LOS ANGELES (AP) — If Southern California wants to win its first women's national championship in 41 years, the Trojans will have to find a way to get it done without star guard JuJu Watkins. She was lost to a season-ending knee injury in the first quarter of USC's 96-59 win over Mississippi State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Now the Trojans are headed to the Sweet 16. They have a deep and talented roster that will be called upon to contribute in Watkins' absence. Three of USC's freshmen scored in double figures against the Bulldogs. Graduate transfer Kiki Iriafen scored 36 points and had eight rebounds.
UNDATED (AP) — American Football Coaches Association executive director Craig Bohl said he sees the day coming when the NCAA allows NFL-style intersquad practices and scrimmages. Colorado coach Deion Sanders suggested recently that a school be allowed to host a team from another school for a few days of joint practices before they play an exhibition game, possibly as a replacement for the traditional intrasquad spring game. Syracuse coach Fran Brown volunteered his team for a visit to Boulder. A Colorado spokesman says CU is working with the NCAA and Big 12 to get a waiver that would allow for it.
UNDATED (AP) — The women's NCAA Tournament features 68 teams and there's really no room for anymore to join. But if the men's field was expanded as has been suggested, it is almost a foregone conclusion that the women would follow suit. While it's questionable whether the men's tournament is ready for expansion, it seems clear that women’s March Madness is definitely not. The tournament isn't ready from a competitive or a financial standpoint. There have only been two first-round upsets on the men’s side and only one top-seeded women’s team has ever lost to a 16 seed. In this year's women's tourney, there was a near record number of first-round blowouts and noncompetitive games. Six teams scored over 100 points in the opening two days and there were a handful of 50-point games.
UNDATED (AP) — There is plenty of star power left in women’s March Madness with Paige Bueckers, Hannah Hidalgo and Lauren Betts still playing even if JuJu Watkins won’t be. Watkins hurt her right knee in the first quarter of Southern California’s win over Mississippi State. The school announced later that she was out for the rest of the tournament. While the stars are shining on the game’s biggest stage, the smaller schools are not. There weren't any major upsets or Cinderella stories heading into the second week of the NCAA Tournament. For the first time since the tournament expanded to 64 teams, no women's team seeded 11th or lower advanced out the first round.
UNDATED (AP) — Houston coach Kelvin Sampson knows his team can always rely on defense to win games. But on the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament, it was the Cougars’ offense that carried them. That’s the reality of March Madness: Teams that can win different ways often do. It was Kentucky, with one of the most porous defenses in the nation, holding Troy to 57 in a first-round win. Or Alabama, which struggled even more than the Wildcats defensively, shutting down Saint Mary's in a second-round rout. As for Houston, it was able to outscore Gonzaga, which had the nation's No. 2 scoring offense, to reach the Sweet 16.
UNDATED (AP) — Chris Beard proved at Texas Tech that he can build a national contender at a school without much of an NCAA Tournament history. Now he’s doing the same at Mississippi. Ole Miss is in the Sweet 16 for just the second time ever — and first time since 2001 — after defeating North Carolina and trouncing Iowa State in the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament. The sixth-seeded Rebels face No. 2 seed Michigan State in a South Region semifinal Friday in Atlanta. Beard believes Ole Miss can advance beyond this stage.
UNDATED (AP) — Russell Wilson has agreed on a one-year contract with the New York Giants, a person with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press. The person, who spoke on condition of anonymity Tuesday because the signing hasn’t been finalized, said Wilson’s deal is worth up to $21 million with $10.5 million guaranteed. The Giants signed veteran Jameis Winston to a two-year contract last week and have the third pick in next month’s NFL draft. The 36-year-old Wilson joins his fourth team in five years.
GOODYEAR, Ariz. (AP) — Figuring out a cause for the skyrocketing number of arm injuries among pitchers is easy. Finding a solution could prove much more challenging. Major League Baseball issued a 62-page report in December that showed how the focus on throwing with increased velocity and using maximum effort on every pitch was a likely cause for the skyrocketing number of arm injuries. The study provided numerical data backing a thesis already supported by conventional wisdom.
UNDATED (AP) — There almost certainly won’t be a $700 million deal for any player in the baseball’s next free agency class, nothing like the record contracts for two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani and four-time All-Star slugger Juan Soto the past two winters. Still, plenty of talented players are going into their final seasons before potentially becoming free agents for the first time. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., five-tool player Kyle Tucker and starting pitchers Dylan Cease, Framber Valdez and Zac Gallen could all become available to other teams after this season. Three-time batting champion Luis Arráez could also be a first-time free agent.
UNDATED (AP) — There will be more than one Pitino in the Big East next season. Xavier hired Richard Pitino, the son of St. John’s coach Rick Pitino, as its basketball coach on Tuesday night. The school had an opening after Sean Miller left to accept the Texas job on Monday. Richard Pitino takes over the Xavier program after four years at New Mexico, where he led the Lobos to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances. New Mexico went 27-8 this season and was eliminated by Michigan State in the second round of the NCAAs on Sunday. The younger Pitino was the Mountain West Coach of the Year this season after the Lobos won the conference’s regular-season title. He went 88-49 at New Mexico and has an overall mark of 247-186.
TUESDAY SCORES
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Final Detroit 122 San Antonio 96
Final Orlando 111 Charlotte 104
Final New York 128 Dallas 113
Final Miami 112 Golden State 86
Final Houston 121 Atlanta 114
Final Memphis 140 Utah 103
Final Cleveland 122 Portland 111
Final Oklahoma City 121 Sacramento 105
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Final Nashville 3 Carolina 1
Final Buffalo 3 Ottawa 2
Final Toronto 7 Philadelphia 2
Final Tampa Bay 6 Pittsburgh 1
Final Vegas 5 Minnesota 1
Final OT Winnipeg 3 Washington 2
Final St. Louis 6 Montreal 1
Final Colorado 5 Detroit 2
Final OT Calgary 4 Seattle 3