Anthony Edwards brought his aggressiveness to Game 2, unlike Game 1. Minnesota’s reserves delivered an improved performance compared to the first game of theNBA’s Western Conference finals against Oklahoma City.

Yet, the result was the same, a Thunder victory.

Oklahoma City took Game 2 118-103 and grabbed control of the series, now holding a 2-0 lead. The series shifts to Minnesota for the next two games as the Timberwolves search for answers to the problems the Thunder present.

Game 3 is Saturday (8:30 p.m. ET, ABC).

The Thunder are in good position to reach the Finals for the first time since 2012. Teams that win the first two games of a best-of-seven series go on to win the series 92.2% of the time.

Fresh off earning his first NBA MVP on Wednesday, Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored a game-high 38 points, his franchise-record fifth consecutive playoff game with 30 or more points. It was an efficient 12-for-21 from the field and 13-for-15 on free throws for Gilgeous-Alexander, who also had eight assists, three rebounds and three steals.

Chet Holmgren contributed 22 points, and All-Star Jalen Williams had 26 points, 10 rebounds and five assists for the Thunder.

Oklahoma City’s top-ranked defense once again pressured Minnesota into a low-scoring, poor-shooting performance.

Edwards scored 32 points on 26 shot attempts – double the amount of field goal attempts from Game 1 – but he was also 1-for-9 on 3-pointers, and Julius Randle’s run of strong playoff scoring performances ended with a six-point game on 2-for-11 shooting. Randle sat the entire fourth quarter. The Timberwolves shot 41.4% from the field and 28.2% on 3s – and 14 turnovers led to 22 OKC points.

Game 2 Timberwolves vs. Thunder highlights

Final: Thunder 118, Timberwolves 103

STATS: Check out full stats from the game here.

3Q: Thunder 93, Timberwolves 71

The Thunder began to pull away from the Timberwolves after outscoring them in the third quarter, leading by as many as 24 points.

Minnesota has not held a lead larger than two points through the first three quarters.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 30 points and six assists through three quarters. Chet Holmgren had 18 points.

Anthony Edwards led the Timberwolves with 24 points and eight rebounds. Jaden McDaniels added 15 points.

Anthony Edwards tops Timberwolves’ all-time playoff scoring list

Anthony Edwards’ floater off the glass with 6:47 left in the third quarter made him the Timberwolves’ all-time leading playoff scorer – ahead of Kevin Garnett – with 1,051 career postseason points in his 39th playoff game.

Garnett has 1,049 points in 47 games followed by Karl-Anthony Towns (603 points in 32 games); Wally Szczerbiak (369 points in 29 games); and Latrell Sprewell (357 points in 18 games).

Halftime: Thunder 58, Timberwolves 50

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 19 points for the Thunder in the first half after shooting 6-for-9 from the field and 6-for-6 from the free throw line. He also added four assists, three rebounds and two steals.

The Thunder and Timberwolves were tied at 45 with 4:34 left in the second quarter before OKC began to pull away with six unanswered points.

Jalen Williams added 10 points and five defensive rebounds in the first half for OKC.

Anthony Edwards led the Timberwolves with 16 points, seven rebounds and three assists. He went 7-of-18 from the field and 1-for-7 from the 3-point line.

1Q: Thunder 29, Timberwolves 25

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren each scored eight points for the Thunder in the first quarter. Gilgeous-Alexander went 3-for-3 from the field and 2-for-2 from the free throw line. Anthony Edwards had eight points and six rebounds for the Timberwolves.

NBA official Scott Foster suffers bloody nose

Lu Dort gave referee Scott Foster a bloody nose – accidentally.

During a jump ball between Oklahoma City’s Lu Dort and Minnesota’s Julius Randle, Dort’s hand hit Foster’s face as Dort tried to control the jump with 10:23 left in the first quarter. The blood rule dictated a stoppage, and training staff helped Foster control the bleeding with a towel.

A couple of minutes later, the game resumed with Foster on the court with fellow refs Tony Brothers and Pat Fraher. There is an alternate ref (JB DeRosa) on-site if needed.

Watch: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander receives MVP award

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was presented the 2024-25 Most Valuable Player award before Game 2 by NBA commissioner Adam Silver.

Minnesota Timberwolves starting lineup for Game 2

Mike Conley, Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels, Julius Randle and Rudy Gobert will start Game 2 for the Timberwolves tonight.

Oklahoma City Thunder starting lineup for Game 2

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Luguentz Dort, Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein make up the Thunder’s starting lineup for Game 2 against the Timberwolves.

Look for Anthony Edwards to be more aggressive in Game 2

Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards had a bland 18 points on 13 shot attempts in OKC’s Game 1 victory. The Thunder’s top-ranked defense was part of that, but Edwards is capable of working through that and finding more points. Minnesota needs more from him in the series.

“He’s prepared to be super aggressive every single night,” Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said. “I thought he did a good job the other day of finding his teammates. We’ve got to knock down some of those shots. But there are opportunities for him to be more aggressive for himself. That’s how he’s wired anyway, so it usually never takes much to recalibrate.”

Thunder coach Mark Daigneault on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander winning MVP

“It was a nice moment of reflection for a lot of people,’ Daigneault said. ‘Just sitting there watching him, I’m like, ‘Man, I remember when he was (a) scrawny kid on his first contract in the bubble. Now this guy’s a man, a father, a husband, a leader. He also showed a side of himself that we see every day. He let everybody in on that in a very proud moment for him. So I couldn’t (be) happier for him.”

What time is Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Oklahoma City Thunder?

Game 2 of the NBA’s Western Conference final series between the Minnesota Timberwolves and Oklahoma City Thunder gets underway at 8:30 p.m. ET.

How to watch Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Oklahoma City Thunder: TV, stream

Time: 8:30 p.m. ET
Location: Paycom Center; Oklahoma City
TV: ESPN
Stream: ESPN+, Fubo

Why Shai Gilgeous-Alexander deserved the NBA MVP award

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander got off to a great start. He kept playing like an MVP, and Oklahoma City kept winning.

The Thunder finished 68-14 and earned the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, and Gilgeous-Alexander is one of three finalists for MVP after averaging a league-best and career-high 32.7 points, 6.4 assists, 5.0 rebounds, 1.7 steals and 1.0 blocks and shooting 51.9% from the field, 37.5% on 3-pointers and 89.8% on free throws. No guard attempted more free throws per game (8.8) and he led the league in free throws made per game (7.9).

An All-Star and first-team All-NBA guard who is the best player on the best team deserves the MVP.

That’s Gilgeous-Alexander. Read why Jeff Zillgitt thinks SGA deserved the award here.

Timberwolves vs. Thunder predictions: Expert picks

USA TODAY Sports experts made predictions ahead of the series:

Timberwolves vs. Thunder series winner

Jeff Zillgitt: Thunder in seven
Lorenzo Reyes: Thunder in six
Heather Tucker: Thunder in six
James H. Williams: Thunder in six
Jordan Mendoza: Timberwolves in six
Scooby Axson: Thunder in six
Cydney Henderson: Thunder in seven

Timberwolves vs. Thunder schedule

Thunder lead series 2-0

Game 1, May 20: Thunder 114, Timberwolves 88
Game 2, May 22: Thunder 118, Timberwolves 103
Game 3, May 24: Thunder at Timberwolves | ABC, 8:30 p.m.
Game 4, May 26: Thunder at Timberwolves | ESPN, 8:30 p.m.
Game 5, May 28: Timberwolves at Thunder | ESPN, 8:30 p.m.*
Game 6, May 30: Thunder at Timberwolves | ESPN, 8:30 p.m.*
Game 7, June 1: Timberwolves at Thunder | ESPN, 8 p.m.*

(All times Eastern; *-if necessary)

It’s adorable how they put up the facade of a fight, the allusion of strength in the face of sheer power.

The Big 12, ACC and Group of Five conferences put on the appearance they would stand firm against the Big Ten and SEC bullies, demanding fairness and accountability. 

Until they couldn’t — until their false bravado of public statements wilted in the face of reality. 

So it should come as no surprise that the College Football Playoff announced Thursday that this season’s 12-team bracket would be a straight-seeded format. 

No more highest-ranked conference champions earning first-round byes, a format that benefits the ACC, Big 12 and Group of Five. No more Mr. Nice Guy from the Big Ten and SEC.

“After evaluating the first year of the 12-team Playoff, the CFP Management Committee felt it was in the best interest of the game to make this adjustment,” said Rich Clark, executive director of the CFP.

Translation: the SEC and Big Ten said take it or leave it, and the rest of the Football Bowl Subdivision conferences fell in line. 

More damning: this is just the beginning of the Big Ten and SEC power play — and there’s nothing anyone can do about it. 

If you don’t believe it, consider this: any change to the final year of first CFP contract needed a unanimous vote.

The next CFP contract beginning with the 2026 season, which will effectively be controlled exclusively by the Big Ten and SEC, doesn’t.

So if the minority didn’t agree with the majority on the straight seeding for 2025 (which they could have), they may as well have signed their own pink slips for the next CFP contract. 

The Big Ten and SEC control everything – format and financials – beginning in 2026. A new 16-team format will likely exceed $1.2 billion in revenue annually, and no one wants to be left out.

So while Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark and ACC commissioner Jim Phillips have accomplished some heavy lifting to save their respective conferences, while the Group of Five conferences have done all they can to hang on for revenue scraps, the Big Ten and SEC have doubled down and flexed.

It’s their postseason world, the rest of college football is just surviving in it. And the Big Ten and SEC haven’t even begun to take big swings yet. 

Soon enough – more than likely shortly after the SEC spring meetings next week in Destin, Florida – the College Football Playoff will announce the format for 2026 and beyond. 

It wasn’t long ago that the Big 12 and ACC were publicly questioning a move to 16 teams, and against the idea that the Big Ten and SEC would be gifted four automatic qualifiers each — or half of the field.

It wasn’t long ago that Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti and SEC commissioner Greg Sankey floated the idea that maybe, with the new contract, they wouldn’t use a committee to pick the field — or they would, but it would be tweaked. Shoot, maybe they’d bring back computer polls.

Understand this: the Big Ten and SEC aren’t floating ideas publicly (or leaking them) to gain an understanding of how far things can be pushed. They’re telling you what they’re doing.

And then they’re going to do it. 

When the SEC meets next week in Destin, the league could finally and officially approve a nine-game conference schedule. This will put the Big Ten (which already plays a nine-game conference schedule) and SEC on an even playing field, and eliminate the final point of structural friction between the conferences.

It will also send a shot across the bow to everyone else in college football. The two super conferences are now in lockstep in format and focus, and they’re going after big financial paydays. 

If you don’t like how we structure the postseason beginning in 2026, we’ll take our ball and have our own playoff. Better yet, we’ll schedule each other in non-conference games, and effectively shut out the rest of the sport. 

There’s a reason the Big Ten and SEC have been talking about an expanded non-conference schedule for nearly a year. Network television (and eventually streaming) wants more Big Ten vs. SEC. 

So don’t be shocked when the new 2026 CFP format includes an expanded championship week prior to the beginning of the playoff. That week – which long has been a standalone week for conference championship games – would include a championship game and three play-in games from the Big Ten and SEC. 

The teams playing in the two championship games, and the winners of the play-in games, would advance to the CFP. That’s four automatic qualifiers each from the Big Ten and SEC.

More problematic for the ACC and Big 12 (and Group of Five): the Big Ten and SEC play-in games will suck the oxygen (not to mention, television money) from that final regular-season weekend.  

More games, more television inventory, more revenue for the elite 34 schools of college football.

The ACC and Big 12 would get two automatic qualifiers each beginning in 2026, Notre Dame would be guaranteed a spot if it’s ranked in the top 16, and the highest-ranked Group of Five conference champion would also earn a spot. 

That leaves three at-large spots in a 16-team field. Three spots for the Big Ten and SEC to more than likely share, or earn a majority — based, more than anything, on strength of schedule.

It’s all there, plain to see. The Big Ten and SEC are telling us how they’re going to take over college football, and it’s time we start listening.

This is just the beginning, everyone. And there’s nothing anyone can do about it. 

Matt Hayes is the senior national college football writer for USA TODAY Sports Network. Follow him on X at @MattHayesCFB.

The College Football Playoff will convert beginning this coming year to a straight-seeding model that ranks all 12 teams in order of the final playoff rankings of the regular season, the group’s management committee announced on Thursday.

The new policy will no longer include an opening-round bye for the four highest-ranked conference champions, though the five top conference winners will still receive automatic playoff bids.

Instead, the four highest-ranked teams regardless of conference championships won will receive that bye into the quarterfinals. In the case that one or more of the five top-ranked conference champions rank outside the top 12 of the final playoff rankings, that team or those teams will move into the top 12 and displace any non-conference winners.

The updated seeding policy comes amid a continued push from several Power Four leagues to widen the tournament field to 14 or 16 teams, with multiple automatic bids given to the best teams in the SEC and the Big Ten.

The management committee is composed of the 10 Bowl Subdivision conference commissioners and Notre Dame athletics director Pete Bevacqua.

“After evaluating the first year of the 12-team Playoff, the CFP Management Committee felt it was in the best interest of the game to make this adjustment,” said playoff executive director Rich Clark. “This change will continue to allow guaranteed access to the Playoff by rewarding teams for winning their conference championship, but it will also allow us to construct a postseason bracket that recognizes the best performance on the field during the entire regular season.”

The debut of the 12-team playoff saw Boise State from the Group of Five land one of the four byes, displacing ACC winner Clemson. Eventual national champion Ohio State earned an at-large bid, as did runner-up Notre Dame as an FBS independent. They were seeded eighth and seventh despite being ranked sixth and fifth, respectively, by the committee.

All other policies will remain the same from last season, the playoff said. That includes opening-round games between teams ranked between No. 5 and No. 12 being played at the home venue of the higher-ranked team. This year’s quarterfinals are to be held in the Cotton Bowl, Orange Bowl, Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl. The semifinals will be in the Fiesta Bowl and Peach Bowl and the championship game is scheduled for Monday, Jan. 19, at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida.

How the College Football Playoff seeding would have looked

Oregon, Georgia, Boise State and Arizona State were the top four seeds and received first-round byes in the 2024 playoff field due to their ranking as the four-highest champions. However, the Broncos and Sun Devils were No. 9 and No. 12, respectively, in the final rankings. Texas and Penn State played in the first round despite being finishing No. 3 and No. 4. That would have been different under the new system.

Here’s how the playoff was seeded:

No. 12 Clemson at No. 5 Texas

No. 11 SMU at No. 6 Penn State

No. 10 Indiana at No. 7 Notre Dame

No. 9 Tennessee at No. 8 Ohio State

Second round

No. 1 Oregon vs. Ohio State-Tennessee winner

No. 2 Georgia vs. Notre Dame-Indiana winner

No. 3 Boise State vs. Penn State-SMU winner

No. 4 Arizona State vs. Texas-Clemson winner

Here’s how the playoff would have looked have looked with straight-seeding model:

No. 12 Clemson at No. 5 Notre Dame

No. 11 Arizona State at No. 6 Ohio State

No. 10 SMU at No. 7 Tennessee

No. 9 Boise State at No. 8 Indiana

Second round

No. 1 Oregon vs. Indiana-Boise State winner

No. 2 Georgia vs. Tennessee-SMU winner

No. 3 Texas vs. Ohio State-Arizona State winner

No. 4 Penn State vs. Notre Dame-Clemson winner

‘The Greatest Spectacle in Racing’ never gets old for David Letterman.

From the start, he’s partnered with former Indianapolis 500 champion Bobby Rahal in what’s now known as Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (RLL).

A native of Indianapolis, Letterman, 78, has said his earliest memory of the Indy 500 goes back to 1955 when he’d listen to the race on the radio with his family at their home, just miles away from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. And once again, he’ll be back home in Indiana for this year’s 500, which takes place Sunday, May 25.

Has David Letterman ever won the Indy 500?

If you mean the racing team Letterman co-owns, then yes.

Buddy Rice won the Indy 500 in 2004 for Rahal Letterman Racing, and Takuma Sato won it in 2020 for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing drivers in 2025 Indy 500

David Letterman’s team will have four drivers in the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500.

Takuma Sato, a two-time Indy 500 (2017 and 2020), posted the second-fastest time in qualifying. He will start in the middle of the front row in the No. 75 RLLR Honda.
Devlin DeFrancesco, a 25-year-old Canadian driver, is in his first season with RLL. He qualified 16th in the No. 30 Honda
Louis Foster: The British driver is a rookie in the IndyCar Series and will make his Indy 500 debut on Sunday. He starts 20th in the No. 45 RLLR Honda.
Graham Rahal, the son of team owner Bobby Rahal and a six-time IndyCar series winner, is in his 18th season on the IndyCar circuit. He will start 28th in the No. 15 RLLR Honda. (Fun fact: Graham Rahal once presented a Top 10 list on Letterman’s ‘Late Show’ in 2013.)

How did David Letterman get into owning an IndyCar team?

In a recent interview with the Indianapolis Star, Letterman discusses how special the Indy 500 was in the life of his family and friends.

‘I saw every weekend this kid named Bobby Rahal running up front. I started following him and was attracted to ‘the guy,’ not so typical of the drivers I was familiar with as a younger person. When he won in ’86, he came on (‘Late Night with David Letterman’), and that was the beginning of our acquaintance, and it developed into a friendship, and I would attend races around the country when I had time off. From that, he was nice enough to let me come in and be a bit of a partnership on the team.’

Also in that interview, Letterman talks about what it was like to be part of the winning team at The Brickyard in 2004 and 2017.

David Letterman’s first Indy 500

A few years ago, Letterman told the story of the first time he ever attended the Indianapolis 500 in person. In an interview with NBC Sports, Letterman revealed it was in 1966, when he was a student at Ball State University.

‘(A) buddy of mine from Ball State, we drove down, and we found a old piece of Samsonite luggage. A big, like six-suiter or something, and we put as much beer in it as we could. And as the day heated up, all the ice melted, and we had a waterfall going down. And people beneath us [were like], ‘What? Where is this?’ And of course it was the idiots, the drunks, sitting up there.’

2025 Indy 500 starting lineup

See where Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing drivers are on the starting grid.

(Car number in parentheses, followed by driver, team, manufacturer; R=rookie; W=former winner)

(83) Robert Shwartzman (R), Prema Racing, Chevrolet
(75) Takuma Sato (W), Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Honda
(5) Pato O’Ward, Arrow McLaren, Chevrolet
(9) Scott Dixon (W), Chip Ganassi Racing, Honda
(60) Felix Rosenqvist, Meyer Shank Racing, Honda
(10) Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing, Honda
(4) David Malukas, A.J. Foyt Enterprises, Chevrolet
(7) Christian Lundgaard, Arrow McLaren, Chevrolet
(28) Marcus Ericsson (W), Andretti Global, Honda
(3) Scott McLaughlin, Team Penske, Chevrolet
(76) Conor Daly, Juncos Hollinger Racing, Chevrolet
(20) Alexander Rossi (W), Ed Carpenter Racing, Chevrolet
(8) Kyffin Simpson, Chip Ganassi Racing, Honda
(33) Ed Carpenter, Ed Carpenter Racing, Chevrolet
(14) Santino Ferrucci, A.J. Foyt Enterprises, Chevrolet
(30) Devlin DeFrancesco, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Honda
(77) Sting Ray Robb, Juncos Hollinger Racing, Chevrolet
(21) Christian Rasmussen, Ed Carpenter Racing, Chevrolet
(17) Kyle Larson, Arrow McLaren, Chevrolet
(45) Louis Foster (R), Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Honda
(90) Callum Ilott, Prema Racing, Chevrolet
(06) Helio Castroneves (W), Meyer Shank Racing, Honda
(27) Kyle Kirkwood, Andretti Global, Honda
(6) Nolan Siegel (R), Arrow McLaren, Chevrolet
(23) Ryan Hunter-Reay (W), Dreyer & Reinbold Racing/Cusick Motorsports, Chevrolet
(24) Jack Harvey, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing/Cusick Motorsports, Chevrolet
(26) Colton Herta, Andretti Global, Honda
(15) Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Honda
(98) Marco Andretti, Andretti Global, Honda
(66) Marcus Armstrong, Meyer Shank Racing, Honda
(18) Rinus Veekay, Dale Coyne Racing, Honda
*(2) Josef Newgarden (W), Team Penske, Chevrolet
*(12) Will Power (W), Team Penske, Chevrolet

Watch the Indy 500 with Fubo

How to watch the Indy 500: Date, time, TV and streaming

Date: Sunday, May 25
TV time: 10 a.m. ET
Race time: 12:45 p.m. ET
TV channel: FOX
Live stream: Fubo (free trial to new subscribers)
Location: Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Monaco is the crown jewel of the Formula 1 calendar. Drivers were racing around the streets 21 years before F1’s inaugural season in 1950. For decades, it’s been a race every driver on the grid wants to win.

The race is an anomaly. It’s the only event on the calendar that doesn’t have to meet the sport’s 190-mile minimum race distance. It’s the slowest race of the year by average speed (95-100 mph) as drivers make their way through the tight, twisting circuit with few, if any, overtakes.

The 2024 Monaco Grand Prix had an early red flag which meant teams didn’t need to pit at any point in the race. That made for one of the least exciting races of the season but featured a rarity in the event: a hometown winner. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc became the first Monégasque driver to win the event since Louis Chiron in 1931.

Qualifying is everything in Monaco due to the lack of overtaking. Last year qualifying was a close battle between the Ferraris and McLarens in the top four places in qualifying. This year could be close again but between the McLarens and reigning world champion Max Verstappen of Red Bull.

Verstappen won the most recent race, the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, his second victory of the season. That broke McLaren driver Oscar Piastri’s streak of three consecutive wins. Piastri and Verstappen are tied for pole positions this season with three each through seven races.

Verstappen could make it two wins in a row but the McLaren drivers may get back on top in the streets of Monaco. Here’s what to know about the race.

How to watch the 2025 Monaco Grand Prix

There are multiple options for U.S. F1 viewers to catch all of the action from Monaco.

Date: May 23-25
Location: Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo, Monaco
Grand Prix start time: 9 a.m. ET
TV: ABC, ESPN3
Streaming: ESPN+, F1TV, Fubo

Watch the 2025 Formula 1 championship season with Fubo

Monaco Grand Prix start time, TV, schedule

Friday, May 23

Practice 1: 7:30 a.m. ET

TV: ESPN2
Streaming: ESPN+, F1TV, Fubo

Practice 2: 11 a.m. ET

TV: ESPNU
Streaming: ESPN+, F1TV, Fubo

Saturday, May 24

Practice 3: 6:30 a.m. ET

TV: ESPN2
Streaming: ESPN+, F1TV, Fubo

Qualifying: 10 a.m. ET

TV: ESPN
Streaming: ESPN+, F1TV, Fubo

Sunday, May 25

Grand Prix race: 9 a.m. ET

TV: ABC, ESPN3
Streaming: ESPN+, F1TV, Fubo

Who has the most Monaco Grand Prix wins?

Ayrton Senna has the most Monaco Grand Prix wins in F1 history with six (1987, 1989-93). Among active drivers, Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton has the most with three (2008, 2016, 2019). Max Verstappen can match Hamilton’s mark as the active leader with a win on Sunday.

F1 2025 calendar, results

Here’s a list of events in 2025 with the Grand Prix winners of completed events.

Australian Grand Prix (March 16): Lando Norris, McLaren
Chinese Grand Prix (March 23): Oscar Piastri, McLaren
Japanese Grand Prix (April 6): Max Verstappen, Red Bull
Bahrain Grand Prix (April 13): Oscar Piastri, McLaren
Saudi Arabian Grand Prix (April 20): Oscar Piastri, McLaren
Miami Grand Prix (May 4): Oscar Piastri, McLaren
Emilia Romagna Grand Prix (May 18): Max Verstappen, Red Bull
Monaco Grand Prix (May 25)
Spanish Grand Prix (June 1)
Canadian Grand Prix (June 15)
Austrian Grand Prix (June 29)
British Grand Prix (July 6)
Belgian Grand Prix (July 27)
Hungarian Grand Prix (Aug. 3)
Dutch Grand Prix (Aug. 31)
Italian Grand Prix (Sept. 7)
Azerbaijan Grand Prix (Sept. 21)
Singapore Grand Prix (Oct. 5)
United States Grand Prix (Oct. 19)
Mexico City Grand Prix (Oct. 26)
São Paulo Grand Prix (Nov. 9)
Las Vegas Grand Prix (Nov. 22)
Qatar Grand Prix (Nov. 30)
Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (Dec. 7)

Liberty has already made history in the NCAA softball tournament. Its triumph over Texas A&M was the talk of the fast-pitch world after the tournament’s opening weekend, as it marked the first time the top overall seed was unable to advance from its own regional under the current format.

But now that the Flames are in the super regionals for the first time in their own program’s history, they hope this thrill ride has one more stop after this week’s trip to Oregon. Two more wins against the Ducks would mean a spot in Oklahoma City at the Women’s College World Series.

“It’s attainable,” said Flames coach Dot Richardson. “I’ve been in the World Series, and now just envisioning Liberty softball being there is exciting. We just have to keep playing the way we play and focus on the ball. I’m just so humbled yet hungry to keep going.”

The opportunity against the top team actually came as something of a surprise. Liberty entered the tournament with 47 wins and might have been somewhat underseeded. Richardson said the team was expecting an assignment closer its home in the south Virginia mountains. An opponent like South Carolina or Clemson. Instead, it got the team the tournament committee ranked No. 1.

“But think about all the eyes that were on that game,” Richardson said. “That was just softball at the highest level. I’m getting chills here just thinking about it.”

UP AND DOWN: Winners and losers from softball tournament regionals

Naturally, the team is enjoying the ride. Right fielder Rachel Roupe, the hitting hero of the regional, told media members she and her fellow Flames haven’t slept much since the triumph against the Aggies.

“Right after we won we went to the hotel pool – which was closed so we had to jump the fence,” she said of the post-game celebration. “I think we got to bed at about 4:30 in the morning, and we haven’t slept much since we got back to Lynchburg.”

In truth the program has been building toward this breakthrough for some time. It began with the hire of Richardson, one of the most decorated players at the collegiate and Olympic levels in the history of the sport. Since Richardson assumed the reins in 2014, Liberty has become a regular participant in the NCAA tournament. As such, those associated with the program are hoping this year’s achievement is, to draw men’s basketball parallels, not so much analogous to that of Maryland-Baltimore County or Fairleigh Dickinson but more akin to Gonzaga’s breakout run in 1999.

Until now, though, the Flames hadn’t reached the round of 16 stage. They were one win away from the super regionals on two other occasions, in 2018 at South Carolina and last season at Georgia. In both those cases, however, the host team managed to beat Liberty twice to move on. Last year, in fact, the Flames were an out away from winning a deciding game in Athens, but the Bulldogs rallied for two runs in the seventh inning to prevail 3-2.

A similar scenario appeared to be unfolding as Texas A&M took a 3-1 lead into the sixth inning in the deciding game on Sunday. But the Flames came up with five huge runs, capped by Roupe’s three-run homer, and held on for the 6-5 win as reliever Kaylan Yoder ended it with a strikeout.

“I truly think the reason we were able to win this game was because of last year,” said catcher Savannah Jessee, whose two-run shot started the sixth-inning rally. “Even though we were down … we were all super calm.”

Not quite everything broke Liberty’s way over the weekend. Had Oregon, the No. 16 seed, not avoided elimination twice against Stanford in its regional, Liberty might be hosting this super. But on the plus side, this trip to the west coast provides an opportunity for a couple members of the team, starting left fielder Paige Doerr and infielder Brynn McManus, to play in their home state.

“I told everyone it should be a lot cooler there this weekend,” Doerr said with a laugh.