Bo Bichette was open and honest with the media on Sunday. 

The Mets’ new third baseman took complete ownership of his early-season struggles after putting together another hitless effort in a extra-inning loss to the Pirates to close out the series.

Bichette looked nothing like himself during the opening weekend set, picking up just one hit while striking out eight times and squandering numerous opportunity with men on-base across his first 14 at-bats. 

He admitted he found himself trying too much to have a moment early on for his new club and fanbase, but it ultimately led to receiving some boos from the hometown crowd. 

Bichette wasn’t surprised, if anything he thought it took too long.

“I get it,” he said. “I thought the at-bats were terrible, too.” 

Fair or not, Bichette handled things about as perfectly as he could’ve. 

Though they haven’t been together for too long, Mets manager Carlos Mendoza certainly wasn’t surprised to see how the 28-year-old went about things. 

“He’s a total pro,” the skipper said. “This is a guy that grew up in the game. He understands the meaning of every pitch, every at-bat, every game — he understands the big stage. 

“When he signed here, he knew right away what he was signed up for and he was like I love it, I can’t wait. This was way back to the days of the press conference, and then watching him yesterday handle the whole situation, I wasn’t surprised — he’s just a total pro.”

Being that it’s just three games, Mendoza isn’t concerned about Bichette yet. 

The two-time All-Star slugger was a career .294 hitter during his seven years in Toronto, and he was particularly brought in to help provide a boost with runner in scoring position. 

Bichette will look to find his groove during the Mets’ seven-game roadtrip, which kicks off Monday night against Cardinals right-hander Kyle Leahy. 

DALLAS (AP) — Minnesota Timberwolves star guard Anthony Edwards will be available for Monday night’s game against Dallas, coach Chris Finch said before the game.

Edwards, averaging a career-high 29.5 points per game, returns after missing the previous six games with pain in his right knee.

Edwards would need to play in all eight remaining Wolves games to be eligible for All-NBA consideration. He finished seventh in most valuable player voting in each of the last two seasons.

Edwards has played in 58 games, but his 3 minutes, 8 seconds against Indiana on Oct. 26 don’t count toward the NBA’s records for games played.

The Wolves, fifth in the Western Conference, are 10-6 in games that Edwards has missed.

Minnesota announced earlier Monday that power forward Jaden McDaniels is week-to-week after an MRI revealed left knee patella tendinopathy and a bone bruise. McDaniels, averaging a career-high 14.8 points per game, left Wednesday’s game with the injury and didn’t play Saturday.

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AP NBA: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NBA

Go Rays and also singles!

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Royals used home runs by Kyle Isbel and Isaac Collins, two hitters not known for their power, to defeat the Minnesota Twins 3-1 on an unseasonably warm day in front of a sellout crowd of 39,320 in Kansas City’s home opener. The temperature at first pitch was 85 degrees.

In the first game at Kauffman Stadium since the Royals moved in the fences 8 to 10 feet, all four runs scored on home runs. However, all three home runs also would have been out with the old dimensions.

Kris Bubic (1-0) picked up the win for Kansas City. He allowed one run on two hits in six innings. John Schreiber pitched the ninth for his first save.

Simeon Woods Richardson (0-1) took the loss for the Twins.

Both Woods Richardson and Bubic were effective, though neither was brilliant. Woods Richardson allowed just two runs but on five hits. Bubic walked three. Both starters allowed baserunners in all but one inning.

Bubic was the third straight Royals starter to pitch at least six innings with one or fewer runs allowed after Michael Wacha allowed no runs in 6 innings Saturday and Seth Lugo allowed no runs in 6 1/3 innings on Sunday.

Matt Wallner opened the scoring in the second inning for the Twins with a 424-foot home run that nearly reached the fountains in right-center.

The Royals answered with two runs in the bottom of the inning when Isbel’s homer landed in the Royals bullpen in right field. Isbel managed only four home runs in all of 2025.

Collins then extended the lead to 3-1 with a 400-foot blast into the Twins bullpen in the seventh. It was Collins’ first hit this season, having started the season 0-for-8.

Up next

After an off-day Tuesday, the Twins and Royals resume the three-game series Wednesday.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

The 2026 Men’s NCAA Tournament is down to the Final Four.

The initial 68-team field has dwindled to the semifinals, with a national champion to be crowned a week from today. After a bracket that featured four No. 1 seeds in the Final Four last season, this year’s bracket has a couple of shockers.

REQUIRED READING: March Madness bracket hot takes: Duke blows it, UConn wins it, Arizona shouldn’t care

No. 2 Connecticut knocked off No. 1 overall seed Duke on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by Braylon Mullins. No. 3 Illinois advanced to the Final Four with a win over No. 9 Iowa, which had knocked out No. 1 seed and defending national champion Florida in the second round action.

That leaves Michigan and Arizona as the lone remaining No. 1 seeds left in the tournament. But are those two the favorites to cut down the nets? Both programs are seeking their second national title, while the Huskies are seeking their seventh. The Fighting Illini are seeking their first.

Here’s a look at the Final Four teams with the best odds of winning the national championship:

March Madness favorites: Ranking Top 20 college basketball teams based on odds

Odds courtesy of BetMGM as of 6:30 p.m. ET on Monday, March 30

1. Michigan: +165
2. Arizona, +180
3. Illinois, +475
4. UConn, +550

Final Four schedule, game times

Saturday, April 4

• Game 1: No. 3 Illinois vs. No. 2 UConn | 6:09 p.m. | TBS | Sling TV
• Game 2: No. 1 Arizona vs. No. 1 Michigan | 8:49 p.m. | TBS | Sling TV

No. 3 Illinois and No. 2 UConn get the Final Four started at 6:09 p.m. ET on Saturday, April 4, from Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. No. 1 Arizona and No. 1 Michigan are scheduled for an 8:49 p.m. ET tip to set the stage for the national title game on Monday, April 6.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: March Madness power rankings: Michigan with best odds to win national title

We’re down to the final stretch of the 2025-26 NBA season.

No team has more than eight remaining games, and the 10 teams – five from each conference – that will miss the playoffs and Play-In Tournament are already determined.

Still, there’s plenty at stake, where teams can mount late charges to improve their seeding. In the East, only one game separates the No. 5 team, the Toronto Raptors, from the No. 7 squad, the Philadelphia 76ers. The six-seed, an automatic playoff spot currently occupied by the Atlanta Hawks, is the prize everyone below is chasing.

Out West, the San Antonio Spurs suddenly have a very real shot to catch the Oklahoma City Thunder for the No. 1 seed. OKC has been rolling lately, but its remaining schedule is the toughest in the NBA, according to Tankathon.com.

Here are USA TODAY Sports’ NBA power rankings after Week 21 of the 2025-26 regular season:

USA TODAY Sports NBA power rankings

Note: Records and stats through March 29. Parentheses show movement from last week’s rankings.

NBA Week 22 power rankings: Top 10

1. San Antonio Spurs, 56-18 (+1)

2. Oklahoma City Thunder, 59-16 (-1)

3. Detroit Pistons, 54-20 (—)

4.Boston Celtics, 50-24 (—)

5. Los Angeles Lakers, 48-26 (+1)

6. Denver Nuggets, 48-28 (+1)

7. New York Knicks, 48-27 (-2)

8. Cleveland Cavaliers, 46-28 (+2) 

9. Minnesota Timberwolves, 45-29 (—)

10. Houston Rockets, 45-29 (-2)

It might not be fair, in practice, to drop the Thunder down one spot, even as they’ve won 14 of their last 15. But the Spurs have been even hotter, and, with their 4-1 record this season over Oklahoma City, they look every bit like a legitimate title contender. Over the last nine games, the Spurs have posted the NBA’s second-best offensive rating, scoring 123.9 points per 100 possessions.

The Lakers and Nuggets, who have been stellar recently, are each angling for the coveted No. 3 seed in the West and both have 48 wins.

The teams sliding here are the Knicks, who have been outperformed by Los Angeles and Denver, and the Rockets, who have lost five of their last 10.

NBA Week 22 power rankings: Nos. 11-20

11. Atlanta Hawks, 42-33 (+4)

12. Toronto Raptors, 42-32 (+2)

13. Phoenix Suns, 41-33 (—)

14. Los Angeles Clippers, 39-36 (+2)

15. Philadelphia 76ers, 41-33 (+2)

16. Orlando Magic, 39-35 (-5)

17. Miami Heat, 39-36 (-5)

18. Charlotte Hornets, 39-36 (—)

19. Portland Trail Blazers, 38-38 (+1)

20. Golden State Warriors, 36-39 (—)

There’s movement all over the middle of the pack. The Hawks have maximized new acquisitions, and no one has been better than point guard CJ McCollum. The Hawks don’t miss Trae Young, and his absence has allowed Jalen Johnson to fully take over as the star point-forward of the team. Headed into its game Monday against the Celtics, Atlanta has gone 12-2 in March, best of all teams in the East.

Though there’s probably too much ground for them to make up, the Clippers have won five consecutive and could be a lurking threat out West, especially after they struggled to start the season.

Two teams plummeting down the rankings are the Magic and the Heat, who have each gone 1-7 in their last eight games. Miami’s defense, which had been a strength most of the season, has been a recent liability. The Heat rank 27th in the league over the last eight games with a defensive rating of 125.5. A loss Sunday, March 29, against the Pacers – one in which Miami scored 11 points in the fourth quarter – at this point in the season, is inexcusable.

The Magic aren’t doing much better, with a defensive rating over that span of 125.4.

NBA Week 22 power rankings: Nos. 21-30

21. Milwaukee Bucks, 29-45 (—)

22. Chicago Bulls, 29-45 (—) 

23. Memphis Grizzlies, 25-49 (—)

24. Dallas Mavericks, 24-50 (-1)

25. New Orleans Pelicans, 25-51 (—)

26. Utah Jazz, 21-54 (—)

27. Sacramento Kings, 19-57 (—)

28. Brooklyn Nets, 18-57 (—)

29. Washington Wizards, 17-57 (—)

30. Indiana Pacers, 17-58 (—)

There are 10 teams currently eliminated from playoff and play-in contention. Each of them is in this bottom third. These teams have, by and large, shut down star players and are playing to lose. It’s a common tactic in the NBA and shouldn’t even carry some moral judgment. But it’s also not worth spending a lot of time dissecting the recent play of these teams, as they build for the future.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NBA power rankings: San Antonio Spurs, OKC Thunder battling for No. 1

The Atlanta Hawks (42-33) look to avenge their previous home blowout to the Boston Celtics (50-24).

Jock Landale (illness) has been ruled out for this game.

Starting lineup:

• G CJ McCollum
• G Nickeil Alexander-Walker
• F Dyson Daniels
• F Jalen Johnson
• C Onyeka Okongwu

Please join in the comments below as you follow along.

Where, When, and How to Watch and Listen

Location: State Farm Arena, Atlanta, GA

Start Time: 7:30 PM EDT

TV: FanDuel Sports Network Southeast (FDSNSE)

Radio: Sports Radio 92.9 the Game (WZGC-FM)

Streaming: FanDuel Sports Network app, Fubo (out of market), NBA League Pass (out of market), Youtube TV (NBA League Pass out of market)

Mark Cuban doesn’t have regrets about his decision to sell his majority stake in the Dallas Mavericks. 

Whom he sold to, however, is a different story. 

Cuban revealed this week that, after a tumultuous few years following the sale, he would rather not have sold the Mavericks to Miriam Adelson and her son-in-law, Patrick Dumont. 

“I don’t regret selling,” Cuban said on the Intersections podcast. “I regret who I sold to. I made a lot of mistakes in the process, and I’ll leave it at that.”

Cuban purchased the Mavericks in 2000 for about $285 million. The team won the NBA Finals in 2011 with Dirk Nowitzki, and Cuban opted to sell his majority share in December 2023 at about a $3.5 billion valuation. He retained about 27% of the Mavericks, while the majority share went to Adelson and Dumont, who is the CEO of the Las Vegas Sands. 

Cuban said at the time that nothing would change basketball-wise and that he’d still be involved in that aspect of the team. But things did change — and quickly. 

In February 2025, a little more than a year after Cuban sold, general manager Nico Harrison stunned the NBA world by trading Luka Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers. Harrison was eventually fired after swift backlash from fans, and then the Mavericks traded Anthony Davis — whom they acquired in the deal for Dončić — earlier this season. 

The Mavericks did luck into the No. 1 overall pick in the draft last summer, which resulted in landing former Duke star Cooper Flagg. The Mavericks hold a 24-50 record entering Monday’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves and have already been eliminated from playoff contention for a second straight year.

Ron Jenkins via Getty Images

Dallas still does not have a permanent general manager to replace Harrison. Michael Finley and Matt Riccardi have been sharing the role on an interim basis. The franchise is also looking to build a new arena and wants to leave the American Airlines Center when the lease expires in 2031.

In discussing his decision to sell, Cuban said on the podcast that the “big emotional commitment” that came with owning the team was starting to weigh on him at the time. He was undoubtedly one of the league’s most visible owners. He also said he didn’t want to pass the team down to his children or have them work for the team.

“I didn’t want that for them. It can be abusive, a lot,” Cuban said. “If fans don’t like what you’re doing or the team’s not doing well, you’re the worst human being on the planet, and they treat you that way.”