• The tide is seemingly turning, as Michigan goes on an 8-2 run against Notre Dame, forcing Fighting Irish head coach Niele Ivey to call a timeout before the media break. The Wolverines have forced three turnovers in three minutes, and has scored the last six points uncontested.
• Despite Ashlon Jackson’s 3-point barrage for Duke, Deja Kelly is keeping Oregon alive for an upset as this game goes to the fourth quarter.
• Kelly scored the Ducks’ final nine points of the third and has 18 for the game, pushing Oregon to within a 45-40 deficit going into the closing 10 minutes in Durham.
• Notre Dame has pulled ahead to a dominant 32-12 start, completely outplaying Michigan in the paint. The Wolverines are struggling to hit the basket, going 4-for-15 from the floor, while the Fighting Irish are shooting an efficient 75%.
• It was a slow start for Michigan in their first-round game as well, as their three star freshman struggled to get their footing. A similar situation seems to be brewing here in South Bend, probably not helped by the packed, raucous Notre Dame crowd. Syla Swords, one of the Wolverines’ top scorers, is particularly struggling to hit her shots, going 1-for-5 in this first quarter; Swords finally hit a layup in the final minute, picking up the and-one in the process, though she missed the free throw.
• Notre Dame can keep riding this energy to an easy win. Michigan, meanwhile, needs to completely reset and block out the noise if the Wolverines want to get a comeback going.
• If Hannah Hidalgo is anywhere near you, you better keep a strong hold onto the ball. Hidalgo rips it away from Brooke Quarles Daniels on the sideline and Notre Dame cashes in on the other end with a slick pass from Olivia Miles to Liatu King. Smooth sailing on water like glass so far for the Fighting Irish. A brutal No. 3 seed for Michigan to draw in the bracket.
• Ashlon Jackson is staying hot from 3-point range, hitting her fourth 3 of the third quarter to push Duke to a 10-point lead.
• The Blue Devils are ahead 41-31 with 3:30 remaining in the frame.
• Duke has come out shooting to begin the second half with Ashlon Jackson knocking down three 3-pointers and scoring 11 points. The Blue Devils now lead, 34-28, midway through the third quarter.
• We’re underway with one of the more competitive matchups on the slate today, with No. 3 Notre Dame hosting No. 6 Michigan. Both teams’ defenses have been on display so far, with the two sides trading possession and keeping things scoreless through the first minute and a half of play.
• Fighting Irish guard Olivia Miles — who is starting on the court despite an ankle injury suffered during the first round on Friday — gets Notre Dame on the board first with a pair of free throws. From there, the Irish have gone on a 6-0 run, forcing Michigan to take an early timeout.
• After going more than five minutes without scoring the first quarter, Oregon had another three-minute scoreless stretch in the second. However, Peyton Scott and Nani Falatea hit jump shots to get the scoreboard moving again for the Ducks.
• Jordan Wood got a layup at the buzzer for Duke to close the margin to 28-23 at the half. But Oregon’s defense has given the Blue Devils’ problems while Toby Fournier is out of the lineup with an illness. Duke scored only nine points in the opening 10 minutes and shot 36% in the first half.
• Oregon’s Deja Kelly and Duke’s Reigan Richardson each have nine points to lead their respective teams.
• Kara Lawson’s Duke rosters hang their hats on defense and they’ll need to hone in on that in the second half. The Ducks are shooting 50% with good looks and aren’t too far belong their game average scoring pace (68.5 ppg). There were bright glimpses late for Duke with a steal up top and pressure on the ensuing inbound.
• After injuring her ankle in Notre Dame’s dominant opening-round win over Stephen F. Austin, Olivia Miles is in the Fighting Irish starting lineup for Sunday’s matchup with Michigan. She’s wearing a thick black brace on her ankle but was moving around well prior to game time.
• There are always early tips for teams in March Madness. Oregon is used to being ready this early after tipping off quite a few games at 12 p.m. ET/9 a.m. PT playing in the Big Ten. Head coach Kelly Graves said at the Big Ten Tournament that playing that early is “tough” and one of the difficulties in a transition that was “more good than bad, really.”
• Travel is the most discussed hurdle for the four former Pac-12 teams in the Big Ten. Graves said that with two days in between games, it meant a lot of nights in hotel rooms, “really bad food at the buffet in the morning” and not a lot of good weather to go outside to explore.
• “I think that wears on you, and that’s a real thing,” he said. “We never made it an issue.”
• Oregon took an early 7-2 lead with Deja Kelly scoring four for the Ducks.
• But Duke has come back to tie the game, thanks largely to its defense. Jordan Wood put back an offensive rebound and a steal and layup by Reigan Richardson have tied the score with 3:27 remaining in the first quarter.
• Oregon and Duke have tipped off at Cameron Indoor Stadium for a Birmingham 2 region second-round matchup.
• Toby Fournier, the Blue Devils’ leading scorer, is out with an illness. The freshman is averaging 13.4 points and 5.2 rebounds per game for Duke this season.

ACC Rookie of the Year Toby Fournier is not on the bench for Duke today. Per the ESPN broadcast she is out with an “illness.” #ncaaW

— Mitchell Northam (@primetimeMitch) March 23, 2025

• It’s only one game, but Paige Bueckers and the Huskies look ready to run their Spokane region.
• No. 2 UConn absolutely demolished No. 15 Arkansas State on Saturday afternoon in the first round of the NCAA tournament. The Huskies picked up a 69-point win, which set up a second-round matchup with No. 10 South Dakota State on Monday. It was the largest margin of victory in the tournament so far.
• Azzi Fudd led the way with 27 points, seven assists and six steals in the blowout win, and Sarah Strong added 20 points and 12 rebounds. Bueckers had 11 points, and shot 5-of-9 from the field. They shot almost 59% from the floor as a team while looking like a truly vintage NCAA tournament team built by longtime coach Geno Auriemma.
• JuJu Watkins had an excellent game on Saturday to lead the top-seeded Trojans to a 71-25 shellacking of UNCG. But the USC All-American got banged up in the process.
• Watkins appeared to injure her left hand early and was repeatedly seen massaging it in the first half. Then she rolled her left ankle in the second half and briefly left the court to have it looked at.
• Watkins quickly returned to the bench and the game even though the outcome was long determined. She finished with a game-high 22 points alongside eight rebounds, two assists and three steals while nearly outscoring UNCG by herself.
• Watkins downplayed the injuries in a sideline interview on ESPN, calling them “end-of-the-season knick-knacks.” She maintained that stance in her postgame interviews, telling reporters, “I’m all right, don’t worry.”
• We’ll know more on Monday, when USC takes on No. 9 seed Mississippi State. Playing hurt against No. 16 seed UNCG is one thing. It’s another as the competition stiffens.
• March Madness continues Sunday with the men completing the NCAA tournament’s second round and the women starting it.
• Will we at last start to see more upsets, or will the heavyweights continue to dominate? Below is a look at the schedule of games and which are must-see and which can be skipped.
• Must-see: Make time to watch TCU star Hailey Van Lith face the school she led to the Final Four two years ago. It should be compelling, even if both Van Lith and Louisville players and coaches downplayed it beforehand. Said Van Lith on Saturday, “I’m in a really good spot. I’m excited to play. You know, this game is much bigger than me and what I got going on. TCU is looking to go to the Sweet 16 for the first time ever. That’s a lot bigger than whatever else the narrative is.”
• Game to skip: Richmond won its very first NCAA tournament game in program history against Georgia Tech on Friday. That sounds more like a team that’s achieved its goal than one ready to take down the NCAA tournament’s No. 1 overall seed on its home floor.
• Most likely potential upset: Only two months ago, Kansas State cracked the top 10 in the AP poll after starting the season 19-1. Then the Wildcats collapsed during the second half of Big 12 play and cost themselves a top-four seed. The return of center Ayoka Lee from foot injuries seemed to snap Kansas State back to early season form. Behind 17 points and 10 reboundsw from Lee, the Wildcats dismantled dangerous No. 12 seed Fairfield on Friday. Now they get a shot at a fourth-seeded Kentucky team that barely survived its first-round matchup.
• Player to watch: For Notre Dame, the joy of a dominant first-round victory evaporated early in Friday’s fourth quarter. That’s when star guard Olivia Miles crumbled to the floor after turning her left ankle. Heading into Notre Dame’s second-round matchup against sixth-seeded Michigan, it’s unclear whether Miles will play and if so how healthy she’ll be. Notre Dame coach Niele Ivey only told reporters on Friday that Miles “did a lot of treatment” the previous night and “says she feels pretty good.”