The 2025 Major League Baseball season started in earnest Thursday, with 28 of 30 teams in action on the sport’s proper Opening Day.

It began with New York Yankees’ Austin Wells making history and culminating with the the Los Angeles Dodgers raising the 2024 World Series banner.

In the Bronx, Wells became the first catcher to hit a leadoff home run on Opening Day in MLB history as the Yankees prevailed over the Milwaukee Brewers.

In Los Angeles, the Dodgers’ pregame ceremony was made for the big screen. It began with the players strolling out through the center-field gate and rapper Ice Cube driving the World Series trophy onto the field before presenting it to Magic Johnson.

Then, in an emotional moment, Freddie Freeman, the hero of the Dodgers’ 2024 World Series championship, and Kirk Gibson, the hero of their 1988 crown, met and hugged on the field, before Gibson threw the ceremonial first pitch to Freeman.

And now the Dodgers are 3-0 after beating the Detroit Tigers.

It’s only the beginning. There are 2,400 regular season games remaining.

A look back at the highlights from Thursday’s games:

MLB scores today

New York Yankees 4, Milwaukee Brewers 2
Baltimore Orioles 12, Toronto Blue Jays 2
Boston Red Sox 5, Texas Rangers 2
Philadelphia Phillies 7, Washington Nationals 3 (10 innings)
Cleveland Guardians 7, Kansas City Royals 4 (10 innings)
Houston Astros 3, New York Mets 1
San Francisco Giants 6, Cincinnati Reds 4
San Diego Padres 7, Atlanta Braves 4
Chicago White Sox 8, Los Angeles Angels 1
Miami Marlins 5, Pittsburgh Pirates 4
St. Louis Cardinals 5,Minnesota Twins 3
Los Angeles Dodgers 5, Detroit Tigers 4
Chicago Cubs 10, Arizona Diamondbacks 5
Seattle Mariners 5, Athletics 4

Watch select MLB games this season with Fubo

It wasn’t a normal Dodgers game, it was a Hollywood premiere in LA

LOS ANGELES — It wasn’t a domestic season-opener Thursday at Dodger Stadium, it was a Hollywood premiere.

The Los Angeles Dodgers’ home opener against the Detroit Tigers, culminating with a 5-4 victory, belonged on the big screen, not on a grass field in front of a frenzied sellout crowd of 53,595.

There was Shohei Ohtani homering for the second time this season, with Hollywood stars Tom Hanks, Mary Hart and Rob Lowe celebrating as if they just won an Oscar.

There was Teoscar Hernandez with the biggest hit of the game, a go-ahead 3-run homer, making manager Dave Roberts look like a genius for putting him third in the batting order.

There were the Dodgers winning once again, baseball’s only 3-0 team, with visions of winning more regular-season games than any team in history.

And once again, there was Randy Newman’s ‘I Love L.A,’ blaring into the night as fans headed for the exits.

When the night was over, all the Dodgers could talk about was their spectacular pregame ceremony, making the game almost anti-climatic.

− Bob Nightengale, USA TODAY Sports

Ichiro Suzuki, 51, throws out first pitch at 84 mph

Hall of Famer and Seattle Mariners legend Ichiro Suzuki delivered a laser of a ceremonial first pitch, caught by Dan Wilson. The 51-year-old dialed up an 84 mph first pitch to kick off Opening Day against the Athletics. Ichiro, who now serves as the Special Assistant to the Chairman with the Mariners, was dressed in full uniform and cleats to deliver the pitch.

Shohei Ohtani homers in Dodgers home opener

It’s Opening Day and Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani has homered in two countries this season – Japan and the United States. Ohtani’s home run off Tigers reliever Brenan Hanifee gave the Dodgers a 5-3 lead in the bottom of the seventh inning. It was the second home run of the season for Ohtani.

He homered in the second game of the Tokyo Series against the Cubs on March 19.

Tigers legend Kirk Gibson throws Opening Day first pitch wearing Dodgers jersey

Gibby, meet Freddie.

Detroit Tigers legend Kirk Gibson – wearing a Los Angeles Dodgers jersey – threw a surprise ceremonial first pitch to Dodgers superstar Freddie Freeman ahead of Thursday’s Opening Day game at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

Gibson and Freeman hugged after the first pitch.

Both players hit legendary walk-off home runs over the right-field wall at Dodger Stadium in Game 1 of the World Series for the Dodgers, separated by 36 years – Gibson in 1988 and Freeman in 2024. Both homers led to the Dodgers winning the World Series.

In 1988, Gibson — suffering from a leg injury — hit a walk-off two-run home run against Oakland Athletics pitcher Dennis Eckersley for a 5-4 win in the ninth inning. In 2024, Freeman — suffering from an ankle injury — hit a walk-off grand slam off New York Yankees pitcher Nestor Cortes for a 6-3 win in the 10th inning.

Fox Sports broadcaster Joe Davis referenced Gibson during his play-by-play call of Freeman’s home run.

‘She is gone!’ Davis said. ‘Gibby, meet Freddie!’

− Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press

Reds’ Hunter Greene defends Ian Gibaut after blown save

Cincinnati Reds Opening Day starting pitcher Hunter Greene told reporters after Thursday’s tough loss to the San Francisco Giants that he talked to relief pitcher Ian Gibaut about his blown save and told Gibaut he supports him and believes in him.

‘It impacts us a lot. … It’s a big sting. It hurts. But Ian’s a dog,’ Greene said after the game. ‘And that’s what I told him. I know people might not want to hear that, but people need to believe that. Because he is. The last couple years he’s been with us he’s been in very tight situations. And he’s made it look easy getting out of them. This game’s difficult. He wasn’t able to do that today. But he’s one of our best pitchers. … Fans might not want to hear it. But they need to believe it because it is true. … I want him to know that I support him and I look past what happened today. And I know the rest of the team feels that way about Ian as well.’

– Dave Clark, Cincinnati Enquirer

Astros beat Mets in Juan Soto’s NY debut

HOUSTON — The Mets did not completely get their money’s worth on Opening Day.

The team’s record signing, Juan Soto, stepped to the plate as the go-ahead run in the top of the ninth inning. He watched three balls before Astros closer Josh Hader worked a full count.

With runners on the corners, Soto waved at a slider, and the Mets dropped their Opening Day tilt with the Astros, 3-1, in front of a sold-out crowd of 42,305 at Daikin Park.

– Andrew Tredinnick, NorthJersey.com

Devin Williams nails down save for Yankees vs. Brewers

NEW YORK – Waiting in the wings, new Yankees’ closer Devin Williams was ready to unleash his famous “Airbender’ changeup against his old team.

Arriving to protect a three-run lead on a cool, clear Opening Day at Yankee Stadium, Williams wobbled Thursday afternoon before saving a 4-2 victory against the Milwaukee Brewers. A somewhat subdued crowd of 46,208 fans became agitated as Williams loaded the bases with none out, gave up a run on a sacrifice fly and faced runners at second and third.

But for the fifth time Thursday, Brewers’ leadoff hitter Jackson Chourio struck out and Williams struck out the dangerous Christian Yelich on a full-count Airbender to end it.

Making his second career Opening Day start, Carlos Rodon pitched into the sixth and yielded just a solo home run, and three relievers bridged it to Williams.

– Pete Caldera, NorthJersey.com

Tyler O’Neill homers for sixth straight Opening Day

Making his Orioles debut after signing a three-year, $49.5 million contract, O’Neill hit a three-run homer in the third inning off Toronto Blue Jays starter Jose Berrios.

– Jesse Yomtov

Vinny Capra home run: First of career for Brewers spring training star

Holy smokes, the star of spring just tanked one to left field at Yankee Stadium.

Vinny Capra just hit his first career home run, pulling the Brewers back to within 2-1, and this one wasn’t hit softly over the right-field wall. Capra only had 30 minor-league home runs in his career but hit six bombs in spring training, with 14 RBIs and an OPS over 1.000. It’s how Capra earned a spot on the roster and made him the surprise starter at third base on Opening Day.

Great line on the radio broadcast: ‘One of the few guys who could hit a home run today that has fewer home runs than Ueck.’

– JR Radcliffe, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Austin Wells home run leads off for Yankees

Leading off the bottom of the first, New York catcher Austin Wells homered to right field against Brewers starter Freddy Peralta, giving the Yankees an early 1-0 lead at Yankee Stadium.

Wells is the first catcher to bat leadoff in franchise history.

Yankees vs Brewers gets Opening Day underway

Yankees lefty Carlos Rodón struck out Brewers leadoff hitter Jackson Chourio in the Bronx, to officially begin MLB’s 2025 domestic Opening Day.

Rodón set Milwaukee down in order, needing just nine pitches to get through the first inning.

Reds’ Terry Francona went to dentist on Opening Day

Cincinnati Reds manager Terry Francona said on Wednesday that he’s made greater efforts later in his career to try to savor and enjoy Opening Day. That probably wasn’t as easy to achieve this year given his trip to the dentist on Thursday morning.

Francona started his first Opening Day in Cincinnati with a previously unplanned trip to a cosmetic dentist, he revealed during his pregame news conference Thursday at Great American Ball Park.

Asked at the outset of his 11:30 p.m. news conference with reporters what kind of morning he’d had so far, Francona said: ‘Not the best.’

‘Woke up about 2 a.m. One of my veneers, I think I chewed out,’ Francona said. ‘Woke up about 6 (a.m.) because I thought the trainer could probably get me in. So, then he called me about 8 a.m. and said, ‘you’re all set.’ I went out to wherever it was and got it fixed. Now I’m ready to go.’

– Pat Brennan, Cincinnati Enquirer

Tanner Bibee scratched for Guardians

Tanner Bibee turned himself into the Guardians’ No. 1 starter last year and recently signed a five-year, $48 million contract extension that could keep him in Cleveland through the 2030 season with a club option. There was a wave of positive momentum surrounding Bibee entering the 2025 season.

He was then tasked with taking the ball for the Guardians’ Opening Day game against the Kansas City Royals Thursday, but an illness has changed those plans, and he has been scratched from the start.

Instead, Ben Lively, coming off of a career year in 2024, will take the mound for the Guardians. 

– Ryan Lewis, Akron Beacon Journal

How to watch MLB Opening Day

ESPN will broadcast Brewers vs. Yankees at 3:05 p.m. ET. That will be followed by the defending World Series champion Dodgers welcoming the Tigers at 7:10 p.m. ET. MLB Network promises to have regional coverage of the Cubs-Diamondbacks and A’s-Mariners night games.

For those looking to stream the action, games available on ESPN and MLB Network are also available through MLB.tv or FuboTV.

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

NEWARK, N.J. — Call it good offense or bad defense.

The Alabama Crimson Tide simply don’t care how you refer to it, as long as the ball continues to go in the basket, and it most certainly did on Thursday night.

Alabama hit an NCAA men’s tournament record 25 three-pointers in a 113-88 rout of Brigham Young in the Sweet 16 of the East Regional, and moved one game away from a second Final Four berth in a row. The previous record was 21, set by Loyola Marymount against Michigan in 1990.

The Tide entered the contest averaging nearly 40 points in the paint in the regular season and used that style of play in victories over Robert Morris and Saint Mary’s, while leading all tournament teams in rim rate.

But head coach Nate Oats quickly threw out that game plan from the opening tip as BYU defenders were helpless to stop the onslaught from beyond the arc, consistently leaving shooting open to fire at will once past half court.

Mark Sears unloaded his entire arsenal of playmaking, hitting 10 three-pointers and scoring 34 points, using the majority of his eight assists to feed open teammates. He swished the record-breaking 22nd 3-pointer with 7:31 left to make the score 97-76.

The only other player to hit 10 3s in the regional round was Purdue’s Carsen Edwards against Virginia, in the 2019 South Regional Final.

‘I told Sears there’s a thing called regression to the mean,’ Oats said. ‘His last six games he was shooting 14 percent, 5 of 35. He’s not a 14 percent shooter, obviously. They had been going under ball screens just about every game we watched. I told both those guys, (Aden) Holloway and Sears, man, I hope they go under us because we’re going to rain them.’

Aden Holloway hit six threes of his own and finished with 23 points and Chris Youngblood added 21 points on 5-11 shooting from 3-point land as Alabama shot 53% for the game.

‘Even when I was shooting 14 percent, my confidence was still high,’ said Sears, a first-team All-American. ‘I never stopped doubting myself and stopped believing in myself, and my teammates kept encouraging me to keep shooting it, keep shooting it, keep shooting it. That just shows trust in them that even though when I’m not at my highest peak, they still trust me and want me to shoot the ball.’

BYU, which hasn’t reached a regional final since 1981, kept the game close by turning its offense into a virtual layup line, with little resistance from the Crimson Tide defense, but it was not enough. The Cougars had 44 points in the paint and kept the game close when outside shots were not falling.

Richie Saunders had 25 points, Egor Demin added 15 for the Cougars, who simply couldn’t slow the game down even though they entered the foul bonus with more the 13 minutes left in the second half. While Alabama was setting records from beyond the arc, BYU hit only six of its 30 attempts.

Holloway’s sixth three-pointer of the night gave Alabama an 18-point lead with 9:28 left, effectively ending the competitive part of the game.

‘Sears made shots when we went under. We were trying to show a crowd,’ BYU coach Kevin Young said. ‘He was able to punish those crowds early. We felt like it would be hard for them to sustain that, and so that’s where you have to give them credit because they did. That’s where I’m disappointed at myself for not being able to find a solution. But some nights you’re trying everything, and it doesn’t seem to work.’

Extra points

Sears finished one 3-pointer shy of the all-time single-game NCAA Tournament record set by Loyola Marymount against Michigan in 1990.  Four other players have hit 10 three-pointers in a tournament game.

Alabama’s 51 3-point attempts are the most of any team in any NCAA game. The previous record was Saint Joseph’s, which had 43 attempts against Boston College in 1997.

‘Like it shows their work ethic, shows how good Alabama is as a program, and kind of went their way tonight,’ BYU guard Trevin Knell said. It would be awesome to hopefully play them again, but you can’t at the end of the season. Hope they have tremendous luck, and congrats on their game today.’

The 2025 Major League Baseball season begins in earnest Thursday, with 28 of 30 teams in action on the sport’s proper Opening Day.

The Los Angeles Dodgers enter the new season as favorites to repeat, further growing their superteam in the offseason. They’ll have stiff competition in the National League with the Braves, Padres, Mets and Phillies expected to contend as well. In the American League, the New York Yankees reloaded coming off their first World Series appearance in 15 years, but will be without ace Gerrit Cole this season.

Thursday’s slate begins at 3:05 p.m. ET with the Yankees hosting the Brewers and goes through the night with games in Seattle and Arizona scheduled for 10:10 p.m. Some key matchups to start the season include Red Sox-Rangers, Guardians-Royals, Mets-Astros, Braves-Padres and Cubs-Diamondbacks.

Keep it here all day Thursday for updates, scores and highlights from around baseball:

MLB scores today

New York Yankees 4, Milwaukee Brewers 2
Baltimore Orioles 12, Toronto Blue Jays 2
Boston Red Sox 5, Texas Rangers 2
Philadelphia Phillies 7, Washington Nationals 3 (10 innings)
Cleveland Guardians 7, Kansas City Royals 4 (10 innings)
Houston Astros 3, New York Mets 1
San Francisco Giants 6, Cincinnati Reds 4
San Diego Padres 7, Atlanta Braves 4
Chicago White Sox 8, Los Angeles Angels 1
Miami Marlins 5, Pittsburgh Pirates 4
St. Louis Cardinals 5,Minnesota Twins 3
Los Angeles Dodgers 5, Detroit Tigers 4
Chicago Cubs at Arizona Diamondbacks, 10:10 p.m.
Athletics at Seattle Mariners, 10:10 p.m.

Watch select MLB games this season with Fubo

Ichiro Suzuki, 51, throws out first pitch at 84 mph

Hall of Famer and Seattle Mariners legend Ichiro Suzuki delivered a laser of a ceremonial first pitch, caught by Dan Wilson. The 51-year-old dialed up an 84 mph first pitch to kick off Opening Day against the Athletics. Ichiro, who now serves as the Special Assistant to the Chairman with the Mariners, was dressed in full uniform and cleats to deliver the pitch.

Shohei Ohtani homers in Dodgers home opener

It’s Opening Day and Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani has homered in two countries this season − Japan and the United States. Ohtani’s home run off Tigers reliever Brenan Hanifee gave the Dodgers a 5-3 lead in the bottom of the seventh inning. It was the second home run of the season for Ohtani.

He homered in the second game of the Tokyo Series against the Cubs on March 19.

Tigers legend Kirk Gibson throws Opening Day first pitch wearing Dodgers jersey

Gibby, meet Freddie.

Detroit Tigers legend Kirk Gibson — wearing a Los Angeles Dodgers jersey — threw a surprise ceremonial first pitch to Dodgers superstar Freddie Freeman ahead of Thursday’s Opening Day game at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

Gibson and Freeman hugged after the first pitch.

Both players hit legendary walk-off home runs over the right-field wall at Dodger Stadium in Game 1 of the World Series for the Dodgers, separated by 36 years — Gibson in 1988 and Freeman in 2024. Both homers led to the Dodgers winning the World Series.

In 1988, Gibson — suffering from a leg injury — hit a walk-off two-run home run against Oakland Athletics pitcher Dennis Eckersley for a 5-4 win in the ninth inning. In 2024, Freeman — suffering from an ankle injury — hit a walk-off grand slam off New York Yankees pitcher Nestor Cortes for a 6-3 win in the 10th inning.

Fox Sports broadcaster Joe Davis referenced Gibson during his play-by-play call of Freeman’s home run.

‘She is gone!’ Davis said. ‘Gibby, meet Freddie!’

− Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press

Reds’ Hunter Greene defends Ian Gibaut after blown save

Cincinnati Reds Opening Day starting pitcher Hunter Greene told reporters after Thursday’s tough loss to the San Francisco Giants that he talked to relief pitcher Ian Gibaut about his blown save and told Gibaut he supports him and believes in him.

‘It impacts us a lot. … It’s a big sting. It hurts. But Ian’s a dog,’ Greene said after the game. ‘And that’s what I told him. I know people might not want to hear that, but people need to believe that. Because he is. The last couple years he’s been with us he’s been in very tight situations. And he’s made it look easy getting out of them. This game’s difficult. He wasn’t able to do that today. But he’s one of our best pitchers. … Fans might not want to hear it. But they need to believe it because it is true. … I want him to know that I support him and I look past what happened today. And I know the rest of the team feels that way about Ian as well.’

– Dave Clark, Cincinnati Enquirer

Astros beat Mets in Juan Soto’s NY debut

HOUSTON — The Mets did not completely get their money’s worth on Opening Day.

The team’s record signing, Juan Soto, stepped to the plate as the go-ahead run in the top of the ninth inning. He watched three balls before Astros closer Josh Hader worked a full count.

With runners on the corners, Soto waved at a slider, and the Mets dropped their Opening Day tilt with the Astros, 3-1, in front of a sold-out crowd of 42,305 at Daikin Park.

– Andrew Tredinnick, NorthJersey.com

Devin Williams nails down save for Yankees vs. Brewers

NEW YORK – Waiting in the wings, new Yankees’ closer Devin Williams was ready to unleash his famous “Airbender’ changeup against his old team.

Arriving to protect a three-run lead on a cool, clear Opening Day at Yankee Stadium, Williams wobbled Thursday afternoon before saving a 4-2 victory against the Milwaukee Brewers. A somewhat subdued crowd of 46,208 fans became agitated as Williams loaded the bases with none out, gave up a run on a sacrifice fly and faced runners at second and third.

But for the fifth time Thursday, Brewers’ leadoff hitter Jackson Chourio struck out and Williams struck out the dangerous Christian Yelich on a full-count Airbender to end it.

Making his second career Opening Day start, Carlos Rodon pitched into the sixth and yielded just a solo home run, and three relievers bridged it to Williams.

– Pete Caldera, NorthJersey.com

Tyler O’Neill homers for sixth straight Opening Day

Making his Orioles debut after signing a three-year, $49.5 million contract, O’Neill hit a three-run homer in the third inning off Toronto Blue Jays starter Jose Berrios.

– Jesse Yomtov

Vinny Capra home run: First of career for Brewers spring training star

Holy smokes, the star of spring just tanked one to left field at Yankee Stadium.

Vinny Capra just hit his first career home run, pulling the Brewers back to within 2-1, and this one wasn’t hit softly over the right-field wall. Capra only had 30 minor-league home runs in his career but hit six bombs in spring training, with 14 RBIs and an OPS over 1.000. It’s how Capra earned a spot on the roster and made him the surprise starter at third base on Opening Day.

Great line on the radio broadcast: ‘One of the few guys who could hit a home run today that has fewer home runs than Ueck.’

– JR Radcliffe, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Austin Wells home run leads off for Yankees

Leading off the bottom of the first, New York catcher Austin Wells homered to right field against Brewers starter Freddy Peralta, giving the Yankees an early 1-0 lead at Yankee Stadium.

Wells is the first catcher to bat leadoff in franchise history.

Yankees vs Brewers gets Opening Day underway

Yankees lefty Carlos Rodón struck out Brewers leadoff hitter Jackson Chourio in the Bronx, to officially begin MLB’s 2025 domestic Opening Day.

Rodón set Milwaukee down in order, needing just nine pitches to get through the first inning.

Reds’ Terry Francona went to dentist on Opening Day

Cincinnati Reds manager Terry Francona said on Wednesday that he’s made greater efforts later in his career to try to savor and enjoy Opening Day. That probably wasn’t as easy to achieve this year given his trip to the dentist on Thursday morning.

Francona started his first Opening Day in Cincinnati with a previously unplanned trip to a cosmetic dentist, he revealed during his pregame news conference Thursday at Great American Ball Park.

Asked at the outset of his 11:30 p.m. news conference with reporters what kind of morning he’d had so far, Francona said: ‘Not the best.’

‘Woke up about 2 a.m. One of my veneers, I think I chewed out,’ Francona said. ‘Woke up about 6 (a.m.) because I thought the trainer could probably get me in. So, then he called me about 8 a.m. and said, ‘you’re all set.’ I went out to wherever it was and got it fixed. Now I’m ready to go.’

– Pat Brennan, Cincinnati Enquirer

Tanner Bibee scratched for Guardians

Tanner Bibee turned himself into the Guardians’ No. 1 starter last year and recently signed a five-year, $48 million contract extension that could keep him in Cleveland through the 2030 season with a club option. There was a wave of positive momentum surrounding Bibee entering the 2025 season.

He was then tasked with taking the ball for the Guardians’ Opening Day game against the Kansas City Royals Thursday, but an illness has changed those plans, and he has been scratched from the start.

Instead, Ben Lively, coming off of a career year in 2024, will take the mound for the Guardians. 

– Ryan Lewis, Akron Beacon Journal

How to watch MLB Opening Day

ESPN will broadcast Brewers vs. Yankees at 3:05 p.m. ET. That will be followed by the defending World Series champion Dodgers welcoming the Tigers at 7:10 p.m. ET. MLB Network promises to have regional coverage of the Cubs-Diamondbacks and A’s-Mariners night games.

For those looking to stream the action, games available on ESPN and MLB Network are also available through MLB.tv or FuboTV.

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

The NBA and FIBA, basketball’s international governing body, announced Thursday they will explore the creation of a new professional league in Europe.

‘The response we’ve gotten from the marketplace is very positive, whether it’s from media partners, whether it’s from fan research that we’ve done, discussions directly with FIBA, advertising agencies, and other clubs in Europe, several of them who have also been enthusiastic about the potential opportunity to better serve basketball fans in Europe,” Silver said.

“Basketball is the No. 2 sport in Europe. It’s widely popular. Hundreds of millions of fans. Roughly 15% of the players in the NBA right now are from Europe. Five out of the last six of our MVPs have been European. But there’s a huge gap, I think, between the amount of interest in the sport and the development in terms of how we operate a league here in North America. … we feel now is the time to move to the next stage.”

Said Zagklis: “We have come to the conclusion that the popularity of the sport and the success that we’ve had with the national team competitions is not matched by fan interest and a commercial impact commensurate to that success.”

The two sides clearly envision room for financial growth that is unrealized. While Silver and Zagklis were not in position to share too many specific details, Silver said the initial idea is to have a 16-team league comprised of Europeans teams – some that already exist and some expansion teams.

“We want to better test the level of interest of existing clubs,” Silver said. “In some cases what comes with those existing clubs are huge global brands, in some cases those brands built through global soccer, not basketball, but we recognize there’s a tremendous depth of interest in people rooting for those clubs, so that becomes very relevant, as well.

“We also want to test the marketplace because I think there we’re in virtually every major European city you have basketball ecosystems, but then the question is there may be others who, given the opportunity to participate, may raise their hands and say I would be interested in potentially owning a club in that market. So, we want to look at that, as well.”

Four teams will advance to the Elite Eight after Thursday’s March Madness games, which includes matchups between BYU and Alabama, Maryland and Florida, Arizona and Duke and Arkansas and Texas Tech.

Alabama became the first team to advance to the Elite Eight on Thursday with an incredible 3-point performance from the Crimson Tide. Nate Oats’ squad won 113-88 with a men’s NCAA Tournament-record 25 made 3s on a record-51 attempts. Later, No. 1 seed Florida dispatched No. 4 seed Maryland 87-71 to send two SEC teams to the Elite Eight.

Coach John Calipari and the Razorbacks are the lone double-digit seed in the Sweet 16, although they’re not a typical Cinderella team, given their Hall of Fame coach plus a roster that features plenty of high-end talent.

Follow along here to see Elite Eight teams and matchups and games conclude in the 2025 men’s NCAA Tournament:

Who’s in men’s Elite Eight?

This section will be updated.

No. 2 Alabama (East)
No. 1 Florida (West)

Elite Eight schedule, how to watch

This section will be updated.

Dates: Saturday, March 29 and Sunday, March 30
TV: CBS | TBS/truTV
Streaming: March Madness Live | Sling TV | Fubo (free trial)

When is men’s Elite Eight?

The men’s Elite Eight will take place on Saturday, March 29 and Sunday, March 30. Each day will see two games apiece, setting the Final Four field.

Men’s March Madness bracket

All times Eastern.

East Region

First round

No. 1 Duke 93, No. 16 Mount St. Mary’s 49
No. 9 Baylor 75, No. 8 Mississippi State 72
No. 5 Oregon 81, No. 12 Liberty 52
No. 4 Arizona 93, No. 13 Akron 65
No. 6 BYU 80, No. 11 Virginia Commonwealth 71
No. 3 Wisconsin 85, No. 14 Montana 66
No. 7 Saint Mary’s 59, No. 10 Vanderbilt 56
No. 2 Alabama 90, No. 15 Robert Morris 81

Second round

No. 1 Duke 89, No. 9 Baylor 66
No. 4 Arizona 87, No. 5 Oregon 83
No. 6 BYU 91, No. 3 Wisconsin 89
No. 2 Alabama 80, No. 7 Saint Mary’s 66

Sweet 16

No. 2 Alabama 113, No. 6 BYU 88
No. 4 Arizona vs. No. 1 Duke | 9:39 p.m. | CBS (Fubo)

Elite Eight

No. 2 Alabama vs. TBD

Midwest Region

First round

No. 1 Houston 78, No. 16 SIU-Edwardsville 40
No. 8 Gonzaga 89, No. 9 Georgia 68
No. 12 McNeese State 69, No. 5 Clemson 67
No. 4 Purdue 75, No. 13 High Point 63
No. 6 Illinois 86, No. 11 Xavier 73
No. 3 Kentucky 76, No. 14 Troy 57
No. 7 UCLA 72, No. 10 Utah State 47
No. 2 Tennessee 77, No. 15 Wofford 62

Second round

No. 1 Houston 81, No. 8 Gonzaga 76
No. 4 Purdue 76, No. 12 McNeese 62
No. 3 Kentucky 84, No. 6 Illinois 75
No. 2 Tennessee 67, No. 7 UCLA 58

Sweet 16

No. 3 Kentucky vs. No. 2 Tennessee | TBS (Sling TV)
No. 4 Purdue vs. No. 1 Houston | TBS (Sling TV)

South Region

First round

No. 1 Auburn 83, No. 16 Alabama State 63
No. 9 Creighton 89, No. 8 Louisville 75
No. 5 Michigan 68, No. 12 UC San Diego 65
No. 4 Texas A&M 80, No. 13 Yale 71
No. 6 Ole Miss 71, No. 11 North Carolina 64
No. 3 Iowa State 82, No. 14 Lipscomb 55
No. 10 New Mexico 75, No. 7 Marquette 66
No. 2 Michigan State 87, No. 15 Bryant 62

Second round

No. 1 Auburn 82, No. 9 Creighton 70
No. 5 Michigan 91, No. 4 Texas A&M 79
No. 6 Ole Miss 91, No. 3 Iowa State 78
No. 2 Michigan State 71, No. 10 New Mexico 63

Sweet 16

No. 5 Michigan vs. No. 1 Auburn | CBS (Fubo)
No. 6 Ole Miss vs. No. 2 Michigan State | CBS (Fubo)

West Region

First round

No. 1 Florida 95, No. 16 Norfolk State 69
No. 8 UConn 67, No. 9 Oklahoma 59
No. 12 Colorado State 78, No. 5 Memphis 70
No. 4 Maryland 81, No. 13 Grand Canyon 49
No. 11 Drake 67, No. 6 Missouri 57
No. 3 Texas Tech 82, No. 14 UNC-Wilmington 72
No. 10 Arkansas 79, No. 7 Kansas 72
No. 2 St. John’s 83, No. 15 Omaha 53

Second round

No. 1 Florida 77, No. 8 UConn 75
No. 4 Maryland 72, No. 12 Colorado State 71
No. 3 Texas Tech 77, No. 11 Drake 64
No. 10 Arkansas 75, No. 2 St. John’s 66

Sweet 16

No. 1 Florida 87, No. 4 Maryland 71
No. 10 Arkansas vs. No. 3 Texas Tech | TBS (Sling TV)

Elite Eight

No. 1 Florida vs. TBD

Basketball Hall of Famer Lisa Leslie says don’t count out the USC Trojans just yet.

‘We can’t just write USC off because JuJu (Watkins) is not out there,’ Leslie said in an interview with USA TODAY Sports. ‘We have to give them their respect.’

The No. 1 seeded Trojans will be without superstar guard JuJu Watkins the rest of the women’s NCAA Tournament after she suffered a season-ending ACL injury early in USC’s 96-59 second-round win over Mississippi State. Leslie called Watkins’ injury ‘heartbreaking’ and said she ‘can only imagine what she feels’

‘Nobody wants to see that. We know that injuries are a part of the sport, but it’s heartbreaking,’ said Leslie, who like Watkins is a Los Angeles native who starred at USC. ‘It’s just tough to see her go down. It has nothing to do with basketball and the brackets anymore. JuJu is a phenomenon, and she has such an amazing impact on the women’s game. We just hope to see back out there soon.’

OPINION: Watkins injury a cruel March Madness twist that changes women’s basketball 

LESLIE: On hand to cheer on friend Dawn Staley, South Carolina in March Madness

Lisa Leslie: Kiki Iriafen is up next

USC will next face No. 5 seed Kansas State in the Sweet Sixteen on Saturday. The Trojans are now only slight favorites without Watkins, but Leslie said senior Kiki Iriafen is primed to lead the team, much like her 36-point, 8-rebound performance vs. Mississippi State on Monday.

‘Kiki (Iriafen) has been that one, two punch with JuJu (Watkins), but this is a moment where she has an opportunity to shine,’ Leslie said. ‘(USC) has three losses on the season. That’s not just one player doing that. (Watkins) has other teammates that can score and play defense, so we have to give them their respect.’

Leslie predicted that Iriafen will be a top prospect in the upcoming 2025 WNBA draft, which will be held on April 14, a little more than one week after the women’s NCAA Tournament concludes with the championship game on April 6. In For The Win’s latest mock draft, Irafen is predicted to be selected No. 3 overall by the Washington Mystics. (For The Win is part of the USA TODAY Network.)

Leslie continued: ‘What Kiki (Iriafen) was able to do and how she finished that (second-round) game is just a glimpse of what she’s going to be able to do, not just in this tournament, but in the next level. I look for her to have great success… She’ll definitely go top five.’

Lisa Leslie on Caitlin Clark: ‘I’m so grateful for her’

Leslie also chimed in on the discourse surrounding Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever’s 2025 broadcast schedule. The Fever are expected to have 41 of their 44 games featured on a national broadcast or live stream throughout the season, nine games more than the defending champion New York Liberty. The amount of exposure has drawn both criticism and praise, but Leslie said she doesn’t ‘know what the big deal is.’

‘It’s all about money, marketing, and we cannot deny what Caitlin Clark has done for the women’s game,’ said Leslie, a two-time WNBA champion (2001, 2002) and three-time league MVP (2001, 2004, 2006). ‘Why would we feel some type of way that she has more television games? … I don’t know what the big deal is of the fact that Caitlin is getting a lot of love. She deserves that and she’s helped change this game.’

Leslie said there’s no double that the ‘Caitlin Clark’ effect has brought unprecedented popularity to the WNBA, which will benefit the entire league and all of the players.

‘I think we have to understand that when one player eats, we’re all eating and we all get more opportunities. It just opens it up for everyone else,’ Leslie said. ‘I love that she’s not the player that makes it all about her. She’s given love and homage to the players that have come before her. She shares the wealth with her teammates and she doesn’t have to do that.’

Leslie added, ‘Listen, Caitlin I’m so grateful for her. I’m thankful for all these women and where this game is and we need to step back and see the big picture of how it’s impacting all of us.’

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South Carolina coach Dawn Staley attempted to contact JuJu Watkins after Watkins suffered a season-ending knee injury.
Watkins suffered the injury in the first quarter of USC’s second-round game against Mississippi State.
“JuJu is raising and lifting our game up with how she plays,’ Staley said.
Staley recruited Watkins, who was the top prospect in the class of 2023, when Watkins was in high school.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley tried to reach out to JuJu Watkins when the USC guard went down with a season-ending knee injury on Monday in the second round of March Madness.

“I sent her a text out the night of the injury, but it went green, so that means I don’t have the right number,” Staley said, laughing, at Thursday’s press conference before her team’s Sweet 16 matchup against Maryland.

Staley recruited Watkins, who was the top prospect in the class of 2023. Watkins had South Carolina on her short list.

“JuJu is loved by all of us,” Staley said. “JuJu is raising and lifting our game up with how she plays, with cornering the market when it comes to NIL deals. She’s a business herself, and to see that not be a part of our NCAA Tournament, something’s missing. 

“It’s a big void, and we were fortunate enough to be one of her schools in the end.” 

Staley said she got Watkins’ correct number, and she texted her Wednesday night.

Watkins averaged 23.9 points per game, 6.8 rebounds and 3.4 assists this season and has 1,709 career points through her two seasons at USC. She suffered her knee injury in the first quarter of USC’s second-round game against Mississippi State on Monday.

Ansley Gavlak is a student in the University of Georgia’s Sports Media Certificate program.

Although it still requires approval from the NBA Board of Governors, the recent $6.1 billion sale agreement of the Boston Celtics is paving the way for another potentially lucrative opportunity for the NBA: expansion.

The league, which currently has 30 franchises, continues to study models for expansion, NBA commissioner Adam Silver said Thursday during a news conference at the conclusion of meetings with league owners. Silver acknowledged that there were “no new developments” and no formal timeline to announce, but he did make clear that the league continues to be “very focused” on one particular city, and one that formerly was home to the SuperSonics.

“I would just say the fact that we’re not ready to make any public announcements with a specific timeline doesn’t mean we don’t care a lot about those fans and we aren’t focused on the potential for the NBA to return to Seattle,” Silver said Thursday.

It was 17 years ago that the former SuperSonics team relocated to Oklahoma City and rebranded itself as the Thunder. Originally founded in 1967, the SuperSonics played 40 seasons in Seattle before the relocation.

Yet, that is just one market the NBA is considering, with Silver saying the league was assessing fair value to new and existing owners, as media rights deals would need to be split with any new ownership groups in the league’s revenue sharing model.

Silver said the NBA has been looking at expansion models “over the last year or so” and pointed to the Celtics sale as a potential catalyst toward adding a 31st and 32nd franchise.

“There’s no doubt that a major transaction like that becomes relevant to expansion,” Silver said.

One of the complications to expansion is the uncertainty of regional sports networks that carry local broadcasts of games. Unlike the NFL, which airs most of  its games on national networks like CBS, FOX and NBC and major streaming partners like Amazon and Netflix, the NBA relies on regional sports networks to carry non-national broadcasts. With cord cutting and cable subscriptions on the decline, many of these networks have faced financial difficulties.

“I’d just add the last component, which also is giving me just a bit of pause, is that we’d like to have a better sense of where we’re going with local media,” Silver said. “It’s well known that we’ve seen some significant declines there. Virtually two-thirds of our teams are now dealing with RSNs that recently experienced bankruptcies or have shut down.

“I think while we understand the national media landscape now, to the extent we’re looking at expansion domestically, I think we’d really like to understand what that opportunity for local media is, because it’s a pretty critical component of our teams’ economics.”

NBA commissioner Adam Silver was in meetings with league owners Thursday in New York when he began receiving texts, asking if he is following the acrimonious back and forth between Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James and ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith.

“I saw some of the headlines that came out of it. I mean it is fascinating,” Silver said when asked by a reporter at a news conference.

Silver then explained he is sometimes jealous of the kind of coverage other sports and leagues get.

“It seems to be more celebratory often than it is in the NBA, and I accept it,” Silver said. “We’re often the beneficiary, too. There’s seemingly as much social media interest in this league at times in all the other leagues combined. So, it’s a two-edged sword. Sometimes, it’s measured in column inches, and it’s wonderful to see so much interest in our sport. At the other time, I cringe at a lot of the coverage.

“I would just say in terms of that back and forth again, I haven’t had an opportunity to watch or read precisely what went on today, but of course we’d like the focus to be on the play on the floor. And I particularly feel protective of our players of course. But I recognize that there’s a cottage industry out there of media that we are often the beneficiary of that talk about our sport around the clock. But I sure wish it would never become personal.”

The feud between Smith and James began earlier this season when Smith questioned whether James’ son Bronny deserved to be on an NBA roster to start the season and said in January, “I am pleading with LeBron James as a father: Stop this,’ ” Smith said on ‘First Take.’ “Stop this. We all know that Bronny James is in the NBA because of his dad.”

James and those close to James were not happy, and James confronted Smith at a Lakers game in Los Angeles on March 6.

The verbal spat saga continued this week with James taking digs at Smith on ESPN’s ‘The Pat McAfee Show’ on Wednesday, and Smith responding on ESPN’s First Take Thursday.