Flagg Makes History; MLB's Rookie Rising; Final Four Delivered; Fenway's Boo Birds

TRENDING FAN CONVERSATIONS FROM THE WEEKEND IN SPORTS

APRIL 3 - 5, 2026

TOP 3 WEEKEND MOMENTS

Jo Adell Robbed the Marines Not Once, Not Twice, But Three Times — Adell completed the first three-robbery game since Sports Info Solutions started tracking the stat in 2004. Torii Hunter, a nine-time Gold Glover with plenty of home run robberies under his belt, watched on in disbelief from the Angels dugout and said it plainly: "I've never seen three, and I've never seen a guy on the third one fall in the stands and come up with the catch. It was the greatest defensive game I've ever seen." The Angels won 1-0, and Adell got maybe the first-ever Gatorade bath for a defensive performance.

Auriemma Crashes Out and Walks Off Without Shaking Anyone's Hand — Geno was pissed. As the game wrapped in UConn’s loss to South Carolina, Auriemma marched across the court, got in Dawn Staley's face, had a heated exchange, and eventually walked straight to the tunnel without shaking a single hand.

TOP STORY

UConn vs. Michigan for the Title, and a Freshman Who Has Ice Running Through His Veins

Two games took place Saturday night in Indy. One was a battle. One was a massacre. With the massacre being between opponents that most viewed as the two strongest teams entering the Final Four.

Representing the East and South regions, UConn led Illinois by 14 with under ten minutes left, then watched the Illini claw all the way back to within four at 63-59 with 50 seconds remaining. That's when Braylon Mullins, the same freshman who buried a 35-footer to stun Duke in the Elite 8, buried another dagger three to effectively seal it for UConn. It was his only basket of the second half, with everything on the line, in his home state of Indiana.

In the process, Mullins and Illinois's Keaton Wagler became the first pair of freshmen to both score 15+ in a Final Four game since Michael Jordan and Patrick Ewing in 1982.

As for the second Final Four bout between Michigan and Arizona, well, it wasn't close from jump. Michigan dismantled Arizona 91-73 in a nightcap that was over before most of the country had settled in. Aday Mara dropped a career-high 26 on 11-of-16 shooting and Arizona had just two assists and nine turnovers at halftime while trailing 48-32.

The only real moment of anxiety for Michigan faithful was Yaxel Lendeborg going down with what was eventually ruled as an MCL sprain and ankle injury, but he managed to return in the second half to hit a pair of threes and finish with 11 points.

As a result of another outright dominant effort, Michigan becomes the first team to score 90+ five times in a single NCAA Tournament.

The 2026 National Championship is set, and the storyline is simple: UConn is chasing its third title in four years against a Michigan program that last won it in 1989.

MLB

Baseball's Future Is Here, and It Arrived on a Freight Train

The 2026 MLB rookie class was highly touted and has so far over-delivered on expectations. This class opened the season with 13 of the preseason's top 20 overall prospects on opening day rosters, tied for the most in 15 years, and another wave of top players likely to make their highly anticipated MLB debuts in 2026.

Chase DeLauter, Cleveland's 24-year-old outfielder, reached five home runs faster than any rookie in the last five seasons, doing so in just eight games. For context, the previous fastest was 31 games. He's leading the American League in home runs and RBIs while hitting bombs off All-Stars Logan Gilbert, George Kirby, and Andrés Muñoz (unfortunate read for Mariners fans).

DeLauter and the Reds' Sal Stewart won AL and NL Player of the Week, only the second time in MLB history a pair of rookies swept the opening week awards.

Then there's 19-year-old Konnor Griffin. Baseball's No. 1 overall prospect debuted for the Pirates after only a couple of days spent in AAA after Spring Training. In becoming the first teenage position player in the majors since Juan Soto in 2018, he doubled to left-center in his very first at-bat, drove in a run, scored, and helped the Pirates win their home opener 5-4. He then flashed the leather and range on a diving play up the middle, cutting down the runner at first.

And the supporting cast isn't done. Owen Caissie, the 23-year-old outfielder acquired from the Cubs, has been one of the best-kept secrets of Opening Week in Miami. The Canadian holds .348 average, nine RBIs, a walk-off homer on Opening Weekend, and a solo shot off at Yankee Stadium through his first 10 games. The Marlins start the season 6-3, sitting atop the NL East, and Caissie is a central reason why.

Meanwhile, Mets rookie Nolan McLean might be the most unhittable pitcher in baseball right now. He retired the first 15 Giants he faced in his second outing of the season, taking a perfect game into the sixth. His sweeper and two seamer specifically produce a 40 inch difference in horizontal movement, despite the same arm slot and release point. His pitching continues to make many wonder, "how the hell are you supposed to hit that?” Through 10 MLB starts he's 6-1 with a 2.16 ERA and 69 strikeouts, joining Fernando Valenzuela and Paul Skenes as the only pitchers in over a century to reach those marks that fast. Baseball Twitter has been losing its mind over him for a week.

But wait, there’s more. Cardinals’ shortstop JJ Wetherholt had a walk-off in his second career game. White Sox first baseman Munetaka Murakami homered in each of his first three games and already boasts four taters on the season. And Tigers’ Kevin McGonigle went four-for-four in his debut en route to an average over .300 after 10 games.

Save the receipts. This rookie class is going to go down as one of the greats.

"Sell the Team" Chants Roar In Fenway After The Red Sox 2-7 Start

Nine games into the 2026 season, the Boston Red Sox are tied for the worst start in franchise history. Naturally, Boston fans are not holding back making their feelings known, echoing chants that have haunted John Henry's ownership for years: sell the team.

The story of this Boston winter was supposed to be the rotation. Craig Breslow landed Ranger Suarez on a five-year, $130 million deal to slot behind Garrett Crochet, creating what analysts called one of the best 1-2 punches in the American League. Instead, Suarez couldn't get out of the fourth inning in his latest start.

The lineup has been arguably worse. The four offensive additions, Willson Contreras, Caleb Durbin, Andruw Monasterio, and Isiah Kiner-Falefa, have started with a combined 8-for-70 (.114) line with a .171 slugging percentage and 20 strikeouts. Durbin, acquired from Milwaukee to give the lineup stability and contact at third base, didn't record a hit in his first 18 at-bats.

The one bright spot? Wilyer Abreu, who nobody is talking about, hitting .429 with three home runs and seven RBIs. He's basically the entire offense. The rest of the lineup is hitting a combined .180.

Roman Anthony, the young star everyone expected to take a leap this season, called it plainly after the loss: "This is unacceptable. It's unacceptable to the fans. It's unacceptable to the standard we set for ourselves."

How long until the paper bags cutouts are seen throughout Fenway?

NBA

Cooper Flagg Becomes Youngest Ever With 50+ Point Game During Insane 48-Hour Stretch to Capture Last Minute RotY Votes

Leading into the Mavericks April 3rd game, ESPN released a poll of likely voters that tallied 80 out of 100 Rookie of the Year voters have Kon Knueppel first, 20 with Flagg.

Flagg must have caught wind.

First on Friday, with the Mavericks down big against the Magic, and Head Coach Jason Kidd and starting forward Naji Marshall both ejected for arguing a foul call on Flagg's behalf, something happened that the NBA hasn't seen in 56 years of teenagers playing in the league.

Flagg scored 24 points in the fourth quarter alone, finishing with 51 on 19-of-30 shooting, including 6-9 from three, to become the first teenager in NBA history to score 50 points in a game.

Then he came back Sunday and dropped 45 on the Lakers to snap Dallas's 14-game home losing streak, posting the first back-to-back 40-point games for a rookie since Allen Iverson in the 96-97 season. Doing so, Flagg now owns the three highest-scoring individual rookie games of the season.

If Flagg's current averages hold with 20.8 points, 6.6 rebounds, 4.5 assists, he’ll become the fourth rookie in NBA history to hit those numbers, joining Bird, Jordan, and the guy he was drafted to replace, Luka.

The ROY vote isn't closed. Knueppel has the lead and a legitimate case with 261 made threes, an all-time rookie record, and he's been central to Charlotte's playoff push. Both guys deserve the award, but 96 points in 48 hours is the most points by a rookie in a two game stretch since Wilt Chamberlain. That’s a hell of a statement finish.

NCAAW

The Women's College Basketball Scene Just Delivered One of Its Best Weekends Ever, With UCLA Cutting Down Nets In The End

South Carolina walked into the Final Four and did what nobody had managed to do in 54 games: beat UConn. A program making its fourth national championship game in five years under Dawn Staley, Latson led SC with 16 points and 11 rebounds going a perfect 10-for-10 at the free throw line, while freshman Agot Makeer came off the bench for 14. The Gamecocks’ defensive effort was the real story, holding AP Player of the Year Sarah Strong went 4-for-16 and Azzi Fudd shot 3-for-15, as the Huskies posted their worst shooting performance of the season at 31.1% in a 62-48 loss.

To put that number in context, the last time UConn scored that few points was their 49-point title game loss to South Carolina in 2022. Of course, there was the end-of-game drama when Auriemma marched across the court and unloaded on Staley, furious that she hadn't shown up for the ceremonial pregame handshake at center court. Auriemma, unfamiliar with losing, walked straight to the tunnel without shaking anyone's hand, including the players. He issued an apology the next morning, notably leaving Staley's name out of it.

In the other semi, UCLA survived a late Texas charge 51-44, with Lauren Betts controlling the paint with 16 points, 11 rebounds, and three blocks, including a clutch rejection on Madison Booker in the final minute that preserved a three-point lead and sent the Bruins to their first championship game in program history.

Then on Sunday, it wasn't close. UCLA steamrolled SC 79-51, with Betts and Londynn Jones, who went a perfect 5-for-5 from three, suffocating a South Carolina team that shot just 36% and turned the rock over 13 times.

The ladies snapped 48 years of championship-less Bruins teams of any kind. Lauren Betts was named Most Outstanding Player of the tournament and Gabriela Jaquez scored 21 points with 10 rebounds and five assists in the effort. Coach Cori Close, mentored for years by the late John Wooden, spent 15 seasons building UCLA up to this moment. What a finish!