8-1 on Saturday afternoon at Bart Kaufman Field.
IU threatened in the bottom of the eighth, loading the bases before junior third baseman Josh Pyne grounded into a fielder’s choice (5-4) to end the frame. Will Butcher hit a three-run home run in the top of the ninth, his third long ball of the day, to put the game on ice in the weekend opener.
Sophomore Connor Foley (L, 1-1) and sixth-year senior Ty Bothwell managed the Troy lineup through eight innings, allowing just three runs before the Trojans struck for five in the ninth. Four runs in the ninth were charged to Bothwell with the other one charged to sophomore reliever Evan Whiteaker.
The two teams finish out their weekend series tomorrow with a scheduled doubleheader. First pitch in the opening game is set for 11:00 AM. The second game will start approximately 30 minutes after the conclusion of the first.
Scoring Recap
Bottom First
Nick Mitchell opened the score early in the ballgame. After the working the count full, Mitchell drove an inside fastball over the wall in right field for his first home run as a Hoosier.
Indiana 1, Troy 0
Top Third
Troy first baseman Will Butcher got hold of a monster two-run home run, sending a fastball from IU starting pitcher Connor Foley over the bullpen in left field.
Troy 2, Indiana 1
Top Fifth
In his next time around the order, Butcher got the best of IU reliever Ty Bothwell. He hit a ball to left-center field for a solo home run.
Troy 3, Indiana 1
Top Ninth
For the third time in four at-bats, Butcher used a short approach to get a hold of a breaking ball from Ty Bothwell, crushing a three-run long ball into the bullpen in left field. Not to be outdone, Tremayne Cobb Jr., the first batter to face Evan Whiteaker, sent a ball into the wind stream that carried for a two-run home run to right field.
Indiana 8, Troy 1
Notes to Know
• Junior infielder Brock Tibbitts recorded the 161st and 162nd hits of his collegiate career on Saturday. He also extended his streak of consecutive starts, without missing a game, to 132 games.
• Sophomore pitcher Connor Foley struck out six batters. He’s fanned at least six batters in all four starts this year and has 27 strikeouts on the season.
• Nick Mitchell’s leadoff home run was the first, in either the top or bottom of the first, since Phillip Glasser did so on May 12th, 2023 against Purdue.
Top Hoosier Performers
#9 Tibbitts, Brock
2-4
#20 Mitchell, Nick
1-4, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1 R
Up Next
IU and Troy will reconvene for a Sunday doubleheader at Bart Kaufman Field, the first two-game day for the Hoosiers this season. Both games will be available via BTN+ or can be heard on the Indiana Sports Radio Network via
PURDUE SOFTBALL
BOILERMAKERS FALL DESPITE 6-RUN INNING VS. #12 FLORIDA STATE
FORT MYERS, Fla. – The Purdue softball squad opened the game with a six-run first inning vs. No. 12 Florida State. After holding the lead through the first three innings, the Seminoles came back to win the game, 9-15.
Purdue’s six runs in the first frame tie as the most in an inning by the Boilermakers this season (last: opening weekend vs. South Dakota on 2/9).
A hot start by the Boilermakers included a six-run first inning to put the team up 6-1. After freshman lead-off Moriah Polar walked to open Purdue’s at-bat, a two-run home run by Tyrina Jones gave Purdue the lead. A pair of doubles by Alivia Meeks (RBI scoring Sage Scarmardo) and Kiara Dillon (two RBI scoring Hailey Hayes and Ashlynn Campbell) along with a run by Meeks rounded out the first inning.
The Boilermakers added three runs in the bottom of the seventh, with a run by Dillon and a two RBI double by Gossett, scoring Kyndall Bailey and Scarmardo.
Purdue totaled four doubles in the game, with three coming over the first two innings and the final in the seventh to tie the team’s season game-high.
Relief pitcher Julia Gossett (3-3) received the loss, after entering in the second inning and closing the game out. The freshman struck out two batters.
PURDUE FALLS TO PITT IN 6 INNINGS
FORT MYERS, Fla. – Home runs burned the Boilermakers as the team fell, 1-9 in six innings to the Pitt Panthers in Day 2 of the FGCU Spring Break Classic. It was the first run-rule of the season for Purdue.
The Boilermakers’ effort was highlighted by an RBI triple by freshman Moriah Polar, scoring senior outfielder Kiara Dillon in the fifth inning. Dillon, who walked to first, stole second during Polar’s at-bat to be put in scoring position. The hit was Polar’s first career triple.
All nine Panther runs came on homers, including a grand slam in the first inning, which proved to be the game-winner.
Receiving the loss is starting pitcher Jules Raymond (1-1). The freshman walked three batters and allowed no hits before relief pitcher Kendall Klochack entered in the first inning. Klochack closed the remaining five frames, striking out four batters and walking none during the outing.
Tomorrow, Purdue closes out the tournament against Western Michigan at 10 a.m. ET. Fans can follow along via live stats on purduestats.com.
PURDUE TRACK
ANIAMAKA 9TH AT NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
BOSTON – Junior Praise Aniamaka was ninth for the Purdue track & field team at the 2024 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships on Saturday in Boston.
Aniamaka placed ninth in the triple jump to earn his second career Second Team All-America accolade. The All-America performance wraps up the two-day national championships for the Boilermakers at The Track at New Balance in Boston.
Aniamaka registered a season-best mark of 15.98 meters in the triple jump. That came on his second attempt, after a foul on his first. Aniamaka passed on his remaining jumps in the competition, but his second mark secured the top-nine finish and Second Team All-America accolades.
At his first indoor NCAA Championships, Aniamaka competed at his second career NCAA meet and was bestowed with All-America accolades for the second time. He was ninth outdoors in the triple jump last season to collect Second Team All-America honors.
Aniamaka was seeded No. 16 overall coming into the national championship meet.
Additionally, graduate student Cameron Miller ran in the 200-meter final. He earned a time of 20.53, but was disqualified.
Aniamaka and Miller qualified for the national championships as one of the top 16 competitors nationally in their events. The two Boilermakers to qualify are the program’s most at the indoor meet since five earned berths at the 2021 event. Purdue is one of seven Big Ten programs with multiple men’s qualifiers at this year’s championships.
The outdoor track & field season begins in one week at the USF Alumni Invitational from March 15-16 to conclude a week-long training trip in Tampa, Florida.
PURDUE MEN’S BASKETBALL
#3 PURDUE CLOSES OUT REGULAR SEASON SUNDAY VS. WISCONSIN
GAMEDAY INFORMATION — GAME 31
[3] Purdue (27-3, 16-3) vs. Wisconsin (19-11, 11-8)
Sunday, March 10, 2024
12:30 p.m. ET | West Lafayette, Indiana
Mackey Arena (14,876)
TELEVISION: FOX (Jason Benetti, Robbie Hummel)
RADIO: Purdue Global Radio Network (Rob Blackman, Bobby Riddell)
THE NOTES TO KNOW
• The No. 3-ranked Purdue Boilermakers return to Mackey Arena for the final time during the 2023-24 season, when Wisconsin visits for the regular-season finale on Sunday afternoon, tipping off at 12:30 p.m. ET, on FOX. The Boilermakers are looking for their first season sweep of the Badgers since the 2015-16 season and their first win over Wisconsin in Mackey Arena since the “crowd-less” 2020-21 season.
• The contest will be the final home game for Purdue’s six seniors (Carson Barrett, Zach Edey, Mason Gillis, Lance Jones, Chase Martin, Ethan Morton). During its four years, the class owns a 103-27 (.792) overall record, a 58-20 (.744) record in Big Ten play and a 56-4 (.933) mark in Mackey Arena. The group won back-to-back outright Big Ten titles (2023, 2024) and are positioned to earn another No. 1 NCAA seed.
• Since the start of the 2020-21 season, the senior class has won 58 Big Ten regular-season games, and a win over Wisconsin will give the group 59 conference wins, tying the Big Ten record for most league wins by a single class.
• Purdue enters the weekend as one of five teams nationally with at least 27 wins, while also being one of six teams with three losses. Among major-conference teams, Purdue, Houston, Connecticut (all with 3) are the only high-major programs with fewer than six losses.
• Purdue has won at least 27 games in three straight years for the first time in school history. A win over Wisconsin on Sunday will give Purdue 28 regular-season victories for the first time in school history. The school record for wins in a season is 30 (2017-18).
• Purdue owns a 14-4 record under Matt Painter on Senior Day, including an 8-1 record in the last nine Senior Day games.
• The win over Illinois on Tuesday improved Purdue’s winning streak to nine games against teams ranked in the Associated Press top 12 at the time of the game. The winning streak is the fourth-longest nationally over the last 50 years and ninth-longest in NCAA history. Eight of the wins have come away from Mackey Arena, by far the most in the country in that span (UConn – 4).
• Purdue’s schedule ranks as the third-most difficult in the country and its non-conference foes won the Southern Conference by three games (Samford), the Ohio Valley (Morehead State), the Atlantic Sun (Eastern Kentucky) the SEC (Tennessee) and PAC-12 (Arizona). Marquette (Big East) and Gonzaga (WCC) are in second place in their respective conferences. Purdue has beaten three teams (Tennessee, Arizona, Marquette) that are projected to be top-two seeds in the upcoming NCAA Tournament.
• Purdue has beaten teams ranked 4th (Arizona), 5th (Tennessee), 7th (Alabama), 14th (Marquette), 16th twice (Illinois), 17th (Gonzaga), 22nd (Wisconsin) and 23rd (Michigan State) in the NCAA NET rankings. The Boilermakers are 9-0 against the NCAA NET top 25.
• Purdue ranks in the NCAA’s top 20 in 3-point percentage (1st), off. efficiency (2nd), rebound margin (2nd), wins (3rd), assists per game (5th), scoring margin (10th), scoring offense (11th), field goal percentage (14th), fewest fouls per game (16th) and assist / turnover ratio (16th).
• Purdue leads the country in quad-1 wins (11) and quad-1 and 2 wins combined (17). Connecticut also has 17 quad-1 and 2 wins combined.
• Since the start of last season, Purdue is 56-9, the fourth-most wins nationally, while the nine losses are the second fewest behind Houston (7). The nine losses during that span have come by 1, 5, 6, 14, 8, 5, 4 (OT), 16 and 4 points. Forty-two of the 56 wins have come against teams ranked in the KenPom top-100, including 29 against teams ranked in the top-50.
• Purdue was voted No. 3 in the AP Top 25 poll on Monday. With its No. 3 ranking this week, Purdue has now been ranked in the top 5 of the AP poll for 34 straight weeks, the longest-active streak in America by 17 weeks (UConn – 17). It has been ranked in the top 3 in 28 of those weeks. The 34 weeks of being ranked in the top 5 is the third longest in confererence history (41 — Ohio State, 1960-63; 38 — Indiana, 1975-77).
• Zach Edey needs 66 points to become the school’s leader in career points (record: 2,323) and career rebounds (already owns it — 1,197).
• Edey needs three rebounds to become the first player in Big Ten history with 2,200 career points and 1,200 career rebounds.
• A win over Wisconsin will give Purdue its 17th Big Ten win of the season, setting a new school record for Big Ten wins.
• A win over the Badgers will give Purdue its fourth unbeaten season in Mackey Arena history (1968-69, 2010-11, 2018-19).
• A win on Sunday would give Purdue a 10-0 Big Ten record in Mackey Arena, tying Nebraska for the best home conference record. Purdue has had the Big Ten’s best home record in 2017, 2019, 2021, 2022 and possibly 2024. In the last four years, Purdue is 34-4 at home against Big Ten opponents.
• A win over Wisconsin will give the senior class 59 wins in Big Ten play, which would tie a Big Ten record (59 by Indiana; 1978, 1979).
• Purdue has finished in the top three of the Big Ten standings in eight of the last 10 years.
• Purdue is one of five teams (Auburn, UConn, Houston, San Diego State) without a loss outside Quad-1.
• Purdue has a nation’s-best 21 victories over the NET top 100, including nine over the top 23.
• Purdue owns nine straight wins over teams ranked in the AP Top 15. Florida Atlantic is next in line with three straight victories.
• Purdue is on pace to set school records in rebound margin (+11.1) and assist / turnover ratio (1.61). Purdue’s scoring average of 84.4 points per game is its highest average since 1988 (84.6 PPG). Purdue’s rebound margin is on pace to be the highest in the Big Ten since Michigan State in 2009 (+11.5).
• The Boilermakers are on pace to have the highest scoring average in league games since 1993 (Indiana — 86.1). However, Illinois is also on pace to lead the league in scoring this season (84.7).
• Purdue’s scoring margin in Big Ten games is +10.4 points per game, the highest margin since Michigan State in 2019 (+10.6).
• Purdue is averaging 84.4 points per game, an increase of 11.7 points per game from a year ago, the Boilermakers’ highest increase in scoring average since the 1992-93 to 1993-94 season (+13.5).
• Purdue has started the same starting five in all 30 games, the longest stretch to start a year in school history. Purdue has never had a season where it started the same five all season.
• Purdue ranks second nationally behind Saint Mary’s in rebound margin, one year after leading the country in rebound margin. The last team to lead the country in rebound margin in consecutive seasons was Quinnipiac (2013-14 and 2014-15).
• Purdue has trailed by six or more points in 10 games this year, posting an 8-2 record in those games, including wins in three straight games over Michigan, Michigan State and Illinois.
• Zach Edey will start his 100th career game on Sunday vs. Wisconsin. He is the 17th player in school history with 100 career starts, and owns an 83-16 record as a starter.
• A year ago, Purdue shot 32.2 percent from 3-point range, a number that ranked 281st nationally. This year, Purdue is at 40.9 percent, ranking second nationally. Purdue had one player (Braden Smith) shoot over 36.0 percent from deep a year ago. This year, Purdue has nine players over 35.0 percent.
• Zach Edey’s 25.4 points per game in Big Ten play is the second-highest total in the Big Ten since the turn of the century (2020 – Luka Garza; 26.2).
• Zach Edey is averaging 10.77 free throw attempts per game. Based on a 38-game season, he would shoot 409 free throw attempts, which would be the most since Pete Maravich in 1970 (436).
THE SERIES WITH WISCONSIN
• Sunday’s meeting in Mackey Arena marks the 188th meeting between the two schools with Purdue holding a 113-74 advantage. Purdue is looking for its first two-game sweep of Wisconsin since the 2015-16 season after topping the Badgers 75-69 in Madison.
• Purdue has won nine of the last 13 meetings with the Badgers, but Wisconsin has won three of the last six contests.
• The last six games have all been decided by six or fewer points and by a total of 24 points (4.0 points per game).
• Wisconsin is just 5-42 in Mackey Arena all-time, but won the last meeting here on Jan. 3, 2022, by a 74-69 advantage. Johnny Davis had 37 points for the Badgers, while sophomore Zach Edey had 24 points and 10 rebounds.
• During the Painter era when scoring at least 70 points against Wisconsin, Purdue is 9-1. When held under 70 points, Purdue is 8-11.
PURDUE BASEBALL
BASEBALL SCORES 6 IN 1ST INNING, WAGNER FANS 10 IN TWINBILL SWEEP
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue Baseball scored six runs in its first inning at Alexander Field this season and later got a 10-strikeout performance from pitcher Luke Wagner, sweeping Saturday’s home-opening doubleheader with UAlbany.
The Boilermakers (10-4) won game one 11-3 and the nightcap 6-1 behind a quality start from Wagner. Purdue turned six double plays on the day, registering four in a game for the first time since March 2018. Wagner’s 10 strikeouts were the most by a Boilermaker since Jackson Smeltz struck out 13 Hoosiers in an April 2022 win at Alexander.
Mike Bolton Jr. (5-for-9, 2 doubles, walk) had five hits on the day. Camden Gasser (3-for-7, 2 walks, 5 RBI) also reached base safely more often than he was out. Bolton scored from second base on Gasser’s two-run infield single in the fourth inning of the nightcap.
STREAKS EXTENDED
• Connor Caskenette – 19-game on-base streak at Home (since 3/31/23)
• Couper Cornblum – 15-game on-base at Home (since 4/15/23)
• Logan Sutter – 14-game on-base streak (every game of 2024)
• Camden Gasser – 12-game on-base streak (every game he’s played in 2024)
• Luke Wagner – 16 consecutive innings without allowing an earned run
Luke Gaffney barreled up for a wall-banger in consecutive innings in the nightcap. He connected for a two-out, two-run double that gave the Boilermakers the lead in the bottom of the third. The following frame, he tripled to center field to drive in Gasser again. Logan Sutter followed with an RBI single.
Jackson Dannelley closed out the nightcap with three innings of hitless relief, earning his Big Ten-leading fourth save of the season. All four have been at least three innings.
Wagner struck out the side in the fourth and sixth innings, going through the heart of the lineup in both frames. He punched out UA’s 3-4-5 hitters in order in the top of the sixth to pitch over a leadoff double. The lefty has surrendered just two runs (one earned) over 17 innings in his last three starts.
Purdue turned three of its six double plays with Cole Van Assen on the mound in game one. The freshman worked three scoreless innings as the Boilermakers turned 3-6-1, 4-3 and 5-3 double plays in support of him, the latter starting on a leap catching by Jo Stevens on a line drive to third base.
The Boilermakers sent 10 men to the plate in first inning of the day, scoring six times despite hitting the ball out of the infield just twice. RBI singles came from Gaffney and Gasser. Purdue has scored 10-plus runs in a win in each of the first four weekends of the season, staying on par with the 2012 Big Ten championship team (first five weekends) as the last to accomplish the feat.
The Boilermakers scored four or more runs in an inning three times Saturday and have posted nine big innings in 14 games this year.
The series concludes Sunday with another doubleheader at noon ET.
NOTRE DAME WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
NO. 4 IRISH PUMMEL NO. 1 HOKIES 82-53, REACH ACC CHAMPIONSHIP
GREENSBORO, N.C. — It was a bittersweet day for No. 4 Notre Dame (25-6), as the Irish leveled top-seeded Virginia Tech (24-7) in the ACC Tournament semifinals, 82-53. It was the largest win over a No. 1 seed in Tournament history.
Sonia Citron led Notre Dame with 19 points and 7 boards. Maddy Westbeld had 18 points, Hannah Hidalgo had 15, and Anna DeWolfe had 14. Hidalgo and DeWolfe had 6 and 5 assists, respectively.
Notre Dame used stifling defense and electric 3-point shooting to top Tech. Not unlike the Irish-Hokies matchup in South Bend last week, Notre Dame set the tone from the tip and did not surrender the lead after 7:45 in the first quarter. Westbeld came out on fire, scoring the team’s first 7 points.
The Irish were 5-8 from deep in the first half, and four different players knocked at least one down. Westbeld had two and led all players heading into the locker room with 10 points.
Notre Dame’s defense was the top story of the half, holding Virginia Tech to just 23 points and a 3-12 success rate from deep. The Hokies did go on a mini 7-0 run in the second quarter, but that was stopped by a Westbeld trey. Virginia Tech did not score for the last 2:44 of the half.
The Irish showed no signs of slowing down out of the locker room, going on a 19-2 run to start Q3. If carried over from the first half, it was a 20-0 run in favor of the Irish. Citron and Westbeld started the scoring, and it was all Hidalgo down the stretch. Notre Dame was 12-17 in the period (70.6 percent), and Hidalgo had 9 points.
The fourth quarter was the DeWolfe Show, as she went 4-5 from deep on the day, notching a trio of 3s in the fourth quarter to build on an already large lead.
Notre Dame finished the game 9-14 from deep (64.3 percent), the best showing since January 2020 (min. 10 attempts).
There was a lot of good on Saturday, but unfortunately, the injury bug came back with a vengeance, as Irish forward Kylee Watson suffered a knee injury in the third quarter. Her full status is unknown, but it is unlikely she plays in tomorrow’s title game.
The 2024 ACC Championship will tip off at 1 p.m. on ESPN. Notre Dame has won five ACC Tournament titles since joining the conference, and this will be the first appearance in the championship game since 2019.
NOTRE DAME MEN’S BASKETBALL
IRISH CLAWED BACK BUT COULDN’T GET OVER FINAL HUMP IN 82-76 LOSS AT VIRGINIA TECH
BLACKSBURG, Va. – With an 82-76 loss at Virginia Tech (18-13, 10-10), the Notre Dame men’s basketball team fell to 12-19 overall and 7-13 in its first ACC season under Glenn & Stacey Murphy Head Coach Micah Shrewsberry. Of its 13 league losses, seven were decided by single digits, as this young Irish squad proved to be a tough out.
Case in point on Saturday inside Cassell Coliseum when Notre Dame fought back down seven with just under seven minutes remaining, and had a shot for the tie, but ultimately came up short.
The Fighting Irish had two thorns in their side today – Virginia Tech’s Sean Pedulla and giving up offensive boards. Pedulla finished with a game high 28 points on 12-for-21 shooting and ended up being the dagger in the final minute when the Irish were only down two. Notre Dame also gave up 15 VT offensive boards that contributed to 17 second-chance points.
“First off, congrats to Virginia Tech. A hard fought game against a good team. They were hard to prepare and tought to deal with. They are so good offensively and we gave them extra chances,” Glenn & Stacey Murphy Notre Dame Head Coach Micah Shrewsberry said. “They wanted it more and all those offensive rebounds killed us.”
Markus Burton continued to do Markus Burton things with a team high 24 points on 10-of-20 shooting. Burton scored 17 points in the second half. It marked his fourth 20+ point performance over the last five games and his ninth overall on the year. Burton also recorded four rebounds, four assists and one steal.
Burton now has 535 points on the season, which breaks the Notre Dame freshman scoring record, blowing by Troy Murphy’s 519.
Tae Davis produced 13 points, 11 of which came in the second half. Davis has been solid down the final stretch, as he picked up his fifth consecutive game in double figures. Davis also reeled in a team high six rebounds.
Braeden Shrewsberry and Julian Roper II tallied 10 and 11 points, respectively. It marked Roper’s first double-digit scoring performance since Georgetown on Dec. 16.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Virginia Techs first three made buckets were triples as they jumped out to a 10-5 advantage just over four minutes in. Carey Booth recorded a stretch in which he made five straight points to narrow the gap, down 10-12 at 14:09.
Yet, soon after, the Hokies fired off an 8-0 run to go up 22-12 after an 8-for-14 start from the field, compared to Notre Dame’s 3-for-9.
However, the Irish would settle in and tie the game on a 10-0 run in a swift two-minute span. During said run, Booth and Logan Imes each hit a triple, then Burton followed with a patented drive to the basket, then finally a Kebba Njie putback.
From there, both team’s offenses were clicking. From 6:47-4:12, Notre Dame recorded a stretch in which they made 5-of-6 from the field, which included two Julian Roper treys and two under-the-basket makes from Braeden Shrewsberry. The hot shooting spree gave the Irish a 34-31 lead – its first lead since up 2-0 to start the game.
Later, a Shrewsberry free throw would tie the game at 31-all with 1:32 remaining in the half. The Hokies ended the final 92 seconds on a 5-0 run to claim a 43-38 halftime lead.
Virginia Tech’s Sean Pedulla scored a team high 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting in the half. Notre Dame was led by Roper and Booth who each had eight points, followed by seven from Burton. The Irish shot 13-25 (.520) for the half, plus 6-of-12 from three, compared to the Hokies’ 15-31 (.484).
A Burton three-pointer with 17:37 on the clock in the second half was the record-breaking shot. In fact, Burton tallied seven of the team’s next eight points to keep them within striking distance, down 48-51 with 14:10 left.
Next, the Hokies built its largest lead of the second half to seven, up 58-51 with 10:38 remaining. Then, Notre Dame attacked the rim with force: a Roper dunk, a thunderous slam from Davis, a Shrewsberry layup and another Davis take. Four straight field goals from the Irish made it a one-possession game at the 7:34 media timeout, now down just 59-62.
Soon after, the Hokies pushed their lead back to seven with 6:58 left in the game. Burton & Davis combined for nine of the team’s next 11 points to pull within two at 70-72 with two minutes remaining.
Down four with 90 seconds left, Burton delivers yet again with another drive 1-v-1 with his defender – two point game.
The Hokies then turned to Pedulla who delivered on back-to-back possessions to push VT’s lead to 78-72. It brought Pedulla’s game total to 28 points.
Burton did his best by adding on four more points, but the damage was done and time was no more in the 82-76 defeat.
UP NEXT
In terms of ACC Tournament seeding, it’ll be a wait-and-see approach, for the Irish were the first league contest of the day. Notre Dame could be as high as a No. 12 seed and as low as No. 14 seed.
The ACC Tournament kicks off in Washington D.C. on Tuesday, March 12. For more information, please visit www.theacc.com.
NOTRE DAME MEN’S LAX
CHRIS KAVANAGH’S CAREER DAY POWERS #3 IRISH PAST OSU
SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The No. 3/4 Fighting Irish defeated Ohio State in Columbus, Ohio, by a score of 13-10 in front of a sold-out Ohio State Lacrosse Stadium crowd. Notre Dame’s Chris Kavanagh had a career day, posting a career-high eight points off a career-best five goals and three assists.
Eight Notre Dame players combined to score the 13 goals, with nine coming off assists. Pat Kavanagh led the team in assists with three to total four points on the day.
Will Lynch continued his strong run of play from the dot, winning 14-of-24 faceoffs while scooping up a season-high 10 ground balls.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Notre Dame jumped out to a 3-0 lead after the opening 15 minutes of play, as Will Angrick scored the opener, his first since the 2022 season. Chris Kavanagh then got going, scoring a nifty backhand shuffle in front of goal and then he wrapped around the crease and beat the goalie near post from seemingly no angle to give the Irish the 3-0 advantage.
The Buckeyes managed to score the first two goals of the second stanza to cut the Notre Dame lead to one at 3-2 with just over 11 minutes left in the half. On the ensuing faceoff Lynch drew a 2-minute locked in penalty and the Irish capitalized with three goals over the two-minute span to grow the lead to 6-2.
Pat Kavanagh scored the first on the extra-man opportunity before Eric Dobson and Chris Kavanagh each found the back of the net.
The Buckeyes scored their third of the afternoon with under six minutes remaining in the second quarter to make the score 6-3, which is what the scoreboard read at the half.
The hosts outscored the Irish 4-2 in the third quarter to cut the Irish lead to one at 8-7. The two Notre Dame goals came from the midfield, as Reilly Gray and Jordan Faison each scored their first of the afternoon.
The Irish responded in a big way, scoring four straight goals in the first eight minutes of the final frame to take their biggest lead of the day at 12-7. The four goals came from four different players, as Dobson, Jeffery Ricciardelli, Bryce Walker and Chris Kavanagh each scored.
Ohio State added three goals as the game winded to a close but the Irish left Columbus with a three-goal win at 13-10 to improve to 4-1 on the season.
NOTRE DAME NOTES
The Irish extend their lead in the all-time series against Ohio State to 36-12 with the win.
The Notre Dame defense has now held four of its five opponents in 2024 to 10 goals or less.
Notre Dame’s EMO continues to be the premier unit in the country, cashing in on 5-of-6 opportunities in the win and has now scored on 13-of-17 opportunities on the season.
The six offensive starters combined for 16 points (9G, 7A) in the victory.
Chris Kavanagh recorded his first five-goal game of his career and he now has 15 hat tricks in his career.
The eight-point effort is the most by an Irish player this season.
Pat Kavanagh’s four-point effort gives him 240 for his career off 90 goals and his program-record 150 assists.
The 10 saves from Entenmann give him back-to-back double-digit save performances.
UP NEXT
Notre Dame returns to Arlotta Stadium for its third straight matchup against a Big Ten opponent, as they take on No. 11/13 Michigan at 2 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 16.
NOTRE DAME WOMEN’S LAX
WOMEN’S LACROSSE DROPS DECISION TO CAVALIERS SATURDAY
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — A back-and-forth game went ultimately fell the way of the visitors Saturday as the University of Notre Dame women’s lacrosse team dropped a 12-10 decision to the Virginia Cavaliers.
A pair of Irish attackers led the way with hat trick performances but it was not enough as the No. 4 Irish move to 5-2 on the season and 1-2 in conference play.
The Virginia women got on the board first less than a minute into play but Kasey Choma found the answer at 1:23 of the first quarter to make it a 1-1 game early.
Lilly Callahan made a pair of key saves on the following two Cavalier possessions to keep it a tie game halfway through the opening quarter.
Virginia finally broke the stalemate with 6:35 left in the first frame after a turnover in the middle-30 forced the teams back into the Irish defensive end.
Abby Maichin drew the Irish even with her shot with 5:25 to play in the quarter before Kelly Denes won the ensuing draw and gave the home team another possession and chance to take the lead. After a shot sailed wide, MK Doherty received the ball and fed it over to Choma who ripped a shot into the back of the goal to take the 3-2 lead, the team’s first lead of the day.
A free position shot for the Cavaliers tied it back up, 3-3, with under three minutes left in the opening frame.
The two teams traded possession before Virginia took advantage of a late shot to claim the 4-3 lead through 15 minutes played.
Madison Ahern evened it up yet again with a free position goal just 36 seconds into the second quarter. Maichin’s second of the day gave the Irish the 5-4 lead just 23 seconds later but the Cavaliers responded with a bouncing shot low that beat Callahan to make it 5-5.
Virginia then regained the lead with 10:29 left in the second but Denes’ big draw control gave the Irish the ball back and a yellow card against the Cavaliers had the Irish a woman up for two minutes.
Ahern’s second of the day tied it up at 6-6 shortly after the infraction just over five minutes into the quarter.
The Cavaliers took the edge with a shot almost nine minutes into the second quarter to make it 7-6 in favor of the visitors.
When the Cavaliers were awarded a free position shot in the final seconds of the half, Callahan stepped up with a save off her helmet to keep it a one-goal game through 30 minutes played.
Virginia opened the second half scoring with a powerplay goal after an infraction in the neutral zone sent an Irish midfielder off the field for 60 seconds.
After allowing the first two goals of the second half, the Irish bounced back with a hat trick goal from Ahern to cut the deficit to two with 9:44 to play in the third quarter.
A pair of Virginia goals gave them the 11-7 lead late in the third quarter but the Irish responded with six seconds left for the hat trick. The play was reviewed briefly and upheld to make it an 11-8 game heading into the final quarter of regulation.
Doherty scored the first two goals of the final quarter to draw the Irish back within one with 11:55 to play in an 11-10 game.
A collision in front of the crease sent an Irish defender to the box with a yellow card and the Cavaliers took advantage of the powerplay opportunity to make it 12-10 with 7:19 to play in the last frame.
The score would hold through the final horn as the Irish were unable to convert on their last handful of possessions, ultimately falling to the Cavaliers 12-10 Saturday afternoon.
UP NEXT
The Irish will spend spring break on the road with a pair of contests slated against top-25 teams at Brown and Boston College.
The road trip begins Wednesday, March 13 with a 5 p.m. game against Brown in Rhode Island. The team then returns to ACC play at noon on Saturday, March 16 as they close out their East Coast tour against the Eagles.
NOTRE DAME HOCKEY
IRISH SEASON ENDS IN HEARTBREAKER AT MICHIGAN
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The 2023-24 Irish hockey season came to a close Saturday night when they fell to the Michigan Wolverines, 4-3, on the road. The visitors battled through to the final horn but their late push came up just short as they concluded their run.
The Irish were flagged with the first infraction of the night when aa collision at the blueline tripped up a Wolverine skater just 2:09 into play. On the kill, the Irish defense buckled down and held the Wolverine special teams unit without a shot on goal to successfully kill off the penalty.
Drew Bavaro got the scoring started Saturday night with a shot off the draw to take the 1-0 lead with 11:55 to play in the opening period.
Michigan answered with a goal of their own after a controversial call in the neutral zone sent an Irish skater to the box for two minutes. The Irish challenged the goal for a high stick but were unsuccessful and lost their timeout.
Shortly after the Michigan goal, a hit along the boards left a Wolverine skater down. After no penalty was initially assessed, a lengthy review led to a key Irish penalty killer handed a five-minute major.
A few massive saves by the graduate netminder in the Notre Dame crease led to a successful penalty kill and the Irish returned to full strength.
Michigan scored once more late in the period to take the 2-1 lead into the first intermission. Despite a lengthy review after a Notre Dame challenge, the Irish were charged with a delay of game penalty and the goal stood. The Wolverines would take the lead into the first intermission as the Irish trailed 2-1.
The Irish killed off the remainder of their penalty to start the second period, including a shorthanded wraparound chance by Justin Janicke that was stifled. Michigan was then called for their first infraction of the night, boarding, at 2:55 of the second but the Irish could not convert and the score held firm at 2-1.
A hit along the offensive halfwall left an Irish skater slow to get up. In a sea of chants by the Michigan student section as he laid on the ice, the Wolverines were called for a penalty and the Notre Dame powerplay unit returned to the ice.
The Irish took advantage of the man-up opportunity with a goal from Landon Slaggert to knot the game up 2-2. That line kept the momentum going with a rebound from Patrick Moynihan at 9:27 of the middle frame to take the 3-2 lead.
Michigan scored less than three minutes later after a scramble in front of the net tied it up 3-3 with 8:03 to play in the frame.
A huge collision near the Irish blueline stopped play momentarily with a Wolverine player getting helped off the ice. After a lengthy review it was deemed there was no penalty on the play and the teams remained at full strength.
The physical period continued through the waning seconds of the middle stanza as the two teams faced a deadlocked game going into the third period.
It took the Wolverines 3:54 of the third period to score the go-ahead goal, drawing Bischel out of the crease for a backdoor shot into the open net.
Brennan Ali found himself on a breakaway shortly after the Michigan goal but was tripped up as he went to get a shot off and Michigan was penalized and sent to the box. The Irish failed to convert on the man-advantage halfway through the period and continued the hunt for their game-tying tally.
With the Irish willing the puck to stay onside during an offensive spurt, swatted at the puck and a Michigan player fell down with under nine minutes to play in regulation. The visitors were called for tripping and the penalty kill unit returned to the ice while trailing by one.
Notre Dame was able to kill of the infraction and continued their fight through the closing minutes of the third period.
The Irish opted for the extra skater with just over two minutes to play in the final frame and nearly had the equalizer on a series of chances in the final seconds but the horn sounded on their season as they fell to the Wolverines in the best-of-three series in Ann Arbor.
GOALS
Cole Knuble lined up for the offensive zone draw, winning the face-off battle and getting the puck back to Drew Bavaro with the help of Patrick Moynihan as the Irish took the 1-0 lead at 8:05 of the first period.
Landon Slaggert knocked in a loose puck at the goal line to tie things up Saturday night. The powerplay goal was his team-leading 20th of the season and 30th point. Moynihan and Ryan Siedem each tallied assists on the goal.
The Irish regained the lead at 9:27 of the second stanza with a rebound shot from Moynihan to make it 3-2. Siedem and Slaggert created an odd-man rush up ice with Slaggert’s initial shot hitting the pads of Barzewski in net and bouncing onto the stick of Moynihan who wasted no time on the release to score his second of the weekend.
KEY STATS
The Irish blocked 16 shots in the contest Saturday night, led by senior captain Landon Slaggert, Ryan Siedem and Jake Boltmann.
With his goal in the second period to tie things up, Slaggert scored his 20th of the season and finished the season with 31 points (20-11-31).
Patrick Moynihan’s goal and two assists led the team Saturday night as he finished the series with five points (2-3-5).
Drew Bavaro’s goal to open the scoring was his third tally of the weekend, having scored twice the night prior and finished with a four-point weekend and 20 points on the year.
After being heavily outshot in the first period, the Irish came back strong in the final two periods, including outshooting the Wolverines 10-6 in the final frame.
The Irish finish the season with a 15-19-2 record.
BUTLER WOMEN’S GOLF
THE BULLDOGS HEAD TO FLORIDA TO HOST DON BENBOW SPRING INVITATIONAL
The Bulldogs will head south for Spring Break, hosting the Don Benbow Butler Spring Invitational in Florida.
Play is scheduled for Monday and Tuesday with 18 holes each day. Shotgun starts for both rounds are slated for 9 a.m.
Coach Christie Cates will utilize a line-up featuring BIG EAST Golfer of the Week Madalin Small, Ashley Freitas, Kelli Scheck, Cybil Stillson, and Katie Steinman. Sophie McGinnis will compete as an individual.
Butler will be joined in the field by 13 other teams: Belmont, Eastern Illinois, Farleigh Dickinson, Indiana State, IUPUI, Long Island, Monmouth, Quinnipiac, St. John’s, UIC, Valparaiso, Western Illinois, and Western Michigan.
The south course of the Ardea Country Club will be set up as a par-72, 6,297-yard track.
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.
Live scoring will be available via GolfStat.
BUTLER MEN’S BASKETBALL
2024 BIG EAST MEN’S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT BRACKET REVEALED; BUTLER OPENS WITH XAVIER
The 2024 BIG EAST Men’s Basketball Tournament Presented by Jeep returns to Madison Square Garden for the 42nd consecutive year. This year’s tournament dates are Wednesday, March 13 through Saturday, March 16. The 2024 tournament bracket was finalized Saturday, March 9.
2024 TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Wednesday, March 13 – First Round (FS1)
4:00 No. 8 Butler vs. No. 9 Xavier
6:30 No. 7 Providence vs. No. 10 Georgetown
9:00 No. 6 Villanova vs. No. 11 DePaul
Thursday, March 14 – Quarterfinals (FS1)
Noon No. 1 UConn vs. 8/9 winner
2:30 No. 4 Seton Hall vs. No. 5 St. John’s
7:00 No. 2 Creighton vs. 7/10 winner
9:30 No. 3 Marquette vs. No. 6/11 winner
Friday, March 15 – Semifinals (FOX/FS1)
5:30 Thursday afternoon winners
8:00 Thursday evening winners
Saturday, March 16 – Championship (FOX)
6:30 Semifinal winners
* all times listed are Eastern
FOX Sports, the conference’s television partner, will continue its wall-to-wall coverage with FS1 televising all seven games in the first two days of the Tournament, in addition to the second semifinal game on Friday, March 15 at 8 p.m. The FOX broadcast network will then carry the first semifnal game on Friday at 5:30 p.m., as well as the championship game on Saturday, March 16, at 6:30 p.m. ET. The BIG EAST Tournament at The World’s Most Famous Arena is college basketball’s longest running conference tournament held at the same venue.
The FS1 tourney coverage will begin with a first-round tripleheader on Wednesday, March 13. Quarterfinal doubleheaders will be played Thursday afternoon and evening, March 14. The semifinal doubleheader will be held Friday, March 15, followed by the title game on Saturday evening, March 16.
BUTLER SOFTBALL
BUTLER SOFTBALL HOSTS PROVIDENCE IN FIRST BIG EAST SERIES OF SEASON
Series Information – vs. Providence
DATE: Sunday, Mar. 10 – Tuesday, Mar. 12
LOCATION: Indianapolis / Butler Softball Field
LIVE STATS: butlersports.com
LIVE VIDEO: N/A
Full Notes
The Butler softball team hosts its first BIG EAST series of the season when Providence visits Indianapolis. Weather forced a delay in the first pitch, as the games are now scheduled to be played from Sunday through Tuesday. The Bulldogs (10-10, 0-0 BIG EAST most recently dropped a mid-week game to IUPUI, 8-7. The Friars are coming off a 3-1 showing at the Tiger Clash at Towson.
Bulldog Bits
(as of 3-3-24)
Ella White leads the BIG EAST (63rd nationally) with 6 doubles. She is second (59th) with 5 home runs and third (81st) with a .772 slugging %.
Kieli Ryan leads the BIG EAST (5th nationally) with 7 base runners caught stealing.
Katie Petran is second in the BIG EAST (43rd nationally) with 6 wins in the circle and is fourth with 41 strikeouts. She was recognized as BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week by the conference for her performances at the Thundering Herd Invitational.
Cate Lehner is fifth in the BIG EAST with six stolen bases.
BIG EAST coaches ranked Butler fifth in the 2024 Preseason Poll. Villanova (1st), UConn (2nd), and Seton Hall (3rd) each received at least two first-place votes. DePaul (4th) also ranked ahead of the Bulldogs.
vs. IUPUI
Monique Hoosen hit two home runs in a single game for the first time in her career. She now has five long balls this season and 32 in her career. Her four RBI were a career high.
Makena Alexander’s home run was her third this season.
Ella White had two doubles in the game. She now has eight this season and 28 for her career.
Cate Lehner’s triple was her first this season and the third of her career.
SCOUTING PROVIDENCE (6-7, 0-0 BIG EAST)
Series- Butler leads: 14-13-1
Butler swept last season’s series in Providence, R.I.
Butler won 2-of-3 in the 2022 series, while the 2021 series ended 1-1-1.
Wins this season include: Southern, UMBC, UMass-Lowell, and Howard.
Losses include Towson, NC-Wilmington, George Mason, Eastern Illinois, and Southern Louisiana.
PROVIDENCE vs. (opponents) Butler
runs: 59-46 89
hits: 92-76 157
RBI: 53-37 85
SB: 13-25 16
ERA: 3.22-3.72 4.02
Batting leaders:
#5 Sofia Peterson (.379) 4-2B, 7RBI
#10 Emma Douma (.364) 16H, 3-2B, 9RBI
#16 Jacque Harrington (.295) 3-2B, 3B, 3HR, 10RBI
Pitching leaders:
#22 Alyssa Twomey (4-0) 1.27 ERA, 36K
#13 Riley Quirk (0-5) 3.97 ERA, 12K
#55 Jessica Walter (2-0) 4.94 ERA, 7K
BUTLER FOOTBALL
BUTLER FOOTBALL SPRING GAME SET FOR APRIL 27
INDIANAPOLIS – The Butler Football program will host their annual Spring Game on April 27 this year at the Bud and Jackie Sellick Bowl. Action will get underway at 12 PM.
The 2024 Spring Game will operate closely to the 2023 version. Butler alums and their families are invited back to campus to take in the festivities. Last year nearly 100 BU alums watched the current team in action from the sidelines.
The day began with the field goal unit getting reps and the players would then split apart into individual drills based on position. BU featured the inside run game on one end of the field while 7-on-7 occurred on the other side.
Team sessions finished off the day with the offense and defense going head-to-head. The coaches went into sudden change situations to simulate change of possession after a turnover. The ball then moved to the 35-yard line with the teams going at each other in the red zone.
Head Coach Mike Uremovich heads into his third season at Butler in 2024. The Bulldogs have gone 7-4 in each of the last two seasons with Uremovich at the helm. The ‘Dawgs were 5-1 at home in 2022 and 4-2 in 2023.
The 2024 PFL schedule was released in early February and the 2024 non-conference slate is set to be announced in early April.
BUTLER BASEBALL
BUTLER FALLS TO JACKSON STATE IN EXTRA INNINGS
MEMPHIS – Butler and Jackson State played an 11-inning game on Saturday afternoon in game two of the inaugural Grind City Classic. BU scored in the bottom of the ninth to push the game into extras, but a five-run top of the 11th would give the Tigers a 10-5 victory.
The first three batters in each team’s lineup would record two hits helping the clubs combine for 23 total on the day. Carter Dorighi and Jack Moroknek were each 2-for-5 on the day and Joey Urban went 2-for-4.
Butler got on the scoreboard first on Saturday in a bizarre way. Dorighi scored on a balk and the game would move to 2-0 as Urban also came around on a Tiger balk. JSU flipped the script in the middle stages of the game and took a 4-2 lead. Ian Choi chipped away at the deficit with a solo home run in the sixth, but Jackson State got that run back in the eighth on a White RBI single.
Butler battled throughout and would tie the game with a couple sac flies. Dorighi scored Xavier Carter in the eighth and Ethan Vecrumba scored David Ayers in the bottom of the ninth.
A BU balk would break the tie in the top of the 11th and a two-run home run from Hibler would blow the game open allowing JSU to win 10-5.
Je-andrick Lourens picked up the win and the loss fell to Nate Rosser. Isaiah Williams had a nice start for JSU by striking out nine in six full innings. CJ Lewis was the only other arm used in the contest for Jackson State.
Tyler Banks did his job for the Bulldogs by going 5.2 innings on Saturday and striking out six while only issuing one walk. Simon Linde would touch the rubber after the BU starter (1.1 IP) and Cole Graverson would end the game on the mound.
Butler is now 1-1 in the weekend tournament and 5-7 overall heading into a Sunday showdown with Presbyterian. First pitch is set for 11 AM.
BALL STATE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
WBB MAKES HISTORY FOR MOST WINS IN A SINGLE-SEASON WITH DEFEAT AT BUFFALO
BUFFALO, N.Y. – It comes to no surprise that the Ball State women’s basketball team would end its season on a high note. The Cardinals (27-4, 16-2 MAC) put together an impressive 71-50 road win against the Bulls (17-12, 10-8 MAC) Saturday afternoon at Alumni Arena.
The win marked Ball State’s 27th of the season which is a the most victories in a single- season in program history for the Cardinals.
You would think the Cardinals would be tired as they have been on the road since Tuesday earning a win on ESPNU at Kent State and then continued their journey to Buffalo. But the Ball State women’s basketball team certainly put on a show today after opening the first 10 minutes of play outscoring the Bulls, 21-6.
Ball State continued its domination in the second frame outpacing Buffalo 18-9 to take an impressive 39-15 advantage over the Bulls at intermission. Not only was it one of the Cardinals best first half showings offensively but their defensive game was just as inspiring. Six different Cardinals had already scored two or more points after the first half. The Cardinals shot 53 percent (8-15) in the second quarter and had already forced the Bulls to commit 16 turnovers.
After the break, Alex Richard and Annie Rauch did what they do best and that’s finding ways to score in the paint especially when the Cardinals start to struggle from behind the arc. The Bulls put in a strong effort to come back and would outscore the Cardinals 18-12 to end the third stanza. Ball State wasn’t fazed and continued to take a double-digit lead (51-33) into the final 10 minutes of play.
From start to finish the Cardinals carried the same momentum today as Ball State scored 20 points in the final frame to win the game over Buffalo by 21. It was a great way to end the Mid-American Conference regular season as the Cardinals locked up the No. 2 seed at next week’s tournament in Cleveland, Ohio.
For the game, Richard continues to lead the pack after scoring 18 points. Nyla Hampton ended the game chipping in 13 points and Marie Kiefer rounded the double-digit scoring with 11. Becki finished the game with eight points and 10 assists. As a team, BSU dished out 24 assists, had 13 steals and shot nearly 50 percent from the field.
The Ball State women’s basketball team will take its 27-4 record to Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on Wednesday at the MAC Tournament quarterfinals where they will face the No. 7 seed the Ohio Bobcats in Game No. 3. That contest is scheduled to start approximately 30 minutes after game No. 2.
BALL STATE BASEBALL
EASTERN MICHIGAN BEATS BASEBALL IN GAME TWO OF SERIES
MUNCIE, Ind. – The Ball State baseball team fell 6-2 to Eastern Michigan on Saturday afternoon at the First Merchants Ballpark Complex.
The Cardinals (9-6, 0-2 Mid-American Conference) dropped the second league game of the year to the Eagles (5-9, 2-0 MAC), who led the entirety of the contest after putting two runs on the board in the third inning.
In the sixth, Matthew Gonzalez knocked in Michael Hallquist on a triple to right center field before Dylan Grego brought home Gonzalez on an RBI infield single to cut into the EMU edge at 3-2. The Eagles responded with a 3-run seventh inning highlighted by a Darren Kraft 2-run home run that proved to be final scoring of the day.
Ball State starter Logan Schulfer (1-2) was hit with the loss after allowing a pair of runs in 2.2 innings, while Eastern’s Drew Beckner tossed 6.0 innings of 2-run ball to improve his record to 2-1. Niko Kreuzer threw 3.0 shutout innings to pick up his first save on the season.
Nate Blain gutted out 5.1 innings in relief, striking out seven while allowing four runs, to save the bullpen, while Brady Owens threw a scoreless ninth inning for the Cardinals.
“Today we were beaten in all facets,” head coach Rich Maloney said. “The beauty is we have a 30-game league season.”
Ball State will play for its first conference win of the year at 1 p.m. on Sunday in the series finale with Eastern Michigan.
BALL STATE GYMNASTICS
GYMNASTICS HEADS TO NIU FOR SUNDAY #MACTION
» THIS WEEK IN BALL STATE GYMNASTICS: The Ball State gymnastics team closes the road portion of its 2024 regular season schedule Sunday, when it visits Northern Illinois for a 3 p.m. ET / 2 p.m. CT Mid-American Conference dual.
» BALL STATE IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS:
– Ball State enters Sunday’s dual at Northern Illinois ranked 28th nationally with an NQS of 196.410 according to the latest Road to Nationals Rankings.
– BSU’s program record score of 198.025 at the Tennessee Collegiate Classic (Jan. 19) is the 22nd-highest team score in the nation … The Cardinals were the first program in the country to break the 198 mark this season, while No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Cal, No. 3 LSU, No. 4 Florida, No. 5 Utah, No. 6 Kentucky, No. 8 Michigan State, No. 9 Alabama and No. 10 UCLA are the only programs to score higher than Ball State since.
– The Cardinals have proven to be one of the nation’s top bars teams this season, ranking 19th nationally with an NQS of 49.225 … In fact, Ball State’s program record score of 49.775 on bars at the Tennessee Collegiate Classic (Jan. 19) ties as the third-best team score on any apparatus in the nation so far this season, trailing only No. 1 Oklahoma’s 49.825 on bars set Feb. 2 and its two 49.800s on beam.
– So far this season, there have been a total of 60 perfect 10.0s scored nationally … Three of them have come from Ball State gymnasts, starting with senior Suki Pfister on vault at the Tennessee Collegiate Classic (Jan. 19) … Sophomore Zoe Middleton and graduate student Megan Teter added perfect 10.0s on bars later in the meet, the first two perfect 10.0s in program history in the event.
– BSU gymnasts also boasts three of the nation’s 136 scores of 9.975 this season including Victoria Henry’s vault at the Ohio State Tri-Meet (Jan. 14), Ashley Szymanski’s bars routine in the home opener versus Bowling Green (Jan. 22) and Suki Pfister’s vault at George Washington (Feb. 23).
» A QUICK LOOK AT NORTHERN ILLINOIS:
– The Huskies enter Sunday’s meet ranked 52nd nationally with an NQS of 154.100 … Vault is the Huskies’ best event as they rank 38th nationally with an NQS of 49.010 … Isabella Sissi currently leads the squad with 292.525 points and ranks eighth in the MAC with an all-around NQS of 39.090.
» RECORDS FALL AGAIN AT TENNESSEE COLLEGIATE CLASSIC:
– For the second consecutive season, the Ball State gymnastics program shattered records at the Tennessee Collegiate Classic (Jan. 19), highlighted by a team record score of 198.025 … The Cardinals were the first program in the nation to break the 198 mark this season, with the score also being a Mid-American Conference record.
– The effort included program event records on vault (49.375), bars (49.775) and floor (49.625), as well as the fourth best beam score in program history (49.250) … The program’s beam record of 49.350 was set at last season’s Tennessee Collegiate Classic.
– Ball State’s gymnasts registered a program meet record 12 scores of 9.900-or-higher, including perfect 10.0s by Suki Pfister (vault), Zoe Middleton (bars) and Megan Teter (bars) … Prior to the meet, the Cardinals only had one perfect 10 in program history.
– Ball State’s student-athletes earned 21 career best scores over the course of the meet, with each athlete who competed tallying at least one.
» MORE RECORD NOTES FROM TENNESSEE:
– On floor, Suki Pfister tied the program record for a second time in her career with a 9.950 … Three Cardinals, Carissa Martinez, Zoe Middleton and Megan Teter, all earned 9.925s, while Hannah Ruthberg added a 9.900 … It marked the first time in program history all five countable scores on an event were 9.900-or-higher.
– Ball State produced five of the top 10 individual bars scores in program history later in the meet, led by the first two perfect 10s on bars in the BSU record book from Zoe Middleton and Megan Teter … The Cardinals also received 9.925s on bars from Ashley Szymanski, Victoria Henry and Hannah Ruthberg to give the program its first-ever event with all five countable scores at 9.925-or-higher.
– Zoe Middleton crushed the program’s all-around record with a 39.750, including a 10.0 on bars, a 9.950 on vault, a 9.925 on floor and a 9.875 on beam … It currently ties as the eighth-highest all-around score in the nation this season … The previous program record was 39.400 set twice last season … All five of Middleton’s scores were career-best efforts.
– Megan Teter and Victoria Henry also passed the previous all-around mark with scores of 39.575 and 39.450, respectively … Teter’s effort of 39.575 included a 10.0 on bars, a 9.925 on floor, a 9.850 on beam and a 9.800 on vault … Henry’s effort of 39.450 counted a 9.925 on bars, a 9.850 on beam, a 9.850 on floor and a 9.825 on vault.
» A RECORD OPENER AS WELL: Ball State started the season with the best opening meet score in program history with a 194.925 at the UNC Quad (Jan. 5) … The previous record was 194.475 set at Kentucky to open the 2018 season.
» GOING 9.975-OR-HIGHER: Senior Victoria Henry turned in the best vault of her career to win the event at the Ohio State Tri-meet (Jan. 14) with a mark of 9.975 … Freshman Ashley Szymanski added a career-best 9.975 of her own on bars to win the event in the dual victory over Bowling Green (Jan. 22) … Along with the three perfect 10.0s registered at the Tennessee Collegiate Classic (Jan. 19) by Suki Pfister, Zoe Middleton and Megan Teter, only seven gymnasts in program history have registered a score of 9.975-or-higher … The other two are Sarah Mikrut with a 10.0 at Kent State (Feb. 21, 1997) and Denasiha Christianwith a 9.975 on vault at Northern Illinois (Feb. 19, 2016).
» HENRY HITTING THE 9.900 MARK: Senior Victoria Henry has registered 17 scores of 9.900-or-better over her career, including seven so far this season … The total includes eight floor routines, seven vaults and two bars performance.
» SHINING ON FLOOR: Along with owning the nation’s third-best event team score this season with its 49.775 on bars at the Tennessee Collegiate Classic (Jan. 19), Ball State’s 49.625 on floor the same night is tied as the nation’s 29th-best team effort on floor … The Cardinals enter Sunday’s meet ranked 25th nationally with a floor NQS of 49.305, including 17 individual routines of 9.900-or-higher, led by Suki Pfister’s program-record tying effort of 9.950 also set at the Tennessee Collegiate Classic.
» PFISTER HITTING HIGH MARKS ON VAULT: Including her first career 10.0 on vault at the Tennessee Collegiate Classic (Jan. 19), Suki Pfister has had 15 of her 41 collegiate vault performances score 9.900-or-higher … The total includes one 10.0, one 9.975, four 9.950s, two 9.925s and seven 9.900s … This season, Pfister has five scores of 9.900-or-higher and ranks first in the MAC and fifth nationally with an NQS of 9.925.
» SZYMANSKI SHINING ON BARS: Ashley Szymanski has led the Cardinals on bars in six of the team’s nine meets this season, including winning the event at the Ohio State Tri-meet (Jan. 14) with a 9.900, in the dual versus Bowling Green (Jan. 22) with a 9.975, at Western Michigan (Feb. 17) with a 9.825, and at George Washington (Feb. 23) with a 9.950 … She currently ranks first in the MAC and 21st nationally with a bars NQS of 9.910.
» ONE TO WATCH: Zoe Middleton, one of two Ball State student-athletes named to the 2024 MAC Gymnasts to Watch list, has provided plenty of highlights for the Cardinals so far this season including her perfect 10.0 on bars and program record all-around score of 39.750 at the Tennessee Collegiate Classic (Jan. 19) … So far this season, 34 of her 36 routines have counted in the final team score … During her freshman campaign, 37 of Middleton’s 39 routines counted towards Ball State’s team total … Entering Sunday’s meet at Northern Illinois, Middleton ranks first in the MAC and 40th nationally with a floor NQS of 9.910.
» MORE FROM THE ALL AROUND: In the win at George Washington (Feb. 23) all four Cardinals posted all-around scores of 39.400-or-higher … Leading the way was Victoria Henry with a career-best score of 39.475 … The effort included a 9.950 on vault, a 9.925 on floor, a 9.875 on bars and a 9.725 on beam … Hannah Ruthberg also turned in a career-best all-around score with a 39.425, counting a career-best 9.925 on floor, a 9.850 on vault and 9.825s on both bars and beam … While they were not career-best performances, Zoe Middleton and Megan Teter also collected scores of 39.400 … In total, they were four of the top 10 all-around scores in program history.
SCORING HIGH IN 2024:
– Ball State has registered 126 scores of 9.800-or-higher so far this season, led by the team’s 22 at the Tennessee Collegiate Classic (Jan. 19) and 19 at George Washington (Feb. 23) … Of the 126 routines, 37 on floor, 35 have come on bars, 28 on vault and 26 on beam … The total includes 30 scores of 9.900-or-better.
» RECORDS UNDER SALEEM:
– In the program’s first 11 seasons under head coach Joanna Saleem, Ball State has tallied the 32 best team scores in program history … In fact, of Ball State’s 37 scores of 195.450-or-higher, 35 have been set by Saleem’s squads.
– Saleem’s squads own the event records on all four apparatus: vault (49.375), bars (49.775), beam (49.350), and floor (49.625).
– All 42 team entries in the vault record book are held by Saleem’s teams, as are 25 of 32 scores on bars, 25 of 31 scores on floor and 24 of 29 scores on beam.
BALL STATE SOFTBALL
SOFTBALL RUN RULES NOTRE DAME IN SATURDAY NIGHT ACTION
HUNTINGTON, WV – – The madness continued for the Ball State softball team Saturday night at Dot Hicks Field, as the Cardinals (13-12) run ruled Notre Dame for the first time in program history by a score of 12-3 (5).
“This was a great team win that saw tremendous efforts from every aspect of game,” head coach Helen Peña exclaimed! “From the very beginning it’s been about the process, and the game rewarded us tonight for staying true to ourselves and trusting all the hard work these young women have put in since day one. They earned every bit of that win tonight because we have the belief that we can go win a ball game no matter who’s in the other dugout, and I’m so proud of them for that.”
While BSU managed just six hits against the Irish (11-9), it was able to capitalize on seven walks, a pair of errors and one hit batter to avenge last season’s 10-2 (6) setback in South Bend.
The biggest hit of the night came off the bat of redshirt sophomore shortstop McKenna Mulholland who secured Ball State’s biggest margin of victory ever over UND with a two-out grand slam in the bottom of the fourth. It was her first home run of the season and her first collegiate grand slam.
“It’s exciting to see all of their hard work, dedication and sacrifice show through in tonight’s game,” Peña added. “Their commitment to the process, our culture, to each other, and to celebrating the small wins within the game has been so fun to watch. Even through our losses we are constantly growing, learning, and evolving and we are right where we need to be right now. We build by continuing to focus on us, and believing that when we play like we did tonight, it doesn’t matter who’s in the other dugout, we’ll be successful.”
Ball State trailed 2-0 heading into the bottom of the second before loading the bases with one out. That’s when senior center fielder Remington Ross shifted the momentum to the Cardinals with her first triple of the season to give the hosts on the scoreboard a 3-2 edge.
The Cardinals would add three more runs in the inning, with the first coming on a sac fly from redshirt junior catcher McKayla Timmons. Two batters later, redshirt sophomore designated player Jessica Hoffman added a two-run double to make the score 6-2.
Ball State would extend its lead to 7-2 in the bottom of the third after sophomore right fielder Ashlee Lovett singled to open the inning and eventually scored on an error.
After Notre Dame got the run back in the top of the fourth, the Cardinals put a five spot on the board in the bottom of the frame to help end the night early. The first run came on a two-out bases loaded walk to graduate first baseman Samantha-Jo Mata. The final four, on Mulholland’s blast to left.
All the offense helped senior Francys King pick up the win in the circle as she limited Notre Dame to seven hits and three runs, only two of which were earned, over the first 4.0 innings. She also struck out three batters to improve to 7-5 on the year.
Sophomore Bridie Murphy pitched the final inning, retiring all three batters she faced, including a strikeout to open the inning.
SCORING SUMMARY – Ball State 12 – Notre Dame 3 (5)
T2 | Kronenberger homers to left to open the scoring (1-0)
T2 | A bases loaded walk to Gaskins gives the Irish a two-run lead (2-0)
B2 | A bases loaded triple from Ross gives Ball State a one-run advantage (2-3)
B2 | With runners on the corners, a sac fly from Timmons doubled the BSU edge (2-4)
B2 | Hoffman doubled Ball State’s lead once again with a two-run double to center field (2-6)
B3 | Lovett singles to open the inning and eventually scores on an error (2-7)
T4 | Notre Dame uses a two-out RBI single from Amaral to get one run back (3-7)
B4 | Mata draws a bases loaded walk (3-8)
B4 | Mulholland caps the scoring and secures the run rule win with her first collegiate grand slam (3-12)
UP NEXT:
The Ball State softball team closes play in Marshall March Madness Sunday with an 11 a.m. rematch versus Notre Dame. The game had been pushed up to 10:30 a.m. but has reverted to its original time.
BALL STATE WOMEN’S TENNIS
WOMEN’S TENNIS COMPETES AT 73RD-RANKED MICHIGAN STATE
EAST LANSING, Mich. – The Ball State women’s tennis team played at 73rd-ranked Michigan State Saturday morning at the MSU Indoor Tennis Center. The Cardinals (2-9) would fall to the Spartans (7-5) 4-0.
As the season progresses the Cardinals have showed improvement and although Ball State lost the doubles point courts one and three were highly competitive. In fact, Annika Planinsek alongside teammate Ella Hazelbaker defeated the Spartans No. 3 duo of Natalie Stasny and Marlo Schiffman, 6-4. Michigan State would earn wins at the No. 1 and No. 2 positions to claim the doubles win. Isabel Tanjuatco and Sarah Shahbaz put on a show on the top court only losing by two (7-5) to the 38th-ranked Ayshe Can and Nicole Conrad.
In singles, the Spartans took courts two, four and three from the Cardinals all in straight sets to clinch today’s victory. Both Tanjuatco and Hazelbaker were up in their second frames against their respective opponents before play was suspended.
The Ball State women’s tennis team will continue non-conference action when it plays Bradley at home Sunday. First serve is at 5 pm ET at the Northwest YMCA Tennis Center.
INDIANA STATE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
SYCAMORES FALL TO DRAKE IN REGULAR SEASON FINALE
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Kiley Bess and Mya Glanton scored 14 points apiece Saturday afternoon, but regular season champion Drake’s fast-paced offense proved too much for Indiana State in a 96-64 defeat for the Sycamores inside Hulman Center.
Bella Finnegan added 13 points for the Sycamores, while Chelsea Cain nearly had a double-double with nine points and nine rebounds.
Indiana State kept pace early with the league leaders, with Cain and Glanton picking up early paint points for the Sycamores. Asia Donald added a pair of early baskets, but the Bulldogs led by 10 after a quarter and never looked back. Indiana State’s freshmen got the Trees within nine midway through the second, but a 14-2 run for the Bulldogs increased the visitors’ lead to more than 20. Drake’s relentless attack of the paint, combined with the Bulldogs finding their 3-point stroke late, propelled the regular season champions to a win.
First Half
Cain opened Indiana State’s scoring with a layup, and Glanton added a pair of inside baskets to keep the Trees within three early on. Donald connected on a pair of baskets late in the first quarter, but Drake picked up the pace to take a 20-10 lead after the opening 10 minutes.
Indiana State got early second quarter baskets from Glanton and Finnegan, but it was the Sycamores’ freshman class that kept the Trees within reach. Keslyn Secrist knocked down a 3-pointer and Saige Stahl added a jumper, as the Sycamores cut their deficit down to 31-22 just past the midway point of the quarter. Finnegan added a late 3-pointers for the Syacmores, but Indiana State faced a 38-25 deficit heading into halftime.
Second Half
Drake opened the third quarter with an 11-2 run to extend its lead out to 49-27, with Glanton scoring the Sycamores’ lone points in that span. Bess tacked on a three-point play and Ella Sawyer added a jumper to make it 50-32, and a Bess three-ball further cut into the Indiana State deficit. Another 3-pointer from Bess, along with a layup from Cain, got the Trees within 60-40, and Glanton added a pair of baskets late in the quarter. Drake’s offense continued to find ways to score, though, as the Sycamores trailed 64-44 entering the fourth quarter.
Jumpers from Glanton and Finnegan pulled the Sycamores within 19 early in the fourth quarter at 69-50. Cain added a 3-pointer and Finnegan hit a jumper midway through, but an 11-2 run for the visitors followed as Drake extended its lead to 86-57. Bess knocked down another 3-pointer late, and Cain and Pelly both tacked on baskets inside the last two minutes, but Drake’s high-powered attack led the Bulldogs to a 96-64 win.
News and Notes
Indiana State recognized its senior class, consisting of Ella Sawyer, Chelsea Cain and Reagan Smalley, before Saturday’s game. The Sycamores also recognized Mya Glanton and Kiley Bess, who are seniors with additional years of eligibility available, in-game.
Indiana State registered its third consecutive game with five or more blocks Saturday, finishing with five blocks against Drake.
All of Indiana State’s 12 bench points Saturday came from the Sycamores’ freshman class.
All five starters for Indiana State dished out multiple assists Saturday. The Sycamores finished with 12 assists as a team.
Saturday’s game was the fifth straight game that the Sycamores knocked down at least six 3-pointers. Indiana State has hit five or more 3-pointers in nine of the last 10 games.
Up Next
Indiana State turns its attention to Hoops in the Heartland. The Sycamores will be seeded ninth at the MVC Tournament and will face Southern Illinois in the opening round Thursday at 1 p.m.
INDIANA STATE MEN’S BASKETBALL
ISU HEADED TO CHAMPIONSHIP SUNDAY IN ARCH MADNESS; FACE DRAKE FOR THE TOURNAMENT TITLE
ST. LOUIS, Mo. – No. 1 Indiana State is heading to the 2024 Arch Madness Championship game as the Sycamores took down No. 4 Northern Iowa in a convincing fashion with a 94-72 win on Saturday afternoon.
The Sycamores (28-5) hit six of their first seven three-pointers to build an early double-digit lead and Indiana State never relented in taking their second win of the season over UNI (19-14). Robbie Avila hit four of ISU’s first five three-pointers during the opening stretch to finish with 21 points, while Ryan Conwell added 20 points and 13 rebounds in the Sycamore win.
Indiana State advances to the Arch Madness title game for the sixth time in program history and first since 2014 as the Sycamores take on No. 2 Drake. It marks the first time Indiana State and Drake will face each other in the championship’s final game and sixth different opponent ISU will have faced in the championship game in program history.
The Sycamores and the Bulldogs split the season series with each team winning at home in 2024. Drake took the opener in Des Moines, 89-78, while ISU returned the favor inside the Hulman Center on February 3, 75-67.
The Sycamores (28-5) hit six of their first seven three-pointers to build an early double-digit lead and Indiana State never relented in taking their second win of the season over UNI (19-14). Robbie Avila hit four of ISU’s first five three-pointers during the opening stretch to finish with 21 points, while Ryan Conwell added 20 points and 13 rebounds in the Sycamore win.
Indiana State advances to the Arch Madness title game for the sixth time in program history and first since 2014 as the Sycamores will take on the winner between No. 2 Drake and No. 3 Bradley.
Four of ISU’s starters finished in double-digits with Julian Larry (17 points, seven assists) and Isaiah Swope (15 points, 5-of-7 three-pointers) joining Avila and Conwell in the category. Jayson Kent narrowly missed out on his second double-double of the tournament finishing with nine points and nine rebounds.
The Sycamores set the tone early in the contest hitting seven of their first 10 three-pointers and 10 of their first 14 baskets in building an early 27-15 lead following Swope’s third three-pointer of the game at the 12:02 mark. Indiana State’s lead hit 19 points at 34-15 following an Avila layup with 9:01 to play in the first half as the Sycamores continued to pressure the Panthers early.
UNI battled back bringing the game to within single digits at 41-33 with 1:44 left in the first half on a Cole Henry pull-up jumper in the paint ending an 18-7 run as the Panthers fought their way back into the contest. The Sycamore lead hit double-digits as the clock expired with Conwell connecting on a turnaround jumper in the paint to send ISU into the locker room with the 44-33 lead.
Indiana State set the tone out of the gate in the second half scoring nine of the first 11 points on their way to building a 53-35 lead on Avila’s layup with 15:54 to play. The lead hit 20 points for the first time on a Swope fast-break three-pointer at 62-42 as ISU continued to pressure the Panthers defense from the outside.
Larry took control of the game late with a six-point stretch to give ISU a 90-60 lead with 2:43 remaining, and Jade Daughtry and Aaron Gray both scored late to cap the game and secure the 94-72 win over the Panthers.
The Sycamores hit 57.4% (35-61) from the floor including 63.3% (19-of-30) in the second half in a dominant shooting display at the Enterprise Center. ISU hit 15 three-pointers in the game with all five starters connecting from deep in the win.
Xavier Bledson added four points, five assists, and a rebound off the bench, while Jake Wolfe contributed four points and two rebounds in the Indiana State attack.
Jacob Hutson paced UNI with 21 points on 9-of-15 shooting, while Bowen Born added 12 points and four assists. Nate Heise was also in double-digits with 10 points.
News & Notes
Indiana State won its 28th game, the program’s second-most wins in program history.
The Sycamores shot 51.7% from deep, the second-best mark of the season.
Ryan Conwell recorded his fifth double-double with 20 points and 13 rebounds. His 13 rebounds is also his career high. Conwell has three double-doubles in the last five games. In the last five games, Conwell is averaging a double-double with 19.4 PPG and 10 RPG. In the past 10 games, he has had eight games with 15+ points.
Isaiah Swope logged his second-best shooting game from three, making 5-of-7 and 71.4%.
In the past 10 games, Robbie Avila has had six games with 20+ points, scoring 21 in Saturday’s win.
Julian Larry in the past 10 games has averaged 10.1 PPG and 6.9 AST/G. He shot 6-for-9 in the win.
Jayson Kent recorded eight of his nine rebounds in the second half.
Jake Wolfe has nearly doubled his RPG number in the MVC Tournament. Entering the week, he averaged 1.7 RPG and has averaged 3.5 RPG through the two wins.
Up Next
The Sycamores take on Drake in the 2024 MVC Tournament Championship on Sunday with a 2:10 p.m. ET tipoff.
PURDUE FT. WAYNE MEN’S GOLF
BURKE PITZ AND MASTODONS CLAIM SACRED HEART INVITATIONAL TROPHIES
ORANGE CITY, Fla. – The Purdue Fort Wayne men’s golf team brought home its first trophies of the 2023-24 season on Saturday (March 9). Burke Pitz won the individual medalist honor and the Mastodons won the team title at the Sacred Heart Invitational.
The Mastodons shot 290-287-577 as a team, beating the closest team by 12 shots. This is the second year in a row the Mastodons have won the Sacred Heart Invitational.
Pitz earned the first win of his career by shooting 69-72-141, topping all competitors by at least two shots. His even round of 72 was highlighted by a stretch of three birdies in a row on 12, 13 and 14. He also birdied hole two.
Hunter Mefford tied for second place at the event, shooting 71-72-143. He was also even on Saturday, finding birdies on two, 11 and 17, and an eagle on the 515-yard 15th. SHU’s event was Mefford’s fourth top-five finish in his career.
Two shots back of Mefford, Kasey Lilly tied for sixth with a 75-70-145. In round two, Lilly also eagled hole 12 and added birdies on two and 17. He had just one double-bogey on hole three, turning in 14 pars.
Nick Holder was just one shot off the top-10 with his 75-74-148. He had back-to-back birdies on hole two and three, then two more on the back nine on 12 and 15.
AJ Agnew rounded out the lineup, shooting 77-79-156. He had five pars in a row on the front nine and back-to-back birdies on 11 and 12.
The team of five finished with a total score of 7-under on the 12th hole.
Brock Reschly and Nick Bellush competed as individuals, shooting 151 and 157, respectively.
The Mastodons will look to score more trophies in just under a month at the Don Benbow Butler Spring Invitational on April 1-2.
PURDUE FT. WAYNE WOMEN’S GOLF
MASTODON WOMEN’S GOLF TAKES RUNNER-UP AT SACRED HEART INVITATIONAL
ORANGE CITY, Fla. – The Purdue Fort Wayne women’s golf team earned runner-up at the Sacred Heart Invitational on Saturday (March 9).
The ‘Dons second place finish is the best in a tournament for Purdue Fort Wayne since the 2013-14 season. The Mastodons shot 297-304-601, behind just the host Pioneers’ 586.
As she has for most of her career, Anna Olafsdottir had the Mastodons’ best score. She tied for third with a 73-74-147. Her third-place finish is the best of her career. In round two, she had a bogey-free front nine with birdies on holes one and eight.
Adrienne Rohwedder and Hunar Mittal joined Olafsdottir tied for sixth. The duo both shot 148 and tied for sixth. Rohwedder shot 77 on day two, finding birdies to fall on holes three and 15. She had a stretch of nine holes with just bogey from 6-15. Mittal had a birdie on hole three and nine pars on the back nine for a 74.
Natalie Papa shot 79 on day two, dropping a birdie on the 472-yard second hole. She had 12 pars to tie for 25th with a 158.
Lillie Cone shot 83-80-163 with a birdie on 11 in round two. She had a five-hole stretch of pars on the back nine and tied for 38th.
Olivia Jang tied for 39th after a second round of 82 to total 164. She carded 11 pars, finishing in 40th.
Purdue Fort Wayne will head to Prospect, Kentucky on March 18-19 to play in Cleveland State’s Nevel Meade Collegiate.
EVANSVILLE SOFTBALL
ACES EARN 8-INNING WIN TO SPLIT SATURDAY GAMES
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Bellarmine opened the day with a 14-3 win over the University of Evansville softball team, but a strong all-around effort in the second game saw the Purple Aces score three runs in the 8th inning to take an 8-5 win to split Saturday’s games in Louisville.
Game 1 – Bellarmine 14, UE 3
A 7-run first inning by Bellarmine set the tone in a 14-3 loss to the Knights. In the first frame, Bellarmine drew seven walks, scoring seven runs on just one hit. They added six more run in the second to extend the advantage to 13-0.
Kayley Batts led off the third with a single to center and Hannah Would reached on a 2-out walk. That brought Jess Willsey to the plate and she got UE on the board with a 2-run double. Lacy Smith added UE’s third run of the game in the fourth.
Bellarmine’s final run scored in the bottom of the fourth as they took the 14-3 decision. Megan Brenton suffered the loss, allowing four runs and four walks. Elle Jarrett pitched four innings of relief. Claire Lehmkuhler was credited with the win, giving up three runs on five hits in four frames.
Game 2 – UE 8, Bellarmine 5 (8 innings)
In a back-and-forth contest, the Purple Aces scored three runs in the top of the 8th to defeat Bellarmine by an 8-5 final in Saturday’s second game. UE had a much better start, posting a single run in the first before plating four in the top half of the second.
Jenna Nink opened the scoring with a sacrifice fly in the to bring in Zoe Frossard. Evansville utilized small ball to perfection in the second as Marah Wood hit a leadoff single, stole second, advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on a sac fly from Kayley Batts. Alexa Davis drew a walk in the inning, stole second, moved to third on Batts’ sac fly and came home on a Niki Bode sac.
Frossard connected on a triple to left center before Hannah Hood was hit by a pitch. Both would score on a 2-run single by Jess Willsey to extend the lead to 5-0. Things remained that way until the bottom of the fourth when the Knights put a 5-spot on the board to tie the game. Neither team could score through the 7th and the game headed to extras.
Opening the inning on second, Frossard advanced on a sac bunt by Lacy Smith and scored the go-ahead run on a triple from Wood. That brought Davis to the plate, who delivered a sacrifice fly to make it a 2-run game. Evansville’s run continued as they loaded the bases for Hood, who earned a walk to put her team in front at 8-5. Megan Brenton got the job done in the bottom of the frame, sitting the Knights down in order to clinch the win.
Both squads picked up six hits with Wood accounting for three. Frossard scored three runs and walked three times. Mikayla Jolly made the start, allowing five runs in 3 2/3 innings. Sydney Weatherford tossed 2 1/3 frames of 1-hit ball before Brenton threw the final two innings on the way to the win.
EVANSVILLE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
ACES WOMEN’S BASKETBALL DROPS REGULAR SEASON FINALE TO UNI
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The University of Evansville women’s basketball celebrated its two graduating players in a 67-46 loss to the Northern Iowa Panthers.
The Purple Aces offense didn’t find its rhythm until the second half in their final game at Meeks Family Fieldhouse. UE had only 12 points through the first half but got back into the game in the second half with another big performance from freshman forward Nevaeh Thomas. Thomas added her sixth double-double of the season with 19 points and 12 rebounds in 34 minutes.
“I thought we battled so hard, we just shot so poorly,” said Head Coach Robyn Scherr-Wells following the game. “We had good chances. And we made a nice run at it. Lots of credit to UNI for making a couple of big threes to widen the gap again and put a stop to our little run. They did a good job in that stretch when we made a push at it. They had answers to it.
“But I’m really proud of our ladies. We’ve been so banged up. To the point where I was worried, we wouldn’t play against Drake on Thursday. We thought we weren’t going to have more than six bodies available. To then get to today and have eight players available. I’m proud of our fight. We’ve had to play so many different lineups in the last week. But our team has been really tough through that process.”
Evansville got the first bucket of the game for Senior Day as graduate center Barbora Tomancova had a second-chance layup two and a half minutes in. But the Aces didn’t score another point until the final minute and a half of the first quarter. UNI built only an eight-point lead in the other five minutes as both teams struggled to score in the opening frame. A four-point run for the Panthers in the final minute had UE down by only 10 points despite shooting 6.3%.
The second quarter didn’t get any easier for Evansville as the team went three of nine from the floor. It took nearly four minutes for either team to make a shot in the second but the first went to UNI at 6:22. The Aces had their first field goal of the quarter at 4:33 on a layup from Thomas. But another long scoreless stretch for UE made it a 17-point game with under two minutes left in the half. Guard Sydney Bradley broke Evansville’s scoreless streak with an open jump shot that sparked a six-to-two run to end the half.
Both teams’ offense improved in the second half, with the Aces having their best quarter in the third. A three-point play for Thomas opened UE’s scoring in the half. The and-1 opportunity sparked a back-and-forth game through most of the third quarter. Evansville did end the quarter on a quick five-point run to get back within single digits. But the Panthers ended the quarter with a jump shot to again make it a double-digit deficit for the Aces.
The final ten minutes began with a quick three for UNI to begin pulling away from UE. But Evansville didn’t back down as Thomas had another three-point play to get within 11. The Panthers responded with a five-point run that made it a 16-point game with just under seven minutes left to play. It became a shot-for-shot game over the next three minutes.
The Aces put together their final scoring run of the regular season as Thomas made a layup and two free throws in just under a minute. But UNI ended UE’s potential comeback with an eight-point run to close out the game. Evansville got the final bucket as Thomas added another layup on an assist from guard Tené Smith to make the final score 67-46.
While it was a tough game on offense for the Aces, UE stayed in the game with a strong defensive presence. Evansville outrebounded the Panthers 39 to 34 while also blocking four shots. The Aces’ best offensive category came on second-chance points with 10 while tying UNI in points in the paint with 28 each.
UE gets its shot in the postseason next week at Hoops in the Heartland in Moline, Ill. Evansville is locked into the 12th seed in the tournament and will play the fifth seed on Thursday afternoon. Tip-off for the Aces from Vibrant Arena at the MARK is set for 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 14.
UINDY WOMEN’S LAX
HOUNDS HANDLE PANTHERS IN HOME OPENER
INDIANAPOLIS—Playing in front of the home crowd for the first time this season, the No. 13 UIndy women’s lacrosse team delivered a quick and decisive 18-6 region win against visiting Davenport Saturday afternoon. UIndy invoked the running clock midway through the second second quarter and didn’t look back, dispatching the Panthers in an hour and 40 minutes.
UIndy more than tripled its guest in shots, firing 39 balls at the net compared to just 12 shots from Davenport.
INS & OUTS
The Panthers managed to get on the board first before the UIndy defense clamped down and held them scoreless for more than a full quarter of game play. Meanwhile, the Hounds run off nine straight unanswered goals to take control, including eight goals in the first quarter alone.
The offensive trio of Mackenzie Winn, Megan Dunn and Joey Fowler put on an impressive display. The veteran group combined for 24 points and 13 goals, with Winn’s career-high six goals leading the way.
Freshman Amanda Hurry led the UIndy defense, compiling four ground balls and three caused turnovers.
INSIDE THE BOX
– Dunn and Fowler shard the team lead with four assists apiece.
– Four Greyhounds had at least three ground balls each.
– Olivia Bladon and Malaena Michielin combined for 11 draw controls, while Davenport as a team had only seven DCs all afternoon.
– Freshman keeper Ava Graham got the win between the pipes, adding three saves.
– UIndy is 6-0 all-time versus Davenport
UP NEXT
UIndy heads to Ohio to face Notre Dame College this Wednesday, March 13. It will mark the fourth straight GLVC opponents for the Falcons, who are 0-3 in the previous three such contests.
UINDY BASEBALL
BASEBALL OPENS CONFERENCE PLAY WITH ONE-SIDED VICTORY AT S&T
ROLLA, Mo. – In the highest scoring contest of the season thus far, the UIndy baseball team outlasted the Missouri S&T Miners by a score of 23-12 for their first GLVC-conference victory of the season. The run total marks the largest amount of runs the Greyhounds have scored in a contest since their 11-inning marathon with the Ohio Dominican Panthers last season, where they dropped 24, the finale coming via a Brandon DeWitt walk-off error.
The Greyhounds and Miners were scheduled to finish two contests on the first day of the series, long running first contest halted the second game in the 7th frame with the Hounds leading 10-8. They will conclude that battle before their Sunday doubleheader.
The storyline heading into the contest was the S&T return for transfers Dakota Sill and Cole Hampton. That plot carried excitement galore as Sill had a breakout game, going 6-7 from the dish with five ribbies, leading the Greyhounds in both categories. Even though his counterpart was excellent, that didn’t hamper Hampton as he went three of five with a pair of RBI and a team leading four runs scored.
Outside of the former-Miners, Easton Good and Nick Lukac were excellent from the plate as Good drove in four runs on four hits and Lukac went 3-5 with two walks and three ribbies.
INS & OUTS
After a clean first frame from Dawson Gabe on the bump, the scoring broke open in the second with the Hounds dropping a pair of runs, with Bryce Goodwine finding his first RBI of the season in the process. A three-spot response by the Miners left UIndy trailing after two innings of action.
The seventh is where it got funky. A one-out Zack Williams triple began what ended up being a seven-run barrage by the Hounds, culminating in a first-pitch nuke by Drew Donaldson.
The run-athon continued from their with both squads bringing in six runs in the fourth, leaving the score 15-10. The highlight of the frame coming with Good and Caleb Vaughn launching a pair of absolute missiles out of the S&T Ballpark.
The excitement continued from there as the Hounds dished out runs in the fifth, sixth and ninth frame. Andrew DeWitt – no relation to Brandon – earned the win in the contest after relieving Gabe, tossing two and third innings of no-hit work, striking out three Miners.
UP NEXT
The Hounds and Miners will conclude the halted contest at the beginning of the Sunday set, with doubleheader set to take place after. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET in Rolla, Mo.
UINDY MEN’S BASKETBALL
BINGHAM DROPS CAREER-HIGH 33 IN GLVC SEMIFINAL LOSS
ST. CHARLES, Mo. – The No. 23 UIndy men’s basketball team dropped a heartbreaker on Saturday, falling to fifth-seeded William Jewell in overtime, 93-89, in the GLVC semifinals from Hyland Arena on the campus of Lindenwood University.
Jesse Bingham poured in a career-high 33 points, including 23 in the second half and extra session.
The Greyhounds had a shot at the buzzer at the end of regulation, but an attempt from Josiah Tynes fell just short.
INS & OUTS
David Ejah picked a good time for his only block of the evening, securing the rebound and moving the ball up the floor with under three minutes left in the second half. Sean Craig rewarded his teammate on the offensive end, drilling a triple in front of the home bench to give the Greyhound their first lead in more than 20 minutes at 69-67.
UIndy looked to be in control, as Jarvis Walker sunk all three free-throw attempts with 47 ticks remaining to increase the lead to five. However, a quick Jewell jumper from Jordan Jermain put it back within one possession before Kobe McKinley drilled a 3-pointer with five seconds left to force overtime.
The extra session proved thrilling, as McKinley and Walker traded 3-pointers to keep the game tied down the stretch. The Cardinals scored the final four points from the charity stripe, as a costly Greyhound turnover with under 20 seconds on the scoreboard put the game out of reach.
All three contests between UIndy and Jewell were tight this season, with the previous regular-season contests decided by a mere two points.
INSIDE THE BOX
– The Greyhounds finished 18-of-23 from the free-throw line, including an impressive 15-for-17 effort after halftime.
– Each team committed just three turnovers in the final 25 minutes.
– Ejah nearly recorded his second straight double-double, finishing with 16 points and nine rebounds.
– The 33 points from Bingham marks a new career-high for the redshirt-senior, who previously tallied 28 against Missouri S&T in Feb. 2021.
– Dylan Ingram attempted three 3-pointers – and made one – but was upstaged by a Bingham putback in the first half.
MORE NOTES
UIndy now leads the all-time series, 13-3 … Saturday marked the third overtime game of the season.
HOUND BYTES
Associate head coach Mike Burris on the loss…
Jesse really played like a senior to get us one more game. That was a really hard-fought game between two tough teams, two really well-coached basketball teams. We just ran out of time.”
UP NEXT
UIndy now awaits final word of its fate in the 2024 NCAA DII Midwest Regional, beginning Saturday, Mar. 16. The Greyhounds were ranked in the top spot in each of the final two regional polls and should be in prime position to be No. 1 for the second straight season.
The selection show is scheduled for Sunday at 11 p.m. ET on NCAA.com.
MARIAN WOMEN’S GOLF
MARIAN WINS FIRST TOURNAMENT OF SPRING SEASON AT SADDLEBROOK KICKOFF
Wesley Chapel, Fla. – The Marian women’s golf team earned their second victory of the 2023-24 season, winning their first outing in the spring with a title at the Saddlebrook Spring Kickoff, hosted by Walsh University at Saddlebrook Course. Marian’s win was highlighted by Mackendzie Dresbaugh’s individual win, while three others finished in the top-10,
Marian earned their first win of the spring season by firing a team score of 937, earning the wire-to-wire win by 26 strokes. Marian scored a 309 on day one, a 305 on Friday’s second round, and a 323 in the final round on Saturday. Regis University would finish second overall, followed by Winona State and Wayne State College. Walsh finished fifth, with Kentucky Wesleyan, Lourdes, and St. Xavier completing the field.
The Knights were led individually by Mackendzie Dresbaugh, who earned the outright championship with a 231 final score for three rounds. Dresbaugh fired a 78 on day one and day two, before charging a 75 in the final round to complete the win and her total of 231. Dresbaugh was joined in the top-three finishers by Emma Weiler, who finished as the runner-up with a 235 score. Weiler scored an 83 in round one, before a 70 in round two brought her back into contention. The freshman shot an 82 in the final round to end her weekend with a second-place finish.
Keara Eder would tie for fourth place, as her 80+77+81 score brought her to a total of 238. Sidney Parmer shot a 74+81+85 to score a 240 overall, finishing tied for eighth. Hailey Kirkland would tie for 11th with her 77+80+85=242 score, and Ava Hedrick finished 25th with an 89+81+86=256.
The Knights will seek another win when they next take the course, competing at the Lawrence Tech Heritage Hills Invite on March 22 and 23.
MARIAN SOFTBALL
MARIAN SUFFERS FIRST LOSS OF 2024 AS KNIGHTS SPLIT FINAL DAY IN FLORIDA
Melbourne, Fla. – The Marian softball team split on their final day in Florida as the team suffered their first loss on the young season, with Marian dropping game one against Aquinas before winning the second against Mount Mercy. Marian is 11-1 overall on the season, finishing the week with a 9-1 record.
Game 1 | Marian 1-5 Aquinas
Aquinas took the early jump in game one of the day for Marian, scoring two runs in the first inning against starter Macy Coan. Coan would get out of the inning with a pop up as two runs would score on four hits, but was unable to get run support as the Saints retired the side in order in Marian’s first at bats of the game.
Coan would settle in and pitch a scoreless second inning, following with a scoreless third as she stranded a single in the frame. Marian continued to look sluggish in their trips to the plate, as two runners were left on in the second inning while the side was sat down in order in the third. In the fourth, Aquinas took advantage of an early error and three hits, scoring three runs in total in the inning to end Coan’s day. Katie Lackman would come in relief as she made her collegiate pitching debut, and was able to clean up the inning as a pop up ended the fourth with Marian trailing 5-0.
Lackman would finish the game in the circle, pitching strong in relief as she allowed just two hits in the final three innings, pitching a shutout in her debut. The Knights were unable to get Lackman into winning position however, as the offense managed just one productive inning, as a run would score in the sixth inning on a sacrifice fly hit by Sierra Norman. The Knights failed to keep a rally going after getting their first run in the sixth, and in the seventh saw three consecutive outs as the game ended in a 5-1 defeat for Marian.
Marian was only able to muster three base hits in the loss, with Savannah Harweger, Lily Wendt, and Hayley Greene each recording Marian’s hits. Sierra Norman drove in the only run with her RBI sacrifice fly. Coan would take the loss on the mound, suffering her first defeat on the season allowing five runs and eight hits. Lackman picked up her first career strikeout as she pitched 3.1 innings of relief, allowing just two hits.
Game 2 | Marian 11-0 Mount Mercy | 5 Innings
Looking to was the taste their loss from their mouths, Marian put up a run early in their second game of the day, getting a scoreless first inning of work from Jaylah Guilliam against Mount Mercy. The Mustangs gave up a run in the home side as Savannah Harweger led the game with a bunt single, scoring two batters later on an RBI groundout from Abby Madere.
Guilliam picked up another run of support after retiring the side in the order in the top of the second, as Brooke Knox kept her hot streak going with an RBI double in the bottom of the second. The 2-0 lead would stand going into the home half of the third inning, as the senior pitcher for the Knights shook off a two-out triple with a looking strikeout to end the inning.
Marian picked up their scoring in the bottom of the third after Guilliam’s strikeout, charging the bats for eight runs on seven hits. Marian would load the bases quickly, and pick up two runs on Grace Meyer’s RBI double. An RBI single from Abbey Hoffman gave Marian their fifth run of the day, and two batters later Knox delivered a two RBI base hit for runs six and seven. Harweger and Anna Pritchett would get on base with infield singles, and Madere cleaned the bases in the following at bat, ripping a three RBI double to left-center to cap the eight-run inning. Marian would lead 10-0 after three complete innings.
After a series of position changes for Marian, the Knights would hand the ball over to Lauren Mayer for the final six outs of the game, with the sophomore delivering two scoreless innings. In the bottom of the fourth Marian would add one final run, as Raegan Hiatt smoked an RBI single to center field to score Abbey Hoffman who tripled earlier in the frame. Hiatt’s RBI would be the final run of the game, as Mayer ended the game in five innings with Marian winning 11-0.
Hoffman finished the game with a triple, going 3-3 with three runs scored. Madere led the team in RBI with four as she had two hits, while Harweger and Knox each had two hits in the win. Guilliam picked up the win in the circle to move to 4-0 on the year, allowing one hit while getting two strikeouts. Mayer struckout one and allowed two hits in her two innings of work.
The Knights will be back in action on March 12 when they return from Florida, hitting the road to take on Grace College in their Crossroads League opener. First pitch is set for 3:00 p.m.
SMALL COLLEGE ATHLETICS
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
FOOTBALL HISTORY
Hall of Fame Birthdays for March 10
March 10, 1919 – Plains, Texas – The stud center from Hardin-Simmons University in the late 1930’s, Clyde Bulldog Turner arrived into this life. The Pro Football Hall of Fame declares a big statement that Bulldog is one of the top five centers to have ever played college football! We have plenty more on this legend of the gridiron, simply click his name to be taken to our collection of posts gathered from around the web.
March 10, 1927 – Chicago, Illinois – The great two way guard and tackle of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish from 1945 to 1948, Bill Moose Fischer was born. Fischer was relegated to kick off coverage duties as a Freshman at Notre Dame under Coach Frank Leahy but he started every year thereafter at guard on the Irish offense. Fischer helped lead Notre Dame to back-to-back national championships in 1946 and 1947 per the NFF. His fantastic play was rewarded when he received All-America honors in 1947 and 1948 and was just the third-ever recipient of the Outland Trophy in 1948 as the nation’s best interior lineman. Bill Fischer was honored with his very deserving place in the College Football Hall of Fame when he was inducted in 1983. Moose was a two way starting player for the Chicago Cardinals for five seasons after the Redbirds took him with the tenth overall pick in the 1949 NFL Draft.
More Hall of Fame Birthdays for March 10
March 10, 1938 – Los Angeles., California – The 6’-4” 250 pound tackle from Southern Cal Ron Mix began his life story. Ron was the number one pick in both the 1950 NFL and AFL Drafts. The NFL’s Baltimore Colts and the San Diego Chargers of the AFL got in a bidding war of sorts and Mix wisely took the better off and that kept him in Southern California where he spent all of his life. The Pro Football HOF website says, that his line coach with the Chargers gave him the nickname of “The Intellectual Assassin” because of his aggressive play and because he attended law school at night while as a player. Mix had only two confirmed holding calls called upon him in his entire 11 seasons played with the Chargers and the Raiders and he claims he only gave up five sacks in that same time span. The Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrined Ron Mix in 1979.
March 10, 1946 – Yuma, Arizona – The fierce Defensive Tackle from Arizona State University Curley Culp was born. Curley was the 31st overall player selected in the NFL Draft of 1968 by the Denver Broncos but got traded during training camp to the KC Chiefs after a failed experiment to convert him to an offensive line position failed. In just his second NFL season he was part of a dominant Kansas City D-line that helped the Chiefs win Super Bowl IV. Culp was traded in 1974 to the Houston Oilers as part of a blockbuster deal. He really thrived with the Oilers and became a prominent defender in the League there. According to the ProFootballHOF.com Culp in 1975 registered 11.5 sacks and was named the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year by the Newspaper Enterprise Association. Curley Culp was welcomed into the Pro Football Hall of Fame at the 2013 enshrinement ceremonies.
March 10, 1949 – Atlanta, Georgia – Chip Kell the University of Tennessee great offensive lineman from 1968 to 1970 entered into life on earth. Kell was a powerhouse blocker as he played both center and guard for the Tennessee Volunteers. The NFF alludes to that Chip’s first game may have been the first ever game played outdoors on artificial turf. After his Sophomore season Kell was moved from tackle to guard and he thrived at the switch as he then won two consecutive Jacobs Memorial Awards as the top blocker in the Southeast Conference and the distinction of being called All-America. In Chip’s senior campaign he was a finalist for the Lombardi Award and garnered his second recognition of All-America status as this time it was of unanimous category. Chip Kell was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2006. After school Chip played two years for the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football league before beginning a long career in coaching.
March 10, 1960 – Towson, Maryland – Marked the birth of the fantastic wide receiver from Johns Hopkins University, Bill Stromberg. Stromberg set six national and 13 school records to become one of the most decorated wide receivers in Division III history per the NFF. Bill led the nation in receiving and was a first team All-America for the 1980 season. Stromberg’s national records were multiple as he had 39 touchdown catches for an NCAA record and his numbers for catches and yards per game were written down in the book too. He established other marks such as his total of 258 career receptions was an NCAA record until 1993, and his 3,776 career reception yards was a record until 1989. Bill Stromberg was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2004.
TODAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY
1941 The Dodgers announce their players will start to wear helmets when batting. The safety headgear will not be not mandatory in the National League until 1954, with the AL following suit four years later.
1951 J. Edgar Hoover, longtime Federal Bureau of Investigation director, declines the baseball commissioner’s post. President Calvin Coolidge appointed him in 1924, and the nation’s top cop remained in the FBI until he died in 1972.
1962 At St. Petersburg’s Al Lang Field, the ballpark the team shares with today’s opponents, the Mets, playing their first major league exhibition game, drop an 8-0 decision to the Cardinals. The New York National League expansion club’s hurlers, Jay Hook, Clem Labine, and Craig Anderson, give up twelve hits, including two homers to Minnie Minoso and Gene Oliver.
1963 In an exhibition game against the White Sox, 21-year-old rookie Pete Rose goes 2-for-2 in his first appearance in a Reds’ uniform. The future all-time major league hit leader will be named the National League’s Rookie of the Year.
1966 The Orioles trade 22-year-old minor league outfielder Lou Piniella to the Indians for reserve catcher Camilo Carreon, who retires at the end of the season after playing in only four contests for his new team. The Tribe’s latest flycatcher will appear in more than 1,700 big-league games, but only six games for Cleveland, all in 1968, before becoming the Pilots selection in the expansion draft, the team that trades him at the start of the 1969 campaign to the Royals for John Gelnar and Steve Whitaker.
1967 Ted Davidson, who had five wins and four saves for the Reds last season, is gunned down in an alley as he leaves a local restaurant, telling police his estranged wife shot him once in the abdomen and twice in the chest. The judge dismisses the charge against Mary Ruth Davidson when the southpaw, who will return to the team in June without his same effectiveness, fails to appear in court twice.
1992 The Pirates trade pitcher Neal Heaton (3-3, 4.33) to the Royals for outfielder Kirk Gibson (.236, 16 HR, 18 SB). After being released by the Bucs in May, the veteran flycatcher, who will turn down an offer to play for the Arena Football League’s Detroit Drive, ends his brief retirement, playing his last three years as a Tiger for his former manager Sparky Anderson.
1993 Sherry Davis becomes the first full-time female major league public address announcer when the Giants hire her to work at Candlestick Park. The legal secretary, chosen from five hundred contestants, won the job in an open audition.
1995 Former Chicago Bulls superstar Michael Jordan, citing labor unrest as the reason, announces that he is leaving the White Sox organization to return to the Chicago Bulls. In his only season in professional baseball, the future NBA Hall of Famer batted .202, hit three home runs, drove in 51 runs, stole 30 bases, and made 11 errors playing the outfield for the Double-A Birmingham Barons last season.
2004 When asked by Senator John McCain to renegotiate the major league baseball’s contract concerning the use of controlled substances, Donald Fehr refuses to comply. Although the union boss condemns the use of steroids, he believes the players oppose random drug testing as a violation of privacy, an argument countered by the Arizona Republican as unacceptable, promising congressional action if the status quo remains in place.
2005 Singling off Brad Thompson in a Cardinal intrasquad game, former pitching prospect Rick Ankiel goes 1-for-2 in his debut as a position player. Historic wildness and injuries ended the 25-year-old’s once-promising career on the mound.
2009 At Puerto Rico’s Hiram Bithorn Stadium, the Netherlands World Baseball Classic team, mostly of unknown players, upsets a heavily favored Dominican Republic club for the second time in four days, advancing to the next round. The Dominicans, considered to be an odds-on favorite, with a roster filled with major league All-Stars, including David Ortiz (Red Sox), Hanley Ramirez (Marlins), and Miguel Tejada (Astros), are eliminated in the first round of the 16-team tournament.
2010 Nomar Garciaparra, announcing his retirement before the exhibition game against Tampa Bay, signs a ceremonial one-day contract with Boston, six years after rejecting the team’s four-year, $60 million offer that resulted in an acrimonious trade to the Cubs in 2004. The former Rookie of the Year and AL batting champion, who finishes his 14-year major league career with a .313 batting average, gets his wish to leave the game in a Red Sox uniform when he throws out the ceremonial first pitch to former teammate Jason Varitek.
2010 Justin Upton (.300, 26, 86) and the Diamondbacks come to terms on a $51.25 million, six-year contract, the second-largest deal in franchise history being slightly less than Randy Johnson’s $52.4 million pact in 1999. The 22-year-old outfielder, the team’s No. 1 pick in the 2005 draft, was selected to last season’s National League All-Star squad.
BASEBALL YEAR IN REVIEW: 1936 (BASEBALL ALMANAC)
Off the field…
Democratic President Franklin Delano Roosevelt was re-elected with a whopping 61% of the vote. His immense popularity around the country was attributed to his successful efforts in helping the American economy out of the depression with his New Deal programs. Later, he went on to provide strong leadership in the winning of World War II, and was the only president to be elected four times. At the turn of the millennium, Time Magazine selected him as a runner-up for Person of the Century.
“Dust Bowl” problems continued to plague the Midwest and U.S. prairie states. Initially caused by the over-planting in support of World War I, farmers were encouraged to grow more wheat by plowing and seeding areas in Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico, which were formerly used only for grazing. After years of adequate yields, livestock were returned to graze the areas, and their hooves pulverized the unprotected soil. Strong winds blew the soil into huge clouds, and in the succeeding years, from December to May, the dust storms recurred. As a result, miles and miles of crops and pasturelands were ruined and many farmers and their families experienced severe health problems.
In the American League…
New York Yankees second baseman Tony Lazzeri set several hitting records on May 24th after hitting two grand slams, a third home run, and a triple for fifteen total bases in a 25-2 massacre over the Philadelphia Athletics. Lazzeri had appeared unstoppable after tallying seven home runs in four games and six in three games as well a Major League record eleven runs batted in a single game.
An up-and-coming outfielder named Joe DiMaggio tied several Major League records after hitting two home runs (for eight total bases) and two doubles (four long hits in a game) during a June 24th outing between the New York Yankees and Chicago White Sox.
During a July 18th nightcap, the Chicago White Sox and Philadelphia Athletics combined to set an American League record for the most combined runs scored by two teams after posting a 21-14 final. White Sox outfielder Rip Radcliff tied an additional A.L. record with six hits (four singles and two doubles) in seven at bats.
In the National League…
Philadelphia Phillies catcher Earl Grace set an unwanted Major League record on April 26th after granting bases to Brooklyn Dodgers shortstop Ben Geraghty twice on two separate interference calls (tipped bat).
Second baseman Stu Martin tied the major league mark of eleven assists in the first game during a June 6th doubleheader between his St. Louis Cardinals and New York Giants.
On July 10th, Chuck Klein of the Philadelphia Phillies hit four home runs (in five at bats) during a ten inning game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Forbes Field. At age thirty-six, Klein became the oldest player ever to hit four round trippers in a single game as well as first National League player in the twentieth century to do so.
Around the League…
After Baseball Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis took a voluntary pay-cut in 1933 (from $65,000 to $40,000) due to the Depression, Internal Revenue figures posted Branch Rickey as the highest paid man in baseball at $49,470. Rickey would later gain fame as the man who signed Jackie Robinson, breaking the silently upheld “color barrier” that had existed since the 1880s. By exploiting the Negro Leagues as a new source of talent, Rickey built a dynasty in Brooklyn that won the National League pennant seven times from 1947 through 1956.
After purchasing the fledgling Boston Braves, the team’s owners asked a local newspaperman to choose a new nickname for the franchise based on suggestions made by the fans. After hundreds of entries, the moniker Boston “Bees” was selected. Unfortunately, it would never catch on and be changed back to the Braves after the 1940 season.
The baseball writers association voted for the first set of players to be named to the new Baseball Hall of Fame. The inaugural class included Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Honus Wagner, Christy Mathewson, and Walter Johnson who each received the requisite 75% of ballots cast.
On April 29th, the first professional baseball game in Japan was played as Nagoya defeated Daitokyo by a score of 8-5.
TODAY IN NBA HISTORY
March 10, 1961
Wilt Chamberlain of the Philadelphia Warriors became the first NBA player to score 3,000 points in a season.
March 10, 1963
Wilt Chamberlain, playing for the San Francisco Warriors, scored 70 points in a 163-148 loss to Syracuse, one of six 70-plus point games in his career.
March 10, 1985
Dallas coach Dick Motta became the fourth NBA coach to record his 700th career victory as the Mavericks beat New Jersey 126-113.
March 10, 1987
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar became the NBA’s all-time leader in personal fouls committed when he charged into Denver’s Danny Schayes with 4:23 left in the first quarter of the Lakers’ 143-107 victory over the Nuggets. Referee Bruce Alexander blew the whistle on the 4,194th foul of Abdul-Jabbar’s career, which moved Abdul-Jabbar past previous leader Elvin Hayes (4,193).
March 10, 1987
Ron Harper of Cleveland sets a franchise record and NBA rookie record for steals in a game with 10 during the Cavaliers’ 100-91 loss to Philadelphia at Richfield Coliseum.
March 10, 1998
Houston forwards Charles Barkley and Kevin Willis both played in the 1,000th game of their NBA careers.
March 10, 1999
The Los Angeles Clippers lost their 17th straight game to begin the lockout-shortened 1998-99 season, tying the NBA record for losses at the start of a season set by the Miami Heat in the 1988-89 season.
March 10, 1999
USA Basketball announced the first nine players of the 1999 USA Men’s Senior National Team. Selected are Vin Baker (Seattle SuperSonics); Tim Duncan (San Antonio Spurs); Kevin Garnett (Minnesota Timberwolves); Tom Gugliotta (Phoenix Suns); Tim Hardaway (Miami Heat); Allan Houston (New York Knicks); Jason Kidd (Phoenix Suns); Gary Payton (Seattle SuperSonics) and Steve Smith (Atlanta Hawks). Duncan and Gugliotta later are forced to withdraw from the team due to injuries.
March 10, 2000
The Detroit Pistons hold a ceremony to retire the jersey of Joe Dumars when they host Vancouver at the Palace of Auburn Hills. Dumars, who won two NBA championships with the Pistons, becomes the seventh member of the club to have his number raised. Dumars joins Dave Bing (No. 21), Bob Lanier (No. 16), Vinnie Johnson (No. 15), Bill Laimbeer (No. 40), Isiah Thomas (No. 11) and coach Chuck Daly (No. 2).
March 10, 2000
The NBA announced that it would honor Joe Dumars, who led the Detroit Pistons to a pair of NBA championships, by naming the NBA Sportsmanship Award named for him. The Joe Dumars Trophy will be presented annually to the player who best represents the ideals of sportsmanship on the court, with the winner selected by writers and broadcasters who cover the NBA. Dumars was the winner of the inaugural NBA Sportsmanship Award in 1995-96, in recognition of his distinguished career.
March 10, 2002
By registering 13 assists in a 95-92 loss to Houston, Utah’s John Stockton improved his career assist total of 15,000, and became the only player in NBA history to reach that plateau.
March 10, 2004
Tracy McGrady scores an Orlando Magic franchise-record 62 points in a 108-99 victory over the Washington Wizards.
March 10, 2004
Richard Hamilton wears his trademark mask for the first time.
TODAY IN SPORTS HISTORY
March 10
1913 — The Quebec Bulldogs win the Stanley Cup in two games over Sydney.
1920 — Quebec’s Joe Malone scores six goals to lead the Bulldogs to a 10-4 rout of the Ottawa Senators.
1961 — Wilt Chamberlain of the Philadelphia Warriors becomes the first NBA player to score 3,000 points in a season. Chamberlain scores 32 points in a 120-103 loss to Detroit to bring his season total to 3,016.
1963 — Wilt Chamberlain of the San Francisco Warriors scores 70 points in a 163-148 loss to Syracuse.
1985 — Dick Motta becomes the fourth NBA coach to record 700 victories as Dallas beats New Jersey 126-113.
1991 — Eddie Sutton of Oklahoma State becomes the first coach to lead four schools into the NCAA tournament. Sutton also coached Creighton, Arkansas and Kentucky in the tournament.
1992 — New York Islanders coach Al Arbour becomes the second coach in NHL history to win 700 games with a 5-2 victory over Philadelphia.
2001 — With Swedish great Ingemar Stenmark looking on, Hermann Maier wins the giant slalom for his 13th victory this season, equaling one of the mightiest alpine skiing records. Maier, winner of the overall World Cup title three of the last four years, ties the record Stenmark set in 1979.
2002 — John Stockton, the NBA’s career assist leader, has 13 assists in Utah’s 95-92 loss at Houston to give him exactly 15,000 for his career.
2004 — Orlando’s Tracy McGrady scores a franchise record 62 points in a 108-99 win over Washington.
2011 — Veteran referees Jim Burr, Tim Higgins and Earl Walton, cited for two errors in the final seconds of the St. John’s-Rutgers game, withdraw from the rest of the Big East tournament. The three officials missed two calls — a travel and stepping out of bounds — in the final 1.7 seconds of St. John’s 65-63 win in the second-round of Big East tournament. The Big East acknowledged after the game the officials blew the calls.
2014 — The game between Dallas and the Columbus Blue Jackets is postponed by the NHL after Stars forward Rich Peverley collapses on the bench during the first period.
2018 — Texas Southern beats Arkansas-Pine Bluff 84-69 in the Southwestern Athletic Conference championship game. Texas Southern (15-19) earns an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament after starting out 0-13 this season. The Tigers didn’t win a game until Jan. 1 and never beat a nonconference opponent.
2018 — The Vegas Golden Knights set a record for road wins by an expansion team with a 2-1 shootout victory at Buffalo. At 20-12-3, the Golden Knights break a tie with the 1993-94 Anaheim Ducks for most road wins by an NHL team in its first season.
2022 – After a 99-day lockout, Major League Baseball and MLB Players Association reach a new collective bargaining agreement; MLB teams set to play full 162 game season in 2022.
TV SPORTS SUNDAY
SUNDAY, MAR. 10
AUTO RACING
10:30 a.m.
FS1 — NHRA: Gainesville Rounds 1 & 2, Gainesville Raceway, Gainesville, Fla.
12:30 p.m.
NBC — NTT IndyCar Series: The Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, St. Petersburg, Fla.
3:30 p.m.
FOX — NASCAR Cup Series: The Shriners Children’s 500, Phoenix Raceway, Phoenix
8:30 p.m.
CBSSN — FIM Motocross: The MX2, Villa La Angostura, Argentina (Taped)
9 p.m.
FS1 — NHRA: The Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals, Gainesville Raceway, Gainesville, Fla. (Taped)
9:30 p.m.
CBSSN — FIM Motocross: The MXGP, Villa La Angostura, Argentina (Taped)
1 a.m. (Monday)
CNBC — AMA Supercross Series: Round 9, Birmingham, Ala. (Taped)
BASKETBAL AFRICA LEAGUE
10 a.m.
NBATV — FUS de Rabat vs. Dynamo Basketball Club, Pretoria, South Africa
1 p.m.
NBATV — Cape Town Tigers vs. Petro de Luanda, South Africa
COLLEGE BASKETBALL (MEN’S)
Noon
BTN — Nebraska at Michigan
ESPN2 — Big South Tournament: TBD, Championship, High Point, N.C.
12:30 p.m.
FOX — Wisconsin at Purdue
2 p.m.
BTN — Ohio St. at Rutgers
CBS — Missouri Valley Tournament: TBD, Championship, St. Louis
CBSSN — Patriot League Tournament: TBD, Semifinal
ESPN2 — Atlantic Sun Tournament: TBD, Championship
4 p.m.
CBSSN — Patriot League Tournament: TBD, Semifinal
ESPNU — Southern Tournament: TBD, Semifinal, Asheville, N.C.
4:30 p.m.
CBS — Michigan St. at Indiana
6:30 p.m.
ESPNU — Southern Tournament: TBD, Semifinal, Asheville, N.C.
7 p.m.
FS1 — Illinois at Iowa
7:30 p.m.
BTN — Maryland at Penn St.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL (WOMEN’S)
Noon
CBS — Big Ten Tournament: TBD, Championship, Minneapolis
ESPNU — Southern Tournament: TBD, Championship, Asheville, N.C.
1 p.m.
ESPN — Atlantic Coast Tournament: TBD, Championship, Greensboro, N.C.
2:30 p.m.
FS1 — Big East Tournament: TBD, Semifinal, Uncasville, Conn.
3 p.m.
ESPN — Southeastern Tournament: TBD, Championship, Greenville, S.C.
4 p.m.
ESPN2 — Atlantic 10 Tournament: TBD, Championship, Henrico, Va.
5 p.m.
ESPN — Pac-12 Tournament: TBD, Championship, Las Vegas
FS1 — Big East Tournament: TBD, Semifinal, Uncasville, Conn.
6 p.m.
ESPN2 — Big South Tournament: TBD, Championship, High Point, N.C.
COLLEGE GYMNASTICS (WOMEN’S)
5 p.m.
PAC-12N — California at Stanford
COLLEGE HOCKEY (MEN’S)
7 p.m.
FS2 — Big Ten Tournament: Penn St. at Minnesota, Quarterfinal – Game 3 (If Necessary)
COLLEGE HOCKEY (WOMEN’S)
Noon
ESPNEWS — NCAA Women’s Ice Hockey Selection Show
COLLEGE LACROSSE (MEN’S)
2 p.m.
ESPNU — Syracuse at Johns Hopkins
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
12 p.m.
SECN — LSU at Kentucky
2 p.m.
SECN — South Carolina at Texas A&M
4 p.m.
SECN — Mississippi St. at Mississippi
4:30 p.m.
ACCN — Virginia Tech at Louisville
6 p.m.
SECN — Florida at Alabama
COLLEGE WRESTLING
4:30 p.m.
BTN — Big Ten Championships: From College Park, Md.
7 p.m.
ACCN — Atlantic Coast Championships: Chapel Hill, N.C.
8:30 p.m.
ESPN2 — Big 12 Championships: From Tulsa, Okla.
9 p.m.
PAC-12N — Pac-12 Championships: From Corvallis, Ore.
CYCLING
2 p.m.
CNBC — UCI: The Paris-Nice, Final Stage, 68 miles, Nice, France (Taped)
GOLF
7 a.m.
GOLF — DP World Tour: The Jonsson Workwear Open, Final Round, Glendower Golf Club, Gauteng, South Africa
12:30 p.m.
GOLF — PGA Tour: The Arnold Palmer Invitational, Final Round, Bay Hill Golf Course, Orlando, Fla.
1 p.m.
CW — LIV Golf League: Final Round, Hong Kong Golf Club, Sheung Shui, China (Taped)
2:30 p.m.
GOLF — PGA Tour: The Puerto Rico Open, Final Round, Grand Reserve Country Club (Old), Rio Grande, Puerto Rico
NBC — PGA Tour: The Arnold Palmer Invitational, Final Round, Bay Hill Golf Course, Orlando, Fla.
5 p.m.
GOLF — PGA Tour Champions: The Cologuard Classic, Final Round, La Paloma Country Club, Catalina Foothills, Ariz.
HORSE RACING
3 p.m.
FS2 — NYRA: America’s Day at the Races
MLB BASEBALL
1 p.m.
MLBN — Spring Training: Tampa Bay vs. Boston, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
4 p.m.
MLBN — Spring Training: Chicago Cubs vs. Texas, Surprise, Ariz.
NBA BASKETBALL
7:10 p.m.
ESPN — Philadelphia at New York
9:35 p.m.
ESPN — Minnesota at LA Lakers
NBA G-LEAGUE BASKETBALL
3:30 p.m.
NBATV — Rio Grande Valley at Santa Cruz
NHL HOCKEY
1 p.m.
TNT — Edmonton at Pittsburgh
3:30 p.m.
TNT — Nashville at Minnesota
6 p.m.
NHLN — Arizona at Chicago
RODEO
6 p.m.
CBSSN — PBR: Round 2 & Championship Round, Milwaukee
RUGBY (MEN’S)
Noon
CNBC — Six Nations: Wales vs. France, Cardiff, Wales (Taped)
SOCCER (MEN’S)
9 a.m.
USA — Premier League: Tottenham Hotspur at Aston Villa
10 a.m.
CBSSN — Serie A: Empoli at AC Milan
11:45 a.m.
USA — Premier League: Manchester City at Liverpool
SWIMMING
10:30 a.m.
CNBC — TYR: Pro Swim Series, Westmont, Ill. (Taped)
TENNIS
2 p.m.
TENNIS — Indian Wells-ATP/WTA Early Rounds