Making up for that lost hour
From The GIST (hi@thegistsports.com)
Pass the coffee, please!
We sadly can’t give you back that hour of sleep lost to Daylight Saving, but we can catch you up on the last 72 hours in sports with today’s five-minute read. Soaking up the extra sunshine as we soak up today’s news.
— Chicago Sky star Angel Reese, commenting on the WNBA’s upcoming collective bargaining agreement (CBA) negotiations, with players expected to seek increased salaries and redefine professional standards in the league. Is change on the horizon?
NCAA women’s basketball
🎓🏀 Lock it in
The GIST: We’re still six long days from Selection Sunday, but March is already March-ing with a handful of NCAA women’s basketball conference tournament winners crowned over the weekend, securing automatic bids to the 68-team national tournament in the process.
- This year’s national champ will likely come from the Power Four (the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, and SEC) or the Big East, who will lock in their auto-bid when No. 3 UConn takes on Creighton tonight.
- Favorites won the rest of the titles…with one massive exception.
Decisive top-5 wins in SEC and Big Ten: Reigning national champ No. 5 South Carolina and conference newcomer No. 1 Texas were neck-and-neck heading into the SEC tourney — they even had to determine the top seed via coin flip. But the Gamecocks proved they’re still the team to beat in this cutthroat conference, demolishing the Longhorns 64–45 yesterday. Another one, thank you.
- And in the Battle for LA, Round Three, No. 4 UCLA beat No. 2 USC where it counts: 72–67 in the Big Ten tournament title game, despite a game-high 29 points from JuJu Watkins. A March Madness auto-bid and revenge against your crosstown rival? Doesn’t get better than that.
No. 6 Notre Dame digs a deeper hole: The once-hot Fighting Irish are stumbling into the postseason, most recently falling to eventual conference title winners No. 11 Duke in the ACC tourney semifinals. ND seemed like a lock for a Big Dance No. 1 seed a month ago; now, their place in the national bracket is as uncertain as the second half of The White Lotus season 3.
Wooden Award announces PoY ballot: The 15-woman list for one of the sport’s highest individual honors is crammed with talent, but aforementioned USC sophomore guard Watkins is the undeniable frontrunner.
- That said, momentum is everything in March, and a hot streak on the national stage could catapult big names like UConn’s Paige Bueckers, Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo, UCLA’s Lauren Betts, or Texas’ Madison Booker. Stay tuned.
Question of the Day
After the announcement of the 15 women’s Wooden Award finalists, who is your Player of the Year? Choose from the options below or reply with your MVP. Best swishes.
🏒 Two blockbuster trades punctuate chaotic NHL Trade Deadline
Turns out the hype ahead of Friday’s Trade Deadline was actually warranted as a pair of monster trades were announced in the 12 hours before the 3 p.m. ET cutoff. Sharpshooting forward Mikko Rantanen is on the move for the second time in 42 days, trading his Carolina Hurricanes jersey for a Dallas Stars sweater and an eight-year, $96M extension.
- But it was the final deadline day move that had everyone saying “Rats!”: longtime Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand, who’s still nursing an upper body injury, was traded to the defending champ Florida Panthers. Didn’t have that on our bingo card.
🏀 Final postseason spot on the line in Unrivaled’s regular-season finale
There’s two games on the docket tonight, and both have major postseason implications. Here’s where we stand: Lunar Owls BC, Rose BC, and Laces BC have clinched spots in next weekend’s semis, while Phantom BC is already eliminated. That leaves Mist BC and Vinyl BC hooping for the fourth and final semifinal ticket.
- They have identical 5-8 records, so if both teams win (or lose) their respective games, the tiebreaker would go to head-to-head meetings — but that’s also even at one game apiece.
- That means it would all come down to point differential. Expect buckets on buckets as both teams try to gain the edge.
🏈 Defensive end Myles Garrett, Cleveland Browns agree to record-breaking extension, among other major NFL moves
Less than a month after requesting a trade, Garrett’s committed to Cleveland for the long haul, inking a four-year, $160M deal that makes the four-time All-Pro the highest-paid non-quarterback (QB) in league history. Even better? The precedent-setting contract was brokered by a woman: Klutch Sports’ Nicole Lynn, who also represents Philadelphia Eagles QB Jalen Hurts. Women.
- Elsewhere, reigning league MVP and Buffalo Bills QB Josh Allen agreed to a six-year, $330M extension, while wide receiver (WR) Davante Adams signed a two-year, $46M deal with the LA Rams, allowing the three-time All-Pro to return to his home state.
- And the NFL wasn’t done there — the Seattle Seahawks are without a starting QB and top WR after sending QB Geno Smith to the Las Vegas Raiders on Friday and WR DK Metcalf to the Pittsburgh Steelers yesterday. Yikes.
⚕️ LA Lakers legend LeBron James will miss the next one to two weeks with a groin strain, a tough blow for the recently surging squad, especially as they enter a stretch of five games in eight days.
⬆️ Elsewhere, three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokić recorded the league’s first 30-20-20 triple-double on Friday, scoring 31 points, grabbing 21 rebounds, and dishing out 22 assists in the Denver Nuggets’ 148–141 overtime win against the Phoenix Suns. Casual.
🎓🏀 Madness abounds in men’s college hoops, highlighted by No. 7 Alabama closing out the regular season by taking down No. 1 Auburn 93–91 with an overtime buzzer beater on Saturday. Conference tourneys can’t come soon enough.
🏒 Ovi alert: Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin is just nine goals away from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s all-time NHL goal scoring record after notching yet another empty netter in yesterday’s 4–2 win over the Seattle Kraken.
🏆 Despite missing several players (including Trinity Rodman) due to injury, the Washington Spirit won Friday’s Challenge Cup, launching a strong second-half comeback against the defending league champ Orlando Pride before winning 4–2 in a penalty shootout. Pressure, meet diamond.
🎿 American skier Mikaela Shiffrin secured a record-breaking 156th World Cup podium finish yesterday, finishing third in the slalom race. Nobody does it better.
🎾 The American men are hitting their stride after an upset-heavy weekend at Indian Wells, with four red, white, and blue fellas, including No. 3 Taylor Fritz, competing in today’s Round of 32.
- 💁♀️ And the American gals are also holding down the court: World No. 3 Coco Gauff, No. 5 Madison Keys, and No. 10 Emma Navarro serve in the Round of 32 today. Aces everywhere.
⛳ New world No. 7 American Russell Henley won the Arnold Palmer Invitational yesterday, squeaking by compatriot No. 5 Collin Morikawa for his biggest win on the PGA Tour.
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😎 How to have fun in the sun
With your new favorite $30 sunnies. Zunnies are polarized, anti-fog, and non-slip for sporty spices of all types, from mountain-climbing queens to the biggest “jog and yap” aficionados on the block.*
☕ What to drink
Billie Bean King. Pitchside Coffee (a brand founded by six NWSL players) dropped a limited edition blend for Women’s History Month. A tribute to a queen, brewed to perfection.
🏀 What to shop
Breaking T’s Diana Taurasi collection celebrating the WNBA legend. Rep the GOAT in style.
*P.S. This is a sponsored post. Sunny days ahead.Today’s email was brought to you by Alessandra Puccio, Lisa Minutillo, Katie Kehoe Foster, Lauren Tuiskula, Marga Sison, Rachel Fuenzalida, and Briana Ekanem. Editing by Laura Pastore. Fact-checking by Marga Sison and Rachel Fuenzalida. Ops by Briana Ekanem and Marga Sison. Ads by Katie Kehoe Foster, Alessandra Puccio, and Lisa Minutillo. Managing edits by Lauren Tuiskula and Alessandra Puccio. Head of content Ellen Hyslop.