Hello, Hollywood

The GIST: The regular season is winding down, which means the excitement is ramping up. Yesterday’s slate of men’s college basketball games did not disappoint, with bounce-back wins, upsets, and all-around performances from stars and role players alike. Let’s break it down:

No. 20 Michigan avenges January loss to No. 7 Purdue: Led by junior center Danny Wolf with 15 points and nine rebounds, Michigan secured a 75–73 statement win over Purdue, just two weeks after losing to the Boilermakers by 27 points. Three other Wolverines also finished in double-figures in a balanced effort. Hyped is an understatement.

No. 15 Kentucky upsets No. 5 Tennessee: For the second time this season, Kentucky got the better of higher-ranked Tennessee, this time defeating the Vols 75–64. Six different Wildcats were successful from behind the 3-point line, where the squad recorded a phenomenal 12 buckets in 24 attempts. On fire.

No. 3 Florida defeats No. 22 Mississippi State: The Gators rallied together after sophomore forward Alex Condon left the court with an ankle injury just 30 seconds into the game. Florida went on to a resounding 81–68 win behind 20 points from junior Denzel Aberdeen and 19 points from senior Walter Clayton Jr.

No. 1 Auburn bounces back from loss: After losing their first SEC game over the weekend, the Tigers came roaring back with an 80–68 victory over Vanderbilt. But the real test looms, as Auburn takes on intrastate rival No. 2 Alabama this weekend. This was just a warmup — time to lock in.

The GIST: The NCAA softball landscape has long been dominated by the same teams, with Oklahoma winning the last four titles and just 13 different squads claiming trophies since 1982.

• But if Week 1 is any indication, we just might be seeing an increase in parity. Here’s who’s knocking it out of the park with the first few games done and dusted.

Prepare for plenty of upsets this season: Underdogs ruled opening weekend, setting the tone for what’s to come. The unexpected results included then–No. 24 Mississippi State shutting out junior Jordy Bahl and then–No. 16 Nebraska, Arizona State topping then-No. 21 Cal, and Georgia Southern defeating then-22 Michigan. Look out.

NiJaree Canady bringing it for Texas Tech: The 2024 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year sent shockwaves through the NCAA when she transferred from Stanford to the unestablished Red Raiders. But Canady is already dominating, with 40 strikeouts in four games and a .364 batting average to boot. A star at the dish and in the circle.

Four-time defending champs Oklahoma survive scares: That aforementioned parity extended to the seemingly untouchable No. 3 Sooners, who were surprisingly taken to extra innings twice in their opening weekend action. This season is about to be wild.

The GIST: Did somebody say rivalry? One of the season’s most anticipated matchups goes down tomorrow at 10 p.m. ET as No. 1 UCLA takes on crosstown rival No. 6 USC on Peacock. This game has a little bit of everything, which adds up to a whole lot of excitement. You’re in for a treat.

One game, two Player of the Year (PoY) candidates: UCLA junior center Lauren Betts and USC sophomore guard JuJu Watkins are two of the leading contenders for the honor. Betts averages 19.6 points and 9.7 rebounds for the undefeated Bruins, while Watkins puts up 23.9 points and 4 assists per game for the Trojans. Holy moly.

Kiki vs. Kiki: In addition to both teams boasting a potential POY, both also have a superstar named Kiki. UCLA guard Kiki Rice was the No. 2–rated player in the 2022 recruiting class, behind Betts, and plays a key role for the Bruins, averaging 12.7 points per game.

• Meanwhile, Kiki Iriafen cut her teeth with Stanford last season before transferring to USC to bolster the Trojans’ NCAA title chances.

• Fun fact: UCLA’s Betts and USC’s Iriafen, who will be battling in the paint, both played for Stanford during the 2022-23 season. *Insert spiderman meme here*

New conference, same rivalry: This is the first time the Bruins and Trojans will square off as members of the Big Ten, after their schools set off the recent wave of conference realignment. But it’s certainly not their first big-time matchup: They last met in the 2024 Pac-12 tourney, when USC claimed an 80–70 overtime win. Drama, drama.

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