UNDATED (AP) — Underdogs have blown up every bracket in the country in what may be the maddest March ever. Defending national champion Kansas and fellow No. 1 seed Purdue are gone. The Sweet 16 will be without blue bloods Kentucky, Duke and North Carolina for the second time in the past three NCAA Tournaments. Before the 2021 bracket, that last happened in 1979. Still in are upstarts like Princeton, Florida Atlantic and a team picked to finish last in the Big 12 Conference. And, this being March, of course there’s Tom Izzo and Michigan State.
MIAMI (AP) — That matchup between Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani in the World Baseball Classic may not happen. Japan rallied in the ninth inning to beat Mexico and advance to Tuesday night’s championship game against the United States, but Shota Imanaga will start on the mound for the Samurai Warriors. If Trout is to bat against his Los Angeles Angels teammate, it would only be if Ohtani makes a rare relief appearance. Japan manager Hideki Kuriyama said he likely will use the same starting lineup as he did in the semifinal Monday night against Mexico, when Ohtani was the designated hitter and doubled to start the ninth-inning comeback.
NEW YORK (AP) — Rick Pitino is back in the Big East Conference. St. John’s has hired the Hall of Fame coach to boost a storied program that's been mired in mediocrity for much of this century. The school posted the announcement on Twitter, and Pitino is expected to be formally introduced during a news conference Tuesday at Madison Square Garden. Following a successful run at nearby mid-major Iona, the 70-year-old Pitino was plucked away to replace Mike Anderson, who was fired March 10 after four seasons in charge of the Red Storm without making the NCAA Tournament.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Charisma Osborne scored a career high 36 points in her final game at Pauley Pavilion and fourth-seeded UCLA rallied in the fourth quarter after blowing an 18-point lead to defeat No. 5 seed Oklahoma 82-73 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament Monday night. Kiki Rice added 14 points for the Bruins, who will face top-ranked South Carolina on Saturday in a Greenville 1 Regional semifinal. UCLA hung tough with the Gamecocks earlier in the season before losing 73-64. Madi Williams scored 24 points and Ana Llanusa 15 for the Sooners, who end their season 26-7.
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Hailey Van Lith scored 21 points and No. 5 Louisville rolled over No. 4 Texas 73-51 on the Longhorns’ home court Monday night to send the the Cardinals to the Sweet 16 for the sixth NCAA Tournament in row. The Cardinals smothered the Longhorns and standout point guard Rori Harmon all night, stretching a 14-point halftime lead to 21 by end of the third quarter. Louisville led by as much as 27 early in the fourth. The win sends the Cardinals to the Seattle 4 Region to play No. 8-seed Mississippi, which upset No. 1 Stanford on Sunday.
STORRS, Conn. (AP) — Azzi Fudd scored 16 of her 22 points in a decisive third quarter, leading second-seeded UConn to a 77-58 win over No. 7 seed Baylor and into a 29th straight Sweet 16. Aaliyah Edwards added 19 points and Nika Muhl had 10 assists for the Huskies (31-5). Dorka Juhasz chipped in with 11 points and Caroline Ducharme added 10. Ja’mee Asberry scored 15 points and Jaden Owens had 14 for Baylor, which finishes its season 20-13. Bella Fontleroy scored 12 points for the Bears, who made 12 3-pointers after making 14 in their first-round win over Alabama. But the Huskies dominated inside, outscoring the Bears 36-12 in the paint and outrebounding Baylor 42-31.
LAS VEGAS (AP) — An event that would have been unthinkable not even a decade ago is coming to Las Vegas this week. That's March Madness. The NCAA Tournament avoided the city for many years because sports betting is legal in it. The governing body for collegiate athletics even had a policy in place of not allowing its championship events to be played in Nevada. But now, with sports betting abound, the NCAA has no qualms about playing in the state. The West Region games to be held this week at T-Mobile Arena are among the many championship events the NCAA has awarded to the city.
UNDATED (AP) — The NCAA Tournament is heading to the Sweet 16 in the battle for the national championship in men’s basketball. Top seeds Purdue and defending champion Kansas did not make it. Sweet 16 weekend will see games in New York City, Las Vegas, Kansas City, Missouri, and Louisville, Kentucky. The Final Four is in Houston. The semifinals are on April 1, with the championship game on April 3.
UNDATED (AP) — The women’s college basketball Sweet 16 features a new format and a bit of history when it begins later this week. The NCAA changed its setup this season, going away from the traditional four sites to two. Greenville, South Carolina, and Seattle will each host eight teams before sending the winners on to Dallas for the Final Four. This weekend will also feature the second time since the tournament expanded to 64 teams that two of the No. 1 seeds didn’t reach the regional semifinals after Stanford and Indiana were knocked out.
MONDAY SCORES
CBI Quarterfinals
Final OT E. Kentucky 89 Indiana St. 88
Final S. Utah 81 Rice 79
Final Radford 67 San Jose St. 57
Final Charlotte 76 Milwaukee 65
INTERLEAGUE
Final Atlanta 6 Tampa Bay 5
Final Pittsburgh 7 Boston 5
Final Philadelphia 14 Baltimore 6
Final Cincinnati 10 L.A. Angels 0
Final Seattle 7 Milwaukee 2
Final Arizona 7 Chicago White Sox 3
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Toronto 5 Detroit 0
Final Cleveland 5 Texas 5
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Final St. Louis 5 Miami 0
Final Washington 3 N.Y. Mets 2
Final Colorado 5 L.A. Dodgers 1
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Final Charlotte 115 Indiana 109
Final 2OT Chicago 109 Philadelphia 105
Final Minnesota 140 New York 134
Final Golden State 121 Houston 108
Final Memphis 112 Dallas 108
Final Utah 128 Sacramento 120
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Final Florida 5 Detroit 2
Final Ottawa 2 Pittsburgh 1
Final Colorado 5 Chicago 0
Final OT Edmonton 5 San Jose 4
Final Los Angeles 8 Calgary 2