March Madness lost one of its most transcendent heroes because of an injury. JuJu Watkins won’t play again in this tournament, and that just stinks.
USC, UConn remain on Elite Eight collision course, but if it happens, the game will be down a star.
JuJu Watkins changed women’s basketball at USC, and Trojans’ national championship chances dip without her.

In a testament to JuJu Watkins’ stardom, and a prodding of just how cruel it is that her NCAA Tournament is finished, the first commercial to air Monday night after she blew out her knee featured Watkins, the Southern California standout with the slick ballhandling, smooth jumper and sweet smile.

Now, anytime we see Watkins on a State Farm, Nike or Gatorade ad these next two weeks, we’ll be reminded that this March Madness lost one of its most transcendent heroes.

Watkins won’t play against Kansas State in the Sweet 16. She won’t play again in this year’s tournament, and that simply stinks.

It stinks for Watkins, an elite talent, a scoring dynamo with 1,709 career points, and a likable celebrity whose array of endorsements mean you’ll see her on commercials throughout a tournament in which she’ll no longer compete.

It stinks for USC, a No. 1 seed trying to win its first national championship in more than 40 years. The Trojans are more than one woman. They proved as much while routing Mississippi State in the second round after Watkins got carried off in the arms of training staff during the first quarter. Watkins, though, is USC’s engine. The Trojans won’t be the same without her.

It stinks for the women’s basketball fanatics who tuned in to see Watkins torch UCLA for 38 points in a February victory streamed on Peacock, or watched on the Big Ten Network as Watkins scored 40 in a weeknight December rout of a mid-major opponent. It stinks for the women’s basketball casuals who would’ve gotten to know Watkins better during this tournament, while she played marquee games on ESPN and ABC.

It stinks for other top competitors, stripped of the opportunity to do battle with Watkins.

Watkins’ injury increases the national championship chances of teams like South Carolina, UConn, UCLA, Texas, Notre Dame and LSU, but LSU star Flau’jae Johnson spoke for many with her social media post Monday night.

‘I pray juju okay,” Johnson wrote on X. ‘Hate to see it.”

No true competitor wanted to see this.

‘Seeing her go down was really tough,’ Mississippi State senior Jerkaila Jordan said.

JuJu Watkins injury denies rematch with UConn’s Paige Bueckers

USC remains on course to clash with UConn in the Elite Eight. That billing would have put Watkins and Paige Bueckers on the court together again. The Huskies beat the Trojans last season in the Elite Eight. Watkins and Bueckers combined for 57 points in that game.

UConn trounced South Dakota State on Monday behind Bueckers’ 34 points, and, afterward, Huskies coach Geno Auriemma jokingly encouraged ESPN to cut short his interview so he could watch Watkins.

“Let’s get to her! I want to watch her play,” Auriemma told the ESPN crew.

Didn’t we all want to watch Watkins play Bueckers once more in March Madness, before Bueckers heads to the WNBA.

Knee injuries are all too common in women’s basketball. A knee injury interrupted Bueckers’ sophomore season, and she tore the ACL in that same knee the following summer, an injury that sidelined her for a year.

Watkins’ injury did not occur because of a dirty play or even a particularly hard foul. Her right knee simply betrayed her, as knees are prone to doing. And when Watkins’ hinge buckled during a drive to the hoop, and she writhed on the floor in agony, we all knew what that meant.

USC later issued confirmation that Watkins suffered a season-ending knee injury, requiring surgery.

Kiki Iriafen rallies USC in March Madness victory

The mood darkened in the Galen Center after Watkins went down. She’s a hometown hero who, along with coach Lindsay Gottlieb, made USC women’s basketball games a place to be.

The season before Watkins’ arrival, USC averaged 1,037 fans for home games, according to the school’s data. That attendance average swelled to 6,097 this season in a city with no lack for entertainment options.

Monday’s crowd of 7,808 turned hostile after Watkins’ injury, repeatedly booing Mississippi State in an outcry of the pain and disgust Trojans fans felt.

Those USC fans also cheered on Watkins’ teammates who stepped up.

‘We just want to keep dancing, so whatever it takes is what I wanted to do, what my teammates wanted to do,’ Kiki Iriafen, another SoCal native and a star in her own right, told ESPN. ‘I think it just shows our toughness. I loved how we played.”

Iriafen, a Stanford transfer, went off for a season-high 36 points, and the crowd chanted, “Kiki! Kiki!” Freshman Avery Howell contributed 18 points off the bench.

‘This team rallied,” Gottlieb said. ‘They rallied for her. They rallied for each other.”

Enough talent dots this roster that you better not scratch out USC from your bracket just yet, but Watkins’ injury changes everything. It alters this tournament, it robs us of seeing more March Madness moments from a bright star, it dilutes the potential USC-UConn rematch, and, quite frankly, it just stinks.

Blake Toppmeyer is a columnist for the USA TODAY Network. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on X @btoppmeyer. Subscribe to read all of his columns.

Aaliyah Chavez, the No. 1-ranked women’s college basketball recruit in the nation, has announced her college decision.

Chavez, the National Gatorade Player of the Year in 2025, announced her commitment to Oklahoma live via ESPN’s ‘SportsCenter’ on Tuesday afternoon. She chose the Sooners over Texas, Texas Tech, LSU, South Carolina and UCLA.

Chavez, a 5-foot-9 point guard, is rated the No. 1 player nationally, according to ESPN’s rankings. Her Gatorade Player of the Year honor also puts her in elite company, which includes Juju Watkins, Paige Bueckers, Breanna Stewart and Maya Moore, among many others. UConn’s Azzi Fudd, South Carolina’s Joyce Edwards and UCLA’s Kiki Rice, who are all still playing in the women’s NCAA Tournament, also won the award.

Chavez, who attends Monterey High School in Lubbock, Texas, averaged 34.9 points, 9.1 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game this season while leading her team to a Class 5A state championship. She was also selected as a McDonald’s All-American and scored 50 or more points nine times in her high school career.

The Sooners are a team on the rise, especially after Chavez’s commitment. Oklahoma made the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2013 this season and are set to return star forward Raegan Beers, the No. 1-ranked transfer last offseason.

Chavez made some noise with her March commitment, but this time next year she looks to be making some noise in March Madness.

Much to the relief of the Golden State Warriors, it appears as though Stephen Curry avoided a serious injury.

The All-Star guard, who left Thursday night’s victory over the Toronto Raptors in the third quarter after suffering a hard fall, is making his way back to the court. The Warriors announced Friday that Curry underwent an MRI that revealed a pelvic contusion with no structural damage. It was good news.

Curry didn’t travel with the team for a game Saturday night in Atlanta against the Hawks, an eventual 124-115 loss. Curry, however, rejoined his teammates in Miami ahead of Tuesday night’s game against the Heat in an attempt to return. The Warriors eventually held him out against the Heat, but coach Steve Kerr provided an update on Curry’s availability.

Here’s the latest on Curry’s injury and his status for the Warriors:

Stephen Curry injury update

The Warriors practiced Monday in Miami and Curry participated in the session. Curry also went through an individual workout after practice to further test the injury. Curry was listed officially as questionable for Tuesday night’s game against the Heat, but the Warriors eventually ruled him out hours before tipoff, the second game he missed with the pelvic contusion.

‘He wasn’t quite there, and we just can’t risk it,’ Kerr said Tuesday prior to the game against the Heat. ‘He worked out yesterday and he looked good, but at the very end of the workout, just one movement that he made just didn’t quite feel right.’

Kerr had said after Monday’s practice that Curry looked ‘good’ and that ‘he was moving great; no surprise, he knocked down a lot of shots,’ though the team’s session did not include a scrimmage.

Tuesday marked the first time former Heat forward and current Warrior Jimmy Butler made his return to Miami, and Kerr said that Curry was pushing himself to be available.

Despite Curry missing Tuesday, however, the Warriors may soon be getting good news.

Golden State Warriors schedule: When could Stephen Curry play next?

Golden State played the second game of a six-game road trip Tuesday night against the Miami Heat. And while Curry sat out that game, the Warriors are expecting him back soon — as soon as the team’s next game, Friday against the Pelicans.

‘Knowing the schedule, knowing we’ve got the next two days off, I think it will be a full week when he returns — we expect him to return in New Orleans,’ Kerr said Tuesday. ‘We’ll see, it’s day-by-day, but we’re kind of expecting that he’ll be able to play then. That will be a full week off and that can kind of take care of the energy and recharge his battery. I think this is a good plan.’

NASCAR driver Kyle Busch will be racing against his son, Brexton, in a sprint car race called ‘Battle of the Busch’s’.
The race will take place at Millbridge Speedway in Salisbury, North Carolina on Wednesday.

Two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Busch and his 9-year-old son, Brexton, will be racing against one another.

Busch announced Monday that he and his son will be competing in the ‘Battle of the Buschs,’ a head-to-head sprint car race on Wednesday at Millbridge Speedway in Salisbury, North Carolina.

The race will be shown on DirtVision, a streaming platform.

Busch, who has won more than 230 races across NASCAR’s top three national series, has been a mainstay of the sport for two decades. He appeared in his first NASCAR Truck Series race in 2001, his first NASCAR Xfinity race in 2003 and his first Cup Series race in 2004.

He and his wife, Samantha, welcomed Brexton on May 18, 2015, the same year Busch won his first Cup Series championship.

Following Busch’s annoucement about the race, Brexton playfully taunted his father on social media Tuesday, writing, ‘Can’t wait to kick my dad’s butt.’

The elder Busch responded less than an hour later, telling his son, ‘You don’t want the smoke pal. Hope you’re ready to rip the fence.’

Here’s more to know about NASCAR Cup Series driver Kyle Busch.

Kyle Busch age

Kyle Busch is 39 years old. His birthday is May 2, 1985.

Kyle Busch height

Kyle Busch is 6-foot-1.

Kyle Busch hometown

Kyle Busch is from Las Vegas, Nevada. He currently lives in Lake Norman, North Carolina.

Kyle Busch stats

Kyle Busch has 63 NASCAR Cup Series wins, which is most among active drivers. Busch has totaled 252 top-five and 385 top-10 finishes in his Cup career.

Busch has 232 victories across all three NASCAR national series, including 102 in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and 67 in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

Who has Kyle Busch driven for

Kyle Busch has driven for Hendrick Motorsports (2005-07), Joe Gibbs Racing (2008-22) and Richard Childress Racing (2023-present) in the NASCAR Cup Series. He owned his own NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series team, Kyle Busch Motorsports, before selling it to Spire Motorsports at the end of the 2023 season.

What does 18:51 mean for Kyle Busch?

The time 18:51 is military time for 6:51 p.m. and the numbers signify two numbers Kyle Busch has famously driven. That is also the time the announcement came (EST). He drove the No. 18 car for Joe Gibbs Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series from 2008-2022 and he owned the No. 51 in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, which he ran for his own team, Kyle Busch Motorsports, which he sold to Spire Motorsports at the end of the 2023 season.

Kyle Busch RCR contract

Kyle Busch is in the last year of his contract with Richard Childress Racing, which began in 2023 after his 14 seasons at Joe Gibbs Racing. Busch signed a two-year contract with RCR with a team option for the 2025 season, which the team took to bring him back this year.

How much does Kyle Busch make

Kyle Busch made $16.9 million in 2024, according to Front Office Sports, which approximates to $444,736 per race for running 38 events (36 regular season races and two exhibition events with The Clash and the All-Star Race).

How long has Kyle Busch been racing?

Busch has been racing in the NASCAR Cup Series since 2004 and full-time since 2005. He started racing full-time with Hendrick Motorsports (2005-2007). Busch has driven for Joe Gibbs Racing (2008-22) and Richard Childress Racing (2023-present).

Kyle Busch last win

Kyle Busch’s last NASCAR Cup Series win was June 4, 2023, at Gateway. Busch won three races in 2023. Busch’s winless streak is 62 races.

Kyle Busch championships

Kyle Busch has won the NASCAR Cup Series championship twice, 2015 and 2019. He also won the 2009 NASCAR Xfinity Series championship.

What car does Kyle Busch drive

Kyle Busch drives the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. In the NASCAR- Cup Series, Chevrolet runs a Camaro ZL1.

Kyle Busch crew chief

Randall Burnett is Kyle Busch’s crew chief.

Kyle Busch sponsors

Kyle Busch is sponsored by BetMGM, BankOZK, Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen, LucasOil, Rebel Bourbon, Senix, Zone Nicotine Pouches, Shady Rays and Morgan and Morgan. Busch used to drive the M&M’s car for Joe Gibbs Racing.

Kyle Busch son, Brexton Busch

Kyle Busch’s son, Brexton Busch, 9, is a rising star in dirt racing. He runs in sprint cars at various races around the country and has won the Chili Bowl and the Golden Driller at the Tulsa Shootout.

Brexton Busch’s sprint car has the No. 18, which Kyle Busch ran at Joe Gibbs Racing.

Follow sports writer Austin Chastain on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @ChastainAJ or reach him via email at achastain@gannett.com.

Former Seattle Seahawks, Denver Broncos and Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson is the latest free agent quarterback domino to fall in the 2025 NFL off-season.

The Giants were one of multiple quarterback-needy teams this off-season. They now have Wilson and fellow free agent signees Tommy DeVito and Jameis Winston in-house.

New York was a popular landing spot for Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders, one of the top passers in the 2025 NFL draft. Wilson’s signing changes New York’s outlook at the No. 3 overall pick.

Sanders may still end up in New York or potentially elsewhere. Here are our top landing spots for the Colorado quarterback:

Cleveland Browns

Wilson signing in New York narrows Cleveland’s options at quarterback for 2025. They may have to settle for Kenny Pickett as the starter.

The Browns hold the No. 2 pick and that’s the clearest path to getting Sanders. Miami quarterback Cam Ward is likely to go No. 1 overall to the Tennessee Titans, leaving the Browns to take the next-best quarterback in the class.

Cleveland may not be fully committed to this, though. The team reportedly met with Louisville quarterback Tyler Shough, a well-regarded mid-round prospect who may fall in the draft due to being an older player. The Browns may opt for the best non-quarterback at No. 2 and address the position later in the draft.

New Orleans Saints

New Saints coach Kellen Moore inherits a roster with Derek Carr at quarterback, a player who was in-house from a prior regime. Moore could see where Carr is as well as Spencer Rattler’s development and opt instead to draft a high-floor player like Sanders at No. 9 overall.

With Carr and Rattler already in the building, there would be less pressure for Sanders to start right away. He may be more of a long-term answer for the franchise as it changes under Moore and his staff. Or the Saints could instead live with Carr or Rattler in 2025 and look to address the position in 2026.

Pittsburgh Steelers

The Steelers made the playoffs last year behind one of the best defenses in the league. Most of the key starters return in 2025 and Steelers fans may be thinking the team is just a quarterback away from truly contending.

Sanders would be an immediate impact starter as a high-floor prospect and provide the offense with baseline competence thanks to his accuracy, timing and poise. His skill set wouldn’t maximize new wide receiver D.K. Metcalf or George Pickens, but with Wilson and others off the market, they may not be able to be picky. Sanders at the No. 21 overall pick in the 2025 draft also seems like an appropriate spot.

New York Jets

Yes, the Jets signed Justin Fields in free agency but we learned in the 2024 NFL draft that a free agent signing doesn’t preclude a team from drafting a quarterback in the top 10. New York has multiple needs on both sides of the ball but a long-term answer at quarterback is one of the biggest.

New Jets head coach Aaron Glenn comes from Detroit, where the Lions took Jared Goff and built an offense that made him one of the most efficient quarterbacks in the league. Sanders’ NFL-ready skill set could ensure that if Fields does not work out, the Jets have another option who should be at least a league-average starter.

Miami Dolphins

Now, this is a wild card, but hear me out. Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has suffered multiple concussions in recent years, and when that happens, Miami’s offense stumbles without him.

Sanders’ timing and accuracy could offer Miami an ideal backup or even succession plan to safeguard the franchise from another Tagovailoa injury. Miami has 10 picks in the 2025 draft and spending the No. 13 selection on Sanders could make sense for the team long-term.

Russell Wilson is set to join the New York Giants after agreeing to terms on a one-year deal, according to multiple reports.

Wilson’s contract with the Giants will be worth up to $21 million, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Wilson will make $10.5 million in guaranteed money.

Wilson spent the 2024 season with the Pittsburgh Steelers after signing a veteran minimum deal with them in free agency. He missed the first six games of the season (while dealing with a calf injury) before replacing Justin Fields as the team’s starter in Week 7.

Wilson got off to a fast start with the Steelers, leading them to a 6-1 record in his first seven starts. However, he lost five consecutive starts to close the season, including a 28-14 loss to the Baltimore Ravens in the wild-card round of the playoffs.

Wilson completed 63.7% of his passes for 2,482 yards, 16 touchdowns and five interceptions during the 2024 regular season. His 95.6 passer rating ranked 14th-best in the NFL among qualified passers and he graded as Pro Football Focus’ 15th-best quarterback for the 2024 season among 42 qualifiers.

Wilson has made the Pro Bowl 10 times during his NFL career and won Super Bowl 48 with the Seattle Seahawks. He led the Seahawks to back-to-back Super Bowl appearances in his second and third seasons after being a third-round pick in the 2012 NFL draft.

The Seahawks traded Wilson to the Denver Broncos ahead of the 2022 NFL season in a blockbuster deal. Wilson struggled during his time with the Broncos, though, posting an 11-19 record and being unceremoniously released just one year into a five-year, $242.5 million extension he signed after being traded to Denver.

Wilson hasn’t won a postseason game since the 2019 season. He looks to end his drought with the Giants this season.

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Caitlin Clark’s rookie season in the WNBA could be considered successful after leaving the Indiana Fever to finish with a 20-20 record and reaching the first round of the playoffs. Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier had thoughts on how that success is being met with national media coverage.

The Fever are expected to have 41 of its 44 games featured on a national broadcast or stream throughout the 2025 season.

The New York Liberty finished with the best record (32-8) in the Eastern Conference and beat the Minnesota Lynx in a five-game series to win the franchise’s first WNBA title. New York will have 32 games shown on television.

Napheesa Collier reacts to Fever’s national TV schedule

Collier was on ESPN’s ‘First Take’ on Tuesday morning and was asked about the Fever having more nationally televised games.

“People want to watch Caitlin play,” Collier said. “You have to put the people on TV that people want to see but at the same time, there are stars all over the league and you want good basketball as well.”

Collier, who plays for the Lynx, agrees that the Fever are deserving of the recognition because of Clark and the Fever’s roster potential for the upcoming season.

The team added veteran players with championship experience, such as Natasha Howard, DeWanna Bonner and Sydney Colson for the upcoming season.

“They will be a good team, but to not have the defending champions on TV more, I think, is crazy,” Collier said. “You don’t have to take games away from Indiana, but you can raise the level of TV games for other teams as well.”

The Lynx are scheduled to have 21 nationally televised games.

When do the Indiana Fever play?

The Fever will open the 2025 season at home against Angel Reese and the Chicago Sky on Saturday, May 17 at 3 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast on ABC, ESPN+ and Disney+.

The emotions of March Madness were on full display on Sunday at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina following UConn basketball’s loss to No. 1 seed Florida.

In the seconds following the defending back-to-back national champions’ loss, Huskies coach Dan Hurley shouted out to Baylor coaches and players in the tunnel that he hoped the officials ‘don’t [expletive]’ them with fouls like they ‘[expletive]’ UConn.

But that wasn’t the only heated moment in the tunnel. UConn director of communications, Bobby Mullen, confronted a local reporter, Charlotte Sports Live’s Joey Ellis, asking him to take down the viral video of Hurley expressing his displeasure of the officiating in the game and if he didn’t, he would ‘ruin his life.’

The incident took place in the tunnel of the arena seconds after the loss, with Hurley — one of college basketball’s more emotional coaches — walking off heated.

Mullen, who was hired at UConn in 2023 after serving as the Big East Conference’s senior director of digital and social media for four years, provided a statement Sunday to Charlotte Sports Live on the incident.

‘The lasting image of Coach Hurley leaving the court should’ve been his walking off the court arm-in-arm with his seniors, overwhelmed with emotion,’ Mullen’s statement to Charlotte Sports Live read. ‘Instead, a reporter, who was in an area he should not have been, recorded on his cell phone a private comment made to members of another coaching staff.’

According to The New York Post, Mullen also went to X (formerly Twitter) after the game to what appeared to be explaining his side of the situation. That post was shortly deleted by Mullen, per The Post and several other outlets.

‘PR man yells at reporter. News at 11,’ Mullen wrote in a post on X that is now deleted. ‘I have a journalism degree and I know the difference between reporting and seeking out ‘gotcha’ moments. My temper flared a bit in a moment of weakness after a loss, but I think the journalists I work with regularly would vouch for me.’

On Tuesday, Ellis went to X to provide an update on the matter, saying that Mullen and he spoke on Tuesday, where Mullen apologized and that the matter is closed.

‘Just a quick (and hopefully final) update: Bobby Mullen and I spoke a short time ago, during which he apologized for his behavior. I accepted it … and life rolls on,’ Ellis wrote on X on Tuesday.

UConn’s loss to Florida on Sunday ended the Huskies’ hopes of becoming the first program since UCLA to win three consecutive national championship titles. Florida will play in the Sweet 16 of the West Region on Thursday, March 27 at 7:39 p.m. ET against No. 4 Maryland.

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