THURSDAY SPORTS, MARCH 19, 2026
DAKOTA WESLEYAN
— Dakota Wesleyan softball split a doubleheader at Northwestern on Wednesday with the Tigers winning game one 8-3, before losing game two 8-0. The Tigers will host Hastings on Saturday for a doubleheader at 2 pm at McWhirter Field.
— Dakota Wesleyan women’s basketball will face Lindsey Wilson in the NAIA national tournament Round of 16 in Sioux City on Friday at 1 pm.
— Dakota Wesleyan baseball, 10-8 on the season, will be at Hastings on Friday at Noon for a doubleheader.
SOUTH DAKOTA STATE
— South Dakota State earned a No. 11 seed in the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament and will face No. 6 Washington in the first round Friday in Fort Worth, Texas. Tipoff is set for 1:30 p.m. The winner will advance to play either No. 3 TCU or No. 14 UC San Diego in the second round. This marks SDSU’s 14th NCAA Tournament appearance in 18 seasons, after the Jackrabbits secured an automatic bid by winning their fourth straight Summit League tournament.
— South Dakota State baseball lost at Oklahoma State 12-11 on Thursday. Oklahoma State scored 10 runs in the fifth inning to take a 10-5 lead. SDSU tied the game at 11-11 with a five run ninth inning, before Oklahoma State would win it with a run in the bottom of the ninth. The Jacks host North Dakota State for a three game home series starting on Friday at 3 pm.
— South Dakota State softball, 15-19 on the season, begins Summit League play on Friday with the start of a three-game series at USD starting at 3 pm.
— South Dakota State wrestling heads to Cleveland, Ohio this week for the 2026 NCAA Wrestling Championships. Six wrestlers are competing: Brady Roark, Julian Tagg, Cael Swensen, Moses Espinoza-Owens, Bennett Berge, and Luke Rasmussen. Top seeds for SDSU include No. 13 Bennett Berge at 197 pounds, No. 14 Moses Espinoza-Owens at 174, and No. 16 Cael Swensen at 157. Action begins Thursday with preliminaries at noon, with quarterfinals on Friday and championship finals Saturday at 6:30 p.m.
SOUTH DAKOTA
— USD women’s basketball will take on the winner of Air Force and Northern Colorado in the second round of the WNIT. The game time and date is yet to be announced, between Sunday and Tuesday.
— USD softball lost at Kansas on Wednesday 4-3. The Coyotes tied the game at 3-3 with a run in the top of the seventh inning, before Kansas would win it with a run in the bottom of the seventh. USD hosts South Dakota State for a three game series this weekend starting on Friday at 3 pm.
NAIA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL NATIONAL TOURNAMENT
No. 3 Dakota State vs. No. 10 Indiana Wesleyan – 3 pm on Thursday
No. 1 Dordt vs. No. 4 MidAmerica Nazarene – 6 pm on Thursday
No. 2 St. Francis (Ind.) vs. No. 11 Hastings – 8 pm on Thursday
No. 1 Bethel (Tenn.) vs. No. 4 Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) – 11 am on Friday
No. 2 Dakota Wesleyan vs. No. 3 Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) – 1 pm on Friday
Dakota Wesleyan would advance to the quarterfinals on Saturday at 6 pm with a win.
NCAA TOURNAMENT – FIRST FOUR
No. 16 Prairie View A&M 67, No. 16 Lehigh 55 – Winner plays No. 1 Florida
No. 11 Miami (Ohio) 89, No. 11 SMU 79 – Winner plays No. 6 Tennessee
WNBA
— The WNBA and its players’ union have reached an agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement, just weeks before the league’s 30th season tips off on May 8. The deal will transform player salaries, with the average pay rising to around $600,000 and the minimum surpassing $300,000, creating the league’s first million-dollar players and tying compensation to nearly 20% of league revenue. The WNBA now faces a fast-paced offseason, including a two-team expansion draft for Toronto and Portland, free agency for more than 80% of players, the college draft on April 13, and training camps opening April 19.
MLB
— MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred says the league may consider moving the World Baseball Classic to midseason in the future to allow more star players to participate. This year’s tournament drew over 1.6 million fans, a 24% increase from 2023, with the U.S. semifinal against the Dominican Republic attracting 7.3 million viewers. A midseason WBC could reduce restrictions on players, making participation easier, while MLB also negotiates over big-league involvement in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
NFL
— The Cleveland Browns are proposing a rule change that would allow NFL teams to trade draft picks five years into the future instead of three. The league announced Wednesday that only two teams submitted proposals that will be considered by owners at the league meetings later this month, with the other coming from the Pittsburgh Steelers about contacting players during the free agent negotiating period. No team had submitted a proposal to ban the tush push after Green Bay’s proposed rule change was narrowly defeated last year. Any changes need to be approved by at least 24 of the 32 teams.
— The NFL is laying groundwork for hiring replacement officials this season if the league is unable to agree on a new collective bargaining agreement with the NFL Referees Association. The approach is similar to what the NFL carried out during a 2012 lockout of officials, which extended 110 days and ended after the third week of the regular season. The current CBA is due to expire at the end of May. The league is looking for a list of about 150 mostly small college officials by the end of this weekend.
— The Philadelphia Eagles have acquired veteran quarterback Andy Dalton from the Carolia Panthers in exchange for a 2027 seventh-round pick. The 38-year-old Dalton went 1-6 in seven starts during three seasons with Carolina The 15-year veteran has thrown for just under 40,000 yards in his career with 254 touchdowns.
NCAA MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT – THURSDAY
No. 8 Ohio State vs. No. 9 TCU – 11:15 am on CBS
No. 4 Nebraska vs. No. 13 Troy – 11:40 am on TruTV
No. 6 Louisville vs. No. 11 South Florida – 12:30 pm on TNT
No. 5 Wisconsin vs. No. 12 High Point – 12:50 pm on TBS
No. 1 Duke vs. No. 16 Siena – 1:50 pm on CBS
No. 5 Vanderbilt vs. No. 12 McNees – 2:15 pm on TruTV
No. 3 Michigan State vs. No. 14 North Dakota State – 3:05 pm on TNT
No. 4 Arkansas vs. No. 13 Hawaii – 3:25 pm on TBS
No. 6 North Carolina vs. No. 11 VCU – 5:50 pm on TNT
No. 1 Michigan vs. No. 16 Howard – 6:10 pm on CBS
No. 6 BYU vs. No. 11 Texas – 6:25 pm on TBS
No. 7 St. Mary’s vs. No. 10 Texas A&M – 6:35 pm on TruTV
No. 3 Illinois vs. No. 14 Penn – 8:25 pm on TNT
No. 8 Georgia vs. No. 9 St. Louis – 8:45 pm on CBS
No. 3 Gonzaga vs. No. 14 Kennesaw State – 9 pm on TBS
No. 2 Houston vs. No. 15 Idaho – 9:10p pm on Tru TV
NBA
— Ayo Dosunmu scored 23 points and had nine rebounds in his second straight start in place of Anthony Edwards as the Minnesota Timberwolves cruised past the Utah Jazz 147-111. Rudy Gobert had 21 points and 12 rebounds, and Julius Randle also scored 21 points and had eight assists for the Timberwolves.
— Luka Doncic had 40 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds, while LeBron James added 30 as the Los Angeles Lakers extended their winning streak to seven games with a 124-116 win over the Houston Rockets. It’s the 10th win in 11 games for the Lakers, who hold a 1 ½ game lead over Minnesota for the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference.
— Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 20 points as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Brooklyn Nets 121-92 for their 10th straight win. Gilgeous-Alexander was 8 of 9 from the field and was subbed out with 4:28 remaining in the third quarter with the Thunder leading by 38. The reigning NBA MVP extended his NBA-record of 62 consecutive road games with at least 20 points. The Thunder have a 3 ½ game lead over San Antonio for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference with 12 games remaining in the regular season.
— Jaylen Brown scored 23 of his 32 points in the first half as the Boston Celtics rolled to a 120-99 win over the Golden State Warriors. Jayson Tatum added 24 points and 10 rebounds for the Celtics.
— CJ McCollum scored 24 points, while Nickeil Alexander-Walker had 22 as the Atlanta Hawks beat the Dallas Mavericks 135-120 for their 11th straight win. Atlanta hasn’t won at least 11 in a row since winning a franchise-record 19 straight during the 2015 season.
— Deni Avdija scored 23 of his 32 points in the first half, while Donovan Clingan added a career-high 28 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to help the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Indiana Pacers 127-119. Indiana extended the longest losing streak in its history to 15 games. The Pacers’ last win came Feb. 11.
— Ty Jerome had 21 points, nine rebounds and nine assists as the Memphis Grizzlies snapped their eight-game losing streak with a 125-118 victory over the Denver Nuggets. Nikola Jokic had 29 points, 14 rebounds and nine assists for Denver.
— Saddiq Bey scored 25 points and Trey Murphy added 23 as the New Orleans Pelicans overcame an early 18-point deficit to beat the Los Angeles Clippers 124-109. Kawhi Leonard scored 25 points for the Clippers, who dropped a game below .500, but maintained a hold on the No. 8 spot in the Western Conference standings, a half-game ahead of Portland.
— RJ Barrett scored 23 points as the Toronto Raptors beat the Chicago Bulls 139-109. Toronto shot 57% from the field and had seven players in double figures.
The Class AA Boys Basketball State Tournament is set for March 19-21 at the Monument Ice Arena in Rapid City
All times are Central
No. 1 Sioux Falls Lincoln (21-0) vs. No. 9 Tea Area (13-8) – Noon
No. 4 Harrisburg (16-5) vs. No. 5 Watertown (16-5) – 1:45 pm
No. 2 Sioux Falls Roosevelt (17-4) vs. No. 7 Brandon Valley (13-8) – 6 pm
No. 3 Huron (17-4) vs. No. 6 O’Gorman (13-8) – 7:45 pm
The Class B Boys Basketball State Tournament is set for March 19-21 in Aberdeen.
No. 1 Viborg-Hurley (20-3) vs. No. 8 Lyman (17-6) – 11 am
No. 4 Aberdeen Christian (20-3) vs. No. 5 Castlewood (20-3) – 12:45 pm
No. 2 Freeman (21-2) vs. No. 7 Sully Buttes (18-5) – 5 pm – Q107.3 and Q107Radio.com
No. 3 De Smet (19-4) vs. No. 6 Wall (19-4) – 6:45 pm
The Class A Boys Basketball State Tournament is set for March 19-21 at the Summit Arena in Rapid City
No. 1 Sioux Falls Christian (20-1) vs. No. 8 St. Thomas More (16-5) – Noon
No. 4 Hamlin (20-3) vs. No. 5 Groton Area (18-4) – 1:45 pm
No. 2 West Central (22-0) vs. No. 7 Cheyenne-Eagle Butte (20-3) – 5 pm
No. 3 Clark/Willow Lake (20-2) vs. No. 6 Stanley County (20-2) – 6:45 pm