The Sportsletter - The Eve of March (The Next Chapter)

BY JEFF YODER

FEB. 28, 2025 |  SUBSCRIBE  |  WEB VIEW

Happy Friday 🙌

More amazing basketball highlights stole the show on Thursday night — Steph Curry had 56 and the state of Michigan got another buzzer-beater! Today also signals the eve of March. Conference tournaments and the NCAA Tourney are about to launch a month-long sports phenomenon, and we’ll still be here to track the brackets along the way.

Letter Rip!

  TEAM NEWS  

The Sportsletter's Next Chapter

If you’ve been following along these past few months, you know that today is our final “daily” edition of The Sportsletter for a short while. We’ll still hit your inbox 2-3x per week over the next month while we prepare for some exciting changes ahead. We hope to return to our daily publishing schedule by April 1.

We're excited to share our future plans and new features when the time is right. Thank you to all of our amazing readers! You kept us going. The next chapter starts soon...

  TOP STORIES   

The Starters (Top 5)

Photo: Alex Goodlett / Getty Images

🏀 Steph Curry scored a season-high 56 points with a dozen 3s (12-for-19) in the Warriors’ win over the Magic (121-115). Curry also hit a half-court shot before halftime. Golden State has won five in a row and they’re 7-2 since acquiring Jimmy Butler at the trade deadline.

🏀 Michigan’s Nimari Burnett hit a game-winner to beat Rutgers (84-82) for another crazy night of basketball in the state of Michigan. Burnett’s buzzer-beater 3 saved the 15th-ranked Wolverines just one night after #8 Michigan State hit a half-court game-winner.

🏈 Travis Kelce will return for his 13th season with the Kansas City Chiefs. The future Hall of Fame tight end made the announcement during the Pat McAfee Show at yesterday's NFL combine, as well as a social media teaser for the Kelce brothers’ New Heights podcast.

🏀 Women’s #3 Notre Dame lost again, this time at the hands of #24 Florida State (86-81). The Irish have lost two in a row after ascending all the way to No. 1 in the nation just two weeks ago. FSU’s Ta’niya Latson had a game-high 23 points.

🏈 Matthew Stafford and the Raiders are talking about a new contract if the Rams are able to complete a trade. Early offseason reports suggested Stafford and Raiders part-owner Tom Brady have been in lengthy discussions.

  NCAA   

The Eve of March

Photo: Andy Lyons / Getty Images

Madness is Near: Trends & Storylines to Watch in March 2025

The next six weeks is, without a doubt, my favorite stretch in the sports calendar. March begins tomorrow, and the bracket-busting chaos is soon to follow. If you’ve read the newsletter for the past five years, you know that I live to celebrate “The Underdog” stories, and March is where they shine the brightest. A Cinderella is inevitable, and one team always fits the slipper. There’s nothing quite like the NCAA Tournament elsewhere in sports.

So while the publishing frequency scales back for a short stint, know this: We’re still here for the Madness. The Sportsletter will hit your inbox at least 2-3x per week during the NCAA Tournament, even if it means some extra late nights for yours truly.

The Sportsletter's Bracket Tracker

Trends & Storylines to Watch in March 2025

The Red Redemption

We talked about it earlier this week, but a red/orange team hasn’t won the NCAA Tournament since 2013 (Louisville). That might change this go-round with 10 such teams expected to fill out the top lines (1-4 seeds). From St. John’s to Houston and Iowa State to Alabama, it’s time for red revenge against the blue bloods.

The SEC’s Record-Breaking Bids

The SEC will set the record for the most bids to the NCAA Tournament this season. The conference record belongs to the Big East with 11 teams in the 2011 bracket, but the SEC should have 12 or 13 of their 16 members in the field of 68. Three of those might occupy the 1-seed line (Auburn, Alabama and Florida). 

Can the Big Ten Break the Curse?

Right behind the SEC’s bid count will be the Big Ten with approximately 10 or 11 teams in the tourney. The conference boasts six or seven teams that should be seeded 2-7. That’s great, but can one break through and win it all? Despite being an illustrious basketball conference, no Big Ten team has won the NCAA Tournament since Michigan State in 2000.

Sleepers That Could Bust Brackets

We give these teams a lot of names. I like to think "Cinderellas" are the double-digit seeds who have no business being at the ball. Sleepers are more like power conference teams you might overlook. Five teams have my sleeper stamp of approval if they show up at the top of their game — UConn (Proj. 9-Seed), BYU (Proj. 8-Seed), Memphis (Proj. 7-Seed), Arizona (Proj. 5-Seed) and Clemson (Proj. 5-Seed).

Bracketology: The 2025 NCAA Tournament

(ESPN’s Joe Lunardi)

Enjoy March! We’ll check in sporadically along the way…

  HIGHLIGHTS   🎥

🏀 NBA

Shaedon Sharpe’s Dunk of the Year

Wednesday's Poster One of Best Dunks Ever

LeBron 1st Over 40 With 5 Straight 25+ Games

Lakers Win Again, Beat T-Wolves (111-102)

Giannis (28-19-7) Beats Jokic (32-14-10)

Bucks def. Nuggets (121-112), Battle of Former MVPs

🏒 NHL

Panthers Top Oilers (4-3) in Cup Rematch

Anton Lundell (1G, 2A), Oilers Lose 5th Straight

Pens & Malkin Complete Crazy Comeback

Penguins def. Flyers (5-4, OT), Malkin (2G, 2A)

Lightning Blank Flames (3-0) for 7th Straight

Vasilevskiy Notches 4th Shutout of the Season

⛳️ PGA Tour

Jake Knapp Cards Historic 59 at Cognizant

15th Sub-60 Round in PGA History

  STORYLINES  

🏈 Who Wants Aaron Rodgers?

Two weeks from today, the Jets will release quarterback Aaron Rodgers. He’ll become a free agent for the first time in his 20-year career. He’s 41 and wants a good team. So who will sign him? There’s a chance it’s no one. (NBC Sports)

🏀 NBA Mock Draft

The 2025 NBA mock draft board received major updates after some notable developments in men's college basketball over the past month. Cooper Flagg is still No. 1, but others are rising fast. (Bleacher Report)

⚾️ The Next MLB Free Agent Class

So much talent is poised to hit the open market at the end of 2025. It might make focusing on baseball difficult this season as many teams will be looking ahead. Vlad Guerrero Jr. is the gem of the class. (MLB.com)

  NEWS   📰 

🏈 Cowboys Asked Titans About NFL Draft’s No. 1 Pick Availability (B/R)

🏈 Abdul Carter, Possible No. 1 Pick in NFL Draft, Advised Against Foot Surgery (ESPN)

📺 ‘Hoosiers’ Star & Two-Time Oscar Winner Gene Hackman Found Dead at 95 (CBS Sports)

🏀 Gregg Popovich Tells Spurs Players He Won’t Return This Season Amid Stroke Recovery (SI)

⚾️ White Sox OF Andrew Benintendi Out 4-6 Weeks With Broken Hand After Hit-by-Pitch (AP)

🏈 Buccaneers to Reinstate Former Coach Jon Gruden to Team’s Ring of Honor (ESPN)

🏈 Arizona State RB Cam Skattebo Reportedly Sued by Former Teammates Over Golf-Cart Accident (Yahoo! Sports)

  SCHEDULE   🗓️

The Weekend Must-Watch List

🏀 NBA

Cavaliers at Celtics (Fri. 7:30pm, ESPN)

Clippers at Lakers (Fri. 10pm, ESPN)

Full NBA Schedule

🏒 NHL

Wild at Avalanche (Fri. 9pm, ESPN+)

Blues at Stars (Sun. 6pm, TNT)

Full NHL Schedule

⚽️ MLS Week 2 Schedule

⚾️ MLB Spring Training Schedule

🏈 NFL Scouting Combine Schedule

⛳️ Golf

PGA: Cognizant Classic (All Weekend)

LPGA: HSBC Championship (All Weekend)

🏁 Racing

INDYCAR: Firestone Grand Prix (Sun. Noon, FOX)

NASCAR: Circuit of the Americas (Sun. 3:30pm, FOX)

🏀 College Basketball’s Top Games

M: UCLA at #20 Purdue (Fri. 8pm, FOX)

M: #1 Auburn at #17 Kentucky (Sat. 1pm, ABC)

M: #6 Alabama at #5 Tennessee (Sat. 4pm, ESPN)

M: #12 Texas A&M at #3 Florida (Sat. 8pm, SECN)

M: #22 Arizona at #9 Iowa State (Sat. 9pm, ESPN)

M: #11 Wisconsin at #8 MSU (Sun. 1:30pm, CBS)

W: #4 USC at #2 UCLA (Sat. 9pm, FOX)

W: #25 Louisville at #3 Notre Dame (Sun. 12pm, ESPN)

W: #15 Kentucky at #6 S. Carolina (Sun. 2pm, ESPN)

*All Times ET

We’ll catch ya Monday, Wednesday and Friday of next week!

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Message From The Team: New updates are coming soon. You might only see us 2-3x per week in March until we release a new look and some new features. Stay tuned...

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