UConn women champs again; Alex Ovechkin passes Wayne Gretzky; Florida-Houston championship predictions

Huskies roll through Final Four to win their first title since 2016

By Zachary Pereles

Apr 7, 2025 at 8:45 am ET • 8 min read

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🏆 Good morning to all, but especially to ...

THE UCONN HUSKIES ...

UConn women's basketball is back on top, and in emphatic fashion at that. The No. 2-seeded Huskies thumped (1) South Carolina, 82-59, for their first title since 2016. It's UConn's 12th title, the most of any Division I basketball program, men's or women's, and this victory -- if not tourney run -- was as comprehensive as it gets.

The 23-point win is tied for the third-largest in title game history.
Add in UConn crushing (1) UCLA by 34 in the semifinals, and the Huskies' +57 combined winning margin in the semifinal and final is second all-time behind 2015-16 UConn (+60).
Sarah Strong (24 points, 17 rebounds) became the first UConn freshman to have a double-double in the championship game. Get to know UConn's next superstar.
Final Four Most Outstanding Player Azzi Fudd (24 points), Paige Bueckers (17 points) and Strong outscored South Carolina by themselves, 65-59.
Bueckers finished her magnificent career with 477 points in the NCAA Tournament, one more than Maya Moore for most in UConn history. It's also third by any player, behind Caitlin Clark and Chamique Holdsclaw.
The Huskies became the first team to take out three No. 1 seeds in the women's tournament.

Make no mistake: Not winning a title since 2016 was a definite slump for Geno Auriemma's program. But with Bueckers on a mission to finish her career with a title and plenty of supporting characters around her, this Huskies team was dominant. And while it wasn't Bueckers' biggest scoring effort, a national title cements her name in Huskies lore, Isabel Gonzalez writes.

Even with Bueckers off to the WNBA, Jack Maloney assesses whether this could be the dawn of another UConn dynasty. And Auriemma's incredible numbers just keep growing.

On the other side, here's what the Gamecocks can learn from the loss.

... AND ALSO A GOOD MORNING TO ALEX OVECHKIN

Alex Ovechkin stands alone. The Capitals superstar scored his 895th career goal Sunday, passing Wayne Gretzky for the NHL record.

Like so many of his goals, Ovechkin's record-breaker came on a power-play blast from the left side. After he scored, Ovechkin dove to the ice as teammates surrounded him, and eventually a mid-game ceremony including Gretzky ensued.
Stars from across the sports world also congratulated Ovechkin.
Ovechkin, 39, has been on a heater. Sunday's 4-1 loss to the Islanders marked his fifth straight game with a goal. That includes two goals Friday, when he tied Gretzky for the record, but declined a chance to potentially pass him in an empty-net situation.
That led to record prices for Sunday's game, and Ovechkin did not disappoint.
Here's everything Ovechkin said about the achievement.

Coincidentally, it was Ovechkin's 1,487th career game, which is exactly how many Gretzky played. The numbers are overwhelming, Austin Nivision writes.

Nivison: "325 power play goals -- One of the clearest signs of an all-time great competitor is that his or her opponents know what's coming and still can't stop it. That's been Ovechkin on the power play for his entire career. ... 136 game-winning goals -- This is another record for Ovechkin, which he just broke on his 894th career goal [Friday night]. Ovechkin now has sole possession of the most game-winning goals ever, passing Jaromir Jagr in the process."

Gretzky owns pretty much every major NHL skater record, so to see one fall is stunning. Eighty-hundred and ninety-four is a mind-boggling number. But is it untouchable? Austin laid out who -- if anyone -- could break Ovechkin's record. And here are some marks that are actually unbreakable ... we think.

😁 Honorable mentions

The highly anticipated House vs. NCAA settlement approval hearing is today. Here are the key points to know, and here's why it may not be final.
Here's the 2025 Basketball Hall of Fame class.
Jalen Brunson (ankle) returned in a Knicks win.
Steve Kerr called Nikola Jokic the best center he's ever seen.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander passed Michael Jordan with his 70th consecutive 20-point game.
The Pistons clinched a playoff spot as their historic turnaround continues.
Deshonne Redeaux committed to USC with the help of Snoop Dogg.
Nebraska won the College Basketball Crown, which comes with $300,000 for NIL.
What a goal from Lionel Messi.
Happy retirement, Terron Armstead!
Brian Harman won the Texas Open.
Denny Hamlin won the Goodyear 400.

🏀 And not such a good morning for ...

THE DUKE BLUE DEVILS

Up 14 with 8:03 left.
Up nine with 2:06 left.
Up seven with 1:15 left.
Up six with 0:34 left.

(1) Duke's collapse in a 70-67 loss to (1) Houston was as bad as it looks. (Maybe worse.) The anatomy of the blown lead features all the things you come to associate with March Madness choke jobs: turnovers, missed free throws, defensive breakdowns, mental miscues and an offense gone cold at the worst time.

But for it to happen to this Duke team, the one that had lost just once in 2025, the one that had answers to seemingly all challengers all season? Stunning.

The last 20 seconds encapsulate it:

Tyrese Proctor -- excellent early in the tournament but not so much Saturday -- missed the front end of a 1-and-1.
After a questionable foul on Cooper Flagg on the rebound, J'Wan Roberts nailed both free throws. He was built for moments like those, David Cobb writes.
Flagg missed a good midrange look, a devastating end to a marvelous season, Isaac Trotter notes and one that negatively impacts his all-time one-and-done status, Cameron Salerno writes.

Duke had struggled in close games early in the season. But those struggles seemed to be in the rearview as they dominated. In fact, they had more wins by 30+ (seven) than games decided by single digits (six) in 2025 entering the Final Four.

But those early-season issues reared their heads once again, and the Blue Devils go down as one of the best teams not to win a title, Matt Norlander writes.

Norlander: "The loss is so monstrous in its shock value, it takes a minute to emerge from the haze to recognize an uncomfortable truth: Duke lost for reasons that were always looming, dating all the way back to the preseason. ... Jon Scheyer has done a remarkable job in three seasons running this program. His 89 wins are tied with Brad Stevens and Brad Underwood for the most to start a D-I head coaching career. But this loss feels, in this moment, unshakeable."

In the NCAA Tournament, you'd better have guards, you'd better rebound and you'd better have toughness. Well, the box score says Houston's starting guards outscored Duke's 49-30, and the Cougars owned a 11-rebound edge. What the box score doesn't show is Houston's vast toughness advantage.

"This ain't no beauty contest," Kelvin Sampson said postgame. He's absolutely right. I loved Dennis Dodd's story on Houston's resoluteness.

Here's more:

What's next for Duke?
Everything Flagg and Scheyer said about the loss

Earlier in the night, we got another excellent one, with (1) Florida outlasting (1) Auburn, 79-73, behind -- who else -- Walter Clayton Jr. The electric Gator guard scored 34 points -- 20 in the second half -- in what Matt called an "instantly legendary performance." My goodness does he make some incredibly difficult shots ... and make them look easy.

On the other end, Florida limited Johni Broome, and while it was the big guys getting it done defensively, it started with a Clayton pep talk, Kyle Boone notes. What can't this guy do?!

Here's more:

😬 Not so honorable mentions

It was a historically tough night for Stephen Curry.
Gilgeous-Alexander didn't take a single free throw in Sunday's loss to the Lakers.
The latest Jamal Murray hamstring update isn't exactly encouraging.
A fan got ejected after getting into an altercation with Marcus Smart.
The Titans canceled their private workout with Shedeur Sanders, another sign they intend to take Cam Ward at No. 1 overall.
The Raiders cut Jack Jones.
Does Sanders have a problem with his release? NFL players disagreed.
Could this be it for the Alamodome?

🏀 Florida vs. Houston: National championship predictions

For the 11th time ever, it's two No. 1 seeds vying for the title. Tonight's Florida-Houston battle (8:50 p.m. ET on CBS, March Madness Live or Paramount+) should be an excellent one.

Both teams have stars. Both teams hit the offensive glass with reckless abandon. Both teams have taken under-the-radar guys and made them huge contributors. Florida has no top-100 players, but several future NBA players, and Isaac Trotter looked at how the Gators excel with player development.

So, who wins? Our expert picks and best bets are in.

Here's more:

⚾ MLB Power Rankings, weekend roundup

It's early, but there's a new No. 1 in Matt Snyder's Power Rankings, courtesy of them taking two out of three from the old No. 1. Here's the top five:

Phillies (previous: 2)
Dodgers (1)
Rangers (3)
Giants (22)
Padres (5)

Yes, that's an 18-spot jump for the 8-1 Giants! They have the best record in baseball and a couple of walk-off wins, both over the Mariners, whose 12-spot fall is the largest in the bigs.

Here's more from the weekend:

Rob Manfred says torpedo bats are "absolutely good for baseball."
The Rockies turned a triple play.
Blake Snell (shoulder inflammation) hit the IL.
Ketel Marte (hamstring) hit the IL.
The Pirates replaced a Roberto Clemente plaque at PNC Park with an ad. The team says it'll bring the plaque back.

📺 What we're watching Monday

🏀 Kings at Pistons, 7 p.m. on NBA TV
🏒 Lightning at Rangers, 7 p.m. on ESPN+
🏀 NCAA Tournament championship: (1) Florida vs. (1) Houston (M), 8:50 p.m. on CBS/Paramount+