🏀 New Jayhawk on the Block

It’s Wednesday! Which means yesterday was Super Tuesday in college basketball. Wanna know why they call it Super Tuesday? Because it's super. We had a doubleheader littered with blue bloods last night in Chicago for the Champions Classic, where the diaper-dandy Kentucky Wildcats went toe-to-toe with the top-ranked Jayhawks after the Dukies dueled the Spartans. Tuesday also means in-season tournament action in the NBA. But things looked more like a WWE match between the T-Wolves and Warriors as tempers flared and a massive scuffle broke out. Was Draymond Green involved? You mean the guy who punched his own teammate in the face last year? Yes, he was involved. But this time, he went for a submission via headlock rather than a stand-up KO. In hockey, they're allowed to fight, and those guys also played games last night. Finally, our hoops experts are back with a women's college basketball season preview, and Shohei Ohtani has officially turned up the stove in MLB free agency. Also, the Dawgs are back on top! Let's go!

WTF Stat: Pacers G Tyrese Haliburton had 33 points, 15 assists, and 0 turnovers in a win against the 76ers last night. Haliburton also had 25 points, 17 assists and 0 turnovers in a loss to the 76ers on Sunday. He is the first player in NBA history with 25 points, 15 assists and 0 turnovers in consecutive games since individual turnovers began being tracked in 1977 - is that good?

🏈 Georgia took the No. 1 spot in the latest College Football Playoff rankings, with No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Michigan, and No. 4 Florida State rounding out the top four, followed by No. 5 Washington and No. 6 Oregon - the only movement in the top-six was the Bulldogs jumping the Buckeyes for the No. 1 ranking

🏈 Bills fired OC Ken Dorsey yesterday amid their 5-5 start and named quarterbacks coach Joe Brady as his interim replacement - Dorsey replaced Giants HC Brian Daboll as the team’s offensive coordinator in 2022 after starting as the Bills’ quarterbacks coach in 2019

⚾️ Brewers are expected to promote longtime bench coach Pat Murphy to manager in the wake of Craig Counsell's departure - the Cubs hired Counsell last week, making him MLB’s highest-paid skipper

⚾️ Orioles’ Brandon Hyde (AL) and Marlins’ Skip Schumaker (NL) were named the MLB Managers of the Year in their respective leagues - Schumaker became the eighth individual to win Manager of the Year in his first year as a big leagues skipper

⚾️ Angels OF/SP Shohei Ohtani and Cubs OF Cody Bellinger were among seven MLB players who turned down $20.3M qualifying offers from their current teams yesterday to remain in free agency

🏒 A man was arrested in England on suspicion of manslaughter following the death of former NHL player Adam Johnson, who died after a skate blade cut his throat during a mid-game collision in Britain's Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL) on Oct. 28 - Matt Petgrave, a defenseman in the EIHL, was the other player involved in the collision and is the presumed suspect

⚽️ United States Women's National Team officially named Emma Hayes as their new head coach on a record-breaking contract worth about $2M annually - Hayes, 47, has guided Chelsea to six Women's Super League titles and will start her new role next May before the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris

🏀 We Sleep in May.

Women’s College Basketball 2023-24 Season Preview

Top Storylines

• Can LSU repeat? It only took the legendary coach Kim Mulkey two seasons in Baton Rouge to lead the Tigers to a national championship. But their quest for back-to-back titles has already hit some turbulence. LSU entered the season as the No. 1 ranked team but got blown out by Colorado in their season opener and dropped six spots in the polls. However, Mulkey's roster is perhaps even better than last year's with the arrival of Louisville transfer G Hailey Van Lith (a two-time, first-team All-ACC selection) and highly-touted freshman G Mikaylah Williams, who dropped 42 points last night. Plus, the team returns its heartbeat, F Angel Reese, a polarizing big who can dominate the paint. The Tigers will still have to go through South Carolina, who won last year's SEC regular season title as well as the conference tournament, but they still have all the tools to make another deep run.

• Will Caitlin Clark lead Iowa to its first national championship? If you haven't heard of her, study up! In Caitlin Clark's freshman season, she led the nation in scoring. As a sophomore, she was a unanimous first-team All-American and became the first women's player to lead the country in points and assists in a single season. In 2023, she was named the player of the year and led Iowa to its first-ever national championship game. Now, she's back for one last run as a senior and is looking to capture the Hawkeyes' first national title. Clark's currently averaging 32.0 points per game and dropped 44 in an 80-76 win over No. 9 Virginia Tech last week. There's not much left for the superstar to accomplish in the college ranks besides a national title, and she and the Hawkeyes look primed to make it happen.

• Can UConn return to the mountaintop? Before last season, the Huskies had reached the Final Four every year since 2008. Then, they were stunned in the Sweet 16 by the third-seeded Buckeyes. The 2021 national player of the year Paige Bueckers is back after missing all of last season with a torn ACL, but UConn is now 1-1 after a shocking loss on Sunday at the hands of NC State. Regardless, expectations aren't changing. Head coach Geno Auriemma already said this year will be the Huskies' best chance at a national title since 2016, and there's no shortage of talent to make that happen. All-American F Aaliyah Edwards is a force inside, F Aubrey Griffin is coming off the best season of her career, and Bueckers is coming off a phenomenal performance against the Wolfpack despite the upset. Once again, Connecticut is loaded, and they aren't going anywhere.

• Tip-Ins: Will South Carolina reach its fourth consecutive Final Four? Can Virginia Tech rekindle its tournament magic from last season? How far can freshman JuJu Watkins carry USC? Is the Pac-12 the best conference in women's college basketball?

Current AP Top 25 Poll

Team (Record) ↑↓ spots moved from preseason poll

1. South Carolina (2-0) ↑5

2. Iowa (3-0) ↑1

3. UCLA (3-0) ↑1

4. Utah (2-1) ↑1

5. Colorado (3-0) ↑15

6. Stanford (2-0) ↑9

7. LSU (3-1) ↓6

8. UConn (1-1) ↓6

9. Virginia Tech (1-1) ↓1

10. USC (3-0) ↑11

11. Texas (3-0) ↑2

12. Florida State (2-0) ↑6

13. Ohio State (1-1) ↓6

14. NC State (2-0) ↑12

15. Tennessee (2-1) ↓4

16. Notre Dame (2-1) ↓6

17. North Carolina (2-0) ↓1

18. Indiana (1-1) ↓9

19. Louisville (2-0) ↓2

20. Maryland (1-1) ↓6

21. Baylor (2-0) ↓2

22. Creighton (2-0) ––

23. Ole Miss (1-1) ↓11

24. Washington State (3-0) ––

25. Oklahoma (3-0) ↑1

See the full FanDuel national championship odds here. 

College Basketball - Top Games

• NCAAM | #1 Kansas 89, #17 Kentucky 84: With three seven-footers out due to injury, Kentucky was severely undersized, and 7'2" Michigan transfer Hunter Dickinson (27 PTS, 8-12 FG, 21 REB) took advantage with a monster double-double, but Antonio Reeves (24 PTS, 7-25 FG, 8 REB), freshman Rob Dillingham (18 PTS, 4-5 3PT), and Kentucky didn't back down, and the Wildcats entered the break up 48-41 after knocking down nine threes. However, Coach Calipari's young squad cooled off, and the Jayhawks crawled back for a tough victory in the latter of the Champions Classic doubleheader - Reaves went 3-17 from three, Kansas G Kevin McCullar Jr. (12 PTS, 10, 10 AST) had a triple-double, and Dajuan Harris Jr. (23 PTS, 7 AST) was also huge for the Jayhawks

• NCAAM | #9 Duke 74, #18 Michigan State 65: The Dukies took the opening game of last night's Champions Classic in Chicago as Kyle Filipowski (15 PTS, 8 REB) helped build the Blue Devils an 11-point halftime lead, which was too great for Tyson Walker (22 PTS, 9-17 FG) and the Spartans to overcome thanks to 16 second-half points from Duke freshman Caleb Foster (18 PTS, 4-5 3PT, 7 REB), who helped stave off several Michigan State runs to secure the win - it was a rebound victory for Duke following their loss to No. 3 Arizona on Friday night at Cameron Indoor

• NCAAM | #4 Marquette 71, #23 Illinois 64: The reigning Big East champs entered the game as 2.5-point underdogs, and the Illini flirted with a lead in the second half, but ol' reliable Tyler Kolek (24 PTS, 6 REB, 4 AST) helped pull Marquette away, and the Eagles left Champaign with a solid road win - Terrance Shannon Jr. (21 PTS) led Illinois in scoring and Oso Ighodaro (13 PTS, 8 REB, 3 STL) had a big game inside for Marquette

• NCAAW | #7 LSU 109, Kent State 79: The Tigers only led 39-27 at the half but then poured in 70 points in the final two quarters, thanks largely in part to freshman Mikaylah Williams (42 PTS, 15/20 FG, 7 REB, 3 STL), this year's No. 2 overall recruit who dropped 32 points in the second half in a dazzling scoring display - more on the Tigers below!

See the full men's scoreboard here and the full women's scoreboard here.

NBA In-Season Tournament - Top Games

• Minnesota Timberwolves 104, Golden State Warriors 101: Draymond Green was ejected. Klay Thompson was ejected. And Jaden McDaniels was ejected — all before a basket was scored! A massive scuffle broke out after Klay and McDaniels got into it, and then Draymond put Rudy Gobert (9 PTS, 13 REB) into a headlock for absolutely no reason, which was kind of hilarious. But they still had to play basketball, and Karl-Anthony Towns (33 PTS, 11 REB) did that very well as the T-Wolves got the win over Chris Paul (15 PTS, 5 REB, 4 AST) and the Warriors in sunny California - Minnesota currently holds the second-best record in the West at 8-2, and Steph Curry was out with right knee soreness

• Denver Nuggets 111, Los Angeles Clippers 108: Nikola Jokic (32 PTS, 16 REB, 9 AST) was an assist shy of a triple-double, and the Clippers remained winless since acquiring James Harden (21 PTS, 4 AST) on Halloween, as Paul George (35 PTS, 7 REB, 3 AST) wedgied a potential game-tying three with 5.3 seconds remaining and the Nuggets edged out LA for the win - Harden's 21 points are the most he's had since being traded

• Los Angeles Lakers 134, Memphis Grizzlies 107: LeBron James (16 PTS, 9 REB, 6 AST) is still very good at basketball, Rui Hachimura (23 PTS, 8-10 FG) made a big contribution off the bench, De'Angelo Russell (24 PTS, 6-8 3PT, 5 AST) led the Lakers in scoring, and the Purple and Gold went 22 0f 35 (62.9%) from beyond the arc to rout Ja Morant-less Grizzlies, improving to 2-0 in group play - it is the highest percentage from three in a game by a team with at least 35 three-point attempts in NBA history!

See the full NBA scoreboard here and the current standings here - see yesterday's letter for a full rundown on the In-Season Tournament format.

NHL - Top Games

• Dallas Stars 4, Arizona Coyotes 3 (OT): In a back-and-forth barnburner, Jason Zucker (1 G) and Lawson Crouse (1 G) helped Arizona flip a 2-1 deficit into a 3-2 lead with back-to-back bingos in the 3rd period, but Tyler Seguin (1 G) answered with a late score to force overtime, where Matt Duchene (1 G, 1 A) said goodnight 42 seconds into the extra period to improve the Stars to a 11-3-1 record - Dallas is currently riding a four-game winning streak

• Washington Capitals 3, Vegas Golden Knights 0: Charlie Lindgren (35 SV) was lights out in net and didn't need much goal support, but Dylan Strome's (1 G) gave him some early insurance with a 1st-period goal, and then Connor McMichael's (1 G) shut the door with an empty-netter as the Caps clamped down on the defending champs to hand them their third loss in four games

• Winnipeg Jets 6, New Jersey Devils 3: As if the Jets can't make New Jersey fans any more miserable, Winnipeg posted a touchdown against the Devs behind a pair of goals from Nikolaj Ehlers (2 G) and Kyle Connor (2 G, 1 A) - every goal was scored in this one was scored after the 1st period

See the full NHL scoreboard here and the current standings here.

Which school has the most total wins in the history of college football?

A. Michigan

B. Ohio State

C. Alabama

D. Notre Dame

On November 15, 2020, Dustin Johnson won The Masters in record fashion. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, The Masters was postponed from April to November and forced to do without patrons for the first time. On Sunday, DJ tapped in for par on the 18th to finish at 20-under par, beating Cam Smith and Sungjae Im (-15) by five strokes. His 20-under par (268 strokes) broke the tournament record by two shots, set by Tiger Woods in 1997 and matched by Jordan Spieth in 2015. Surprisingly, this was just his second major victory and one he had been dreaming about since growing up in Columbia, South Carolina, just about an hour away from Augusta - will we ever see DJ win another major?

NBA

• Boston Celtics @ Philadelphia 76ers 7:30pm ET, ESPN

• Minnesota Timberwolves @ Phoenix Suns 9:00pm ET, Local

• Sacramento Kings @ Los Angeles Lakers 10:00pm ET, ESPN

• Full Schedule

NHL

• Philadelphia Flyers @ Carolina Hurricanes 7:30pm ET, TNT

• Anaheim Ducks @ Colorado Avalanche 9:00pm ET, Local

• New York Islanders @ Vancouver Canucks 10:00pm ET, TNT

• Full Schedule

College Basketball

• NCAAM: Georgetown @ Rutgers 8:30pm ET, FS1

• NCAAM: Rice @ #19 Texas 9:00pm ET, Longhorn Network

• NCAAW: Northwestern @ #16 Notre Dame 7:00pm ET, ACCN

• Men's: Full Schedule

• Women's: Full Schedule

College Football

• Central Michigan @ Ohio 7:00pm ET, ESPNU

• Buffalo @ Miami (OH) 7:00pm ET, ESPN2

Grab $20 off tickets to your favorite games, concerts and events using code TORCH20 at Vivid Seats - Promo is for first-time buyers and orders over $200!

Trivia Time Answer

A. Michigan. The Wolverines have the most wins in the history of college football with 999, which, of course, means if they beat Maryland this Saturday, it will be their 1,000 victory in school history. Michigan is followed by Ohio State (963), Alabama (962), Texas (945), and Notre Dame (945) - the Maize and Blue have won 11 national championships in football but only one since 1948 (a co-title in 1997 shared with Nebraska).

Retired NASCAR driver Kevin Harvick bought Ricky Bobby's mansion, and it looks like it goes FAST. College football Week 12 preview coming tomorrow.