Sports
Miami (Ohio)'s storybook season takes underdog angle against SMU
Miami RedHawks guard Peter Suder (5) dives after a loose ball in the first half of Mid-American Conference Tournament first round game between the Miami RedHawks and the UMass Minutemen at Rocket Arena in Cleveland on Thursday, March 12, 2026. Miami led 39-37 at halftime. DAYTON, Ohio — College basketball’s biggest storybook tale this season seizes the national spotlight as Miami (Ohio) takes on SMU in a clash of No. 11 seeds in the final First Four game Wednesday night.
The RedHawks (31-1) will have a decided home-court advantage from the sellout crowd as they try to put their stunning 87-83 loss to UMass in the first round of the Mid-American Conference tournament behind them.
University of Dayton Arena is only one hour from Miami’s campus in Oxford, Ohio. Xavier enjoyed a similar geographical benefit in last year’s First Four and rode the crowd’s energy to rally past Texas.
For SMU (20-13), the First Four is a chance to prove they deserved their ticket to the tournament thanks to their ambitious nonconference schedule. The Mustangs went only 8-10 in the powerful Atlantic Coast Conference — and 3-8 on the road overall. But in four straight games in December against SEC opposition away from home, they defeated Mississippi State and Texas A&M while falling to Vanderbilt and LSU.
While the Mustangs earned a tournament spot because of their demanding schedule — the Mustangs went 4-9 against Quad 1 opponents and 5-4 versus Quad 2 — the RedHawks earned theirs despite a soft nonconference slate that featured no games against power conference foes.
Nonetheless, Miami — No. 37 in NET rankings — became the first team since Gonzaga in 2021 to post an unbeaten regular season. Despite their historic run, the MAC tournament quarterfinal exit relegated the RedHawks to an at-large bid and the trip to Dayton.
“In this world, everybody gets caught up in results. That’s all the world wants,” Miami coach Travis Steele said, addressing critics of his team’s schedule. “But then when we are at 31-0, then everybody’s talking about, oh, everything else matters. People contradict themselves all the time.”
SMU head coach Andy Enfield has leaned on his experienced backcourt, which includes standout guards B.J. Edwards, Jaron Pierre Jr. and Kevin “Boopie” Miller. Edwards, who missed the conference tournament with an ankle injury, is expected to return for Wednesday’s game.
Miller, a second-team all-ACC pick, led SMU at 19.2 points per game while Pierre averaged 17.6 points.
“We feel very strongly that we deserve to be in,” Enfield said. “I think as far as our schedule strength … that our resume is probably better than some of the other teams in that area. The advantage of having experienced players (is that) our team has been very good in close games this year. Every game is close in this league.”
The RedHawks counter the Mustangs’ strong backcourt with the nation’s second-highest scoring offense (90.7 ppg) and the best effective field goal percentage (61.2%). MAC Player of the Year Peter Suder (14.6 ppg) leads a balanced offense that boasts six active double-figure scorers.
The RedHawks will have to find a way to handle the physicality of an SMU team that ranks much higher in defensive metrics. Their loss to UMass exposed a weakness on the glass, as they were outrebounded 41-24 and outscored 54-30 in the paint. Miami, which has only one post player in its rotation in 6-foot-9, 245-pound Antwone Woolfolk, will need to gang-rebound against SMU 7-foot-2, 270-pound center Samet Yigitoglu.
Oddsmakers have established SMU as a 7.5-point favorite. The winner of Wednesday’s final First Four game advances to take on No. 6 seed Tennessee in a Midwest Region first-round game Friday in Philadelphia.
–Mike Petraglia, Field Level Media
Sports
Reports: 49ers agree to 1-year deal with WR Christian Kirk
Jan 12, 2026; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Houston Texans wide receiver Christian Kirk (13) catches a touchdown against Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Brandin Echols (26) during the first half of an AFC Wild Card Round game at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images The San Francisco 49ers have agreed to a one-year contract with veteran receiver Christian Kirk, multiple outlets reported Monday.
The deal is worth up to $6 million, according to ESPN.
Kirk is the second veteran receiver the 49ers have signed in consecutive weeks. San Francisco also added longtime Tampa Bay Buccaneers star Mike Evans last week when free agency began.
Kirk, 29, has 432 career receptions for 5,415 yards and 30 touchdowns in 106 games (80 starts) over eight NFL seasons.
He struggled last season in his lone campaign with the Houston Texans. He had just 28 catches for 239 yards and one touchdown in 13 games.
Kirk did have a big game in the postseason with eight catches for 144 yards and a touchdown as the Texans beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 30-6 in the AFC wild-card round.
Kirk also has played four seasons with the Arizona Cardinals (2018-21) and three with the Jacksonville Jaguars (2022-24). His best season was 2022 when he established career highs of 84 receptions, 1,108 yards and eight touchdowns.
Kirk was a second-round pick by Arizona in the 2018 draft. He was a college football standout at Texas A&M.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Nate Diaz to make MMA return on Ronda Rousey-Gina Carano undercard
Sep 10, 2022; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Nate Diaz (red gloves) fights Tony Ferguson (blue gloves) during UFC 279 at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images Nate Diaz is stepping back into an MMA cage for the first time in nearly four years as he has agreed to face Mike Perry in a five-round welterweight bout on May 16 in Los Angeles, Jake Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions announced Monday.
The fight will take place on the card headlined by Ronda Rousey versus Gina Carano at Intuit Dome and stream live on Netflix as part of MVP’s first MMA event.
Diaz, 40, last competed in MMA in September 2022, when he submitted Tony Ferguson at UFC 279. He holds a 21-13 career record, including 12 submission victories. Since his last MMA fight, Diaz has remained active through crossover boxing matches. He lost by decision to Paul in 2023 before beating Jorge Masvidal in 2024.
“Glad to be back in action. It’s time,” Diaz declared via social media. “Don’t forget where this all came from. I got plans on doing a lot more in the next 10 years, no matter where it is. Time to set the bar again, so get ready for a new takeover again and again until the end of time.”
Perry, 34, brings his own second-act resume. After leaving the UFC in 2021, he rebuilt his brand in bare-knuckle boxing, remaining unbeaten and earning the BKFC symbolic “King of Violence” championship, while also briefly exploring boxing, which ended with a stoppage loss to Paul in 2024. He has a career 14-8 MMA record with 11 knockout wins and a perfect 6-0 record in bare-knuckle fighting.
Diaz-Perry becomes the third pillar of a star-studded night that originated with Rousey and Carano. Former UFC champion Francis Ngannou is scheduled for a heavyweight fight with Philipe Lins.
“MVP delivered the most-viewed boxing event since the advent of cable, and now we’re set to break records again with the biggest viewership in MMA history with the addition of Diaz vs Perry to Rousey vs Carano and Ngannou vs Lins,” Nakisa Bidarian, MVP CEO, said in a statement. “Nate Diaz is the Real BMF, and Mike Perry is the King of Violence — this will be a war from the first press conference all the way to the end when one of them has their hand raised.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Plagued by early deficits, Wild turn page to meet Blackhawks
Mar 10, 2026; Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Wild left wing Nick Foligno (71) in action during the first period against the Utah Mammoth at Grand Casino Arena. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images A three-game winless streak has done little to compromise the Minnesota Wild’s solid playoff positioning.
Still, the locker room knows better than to get complacent as the stretch run nears.
A visit Tuesday to the slumping Chicago Blackhawks offers a chance for Minnesota to snap the skid and move closer to securing a postseason berth. The Wild are eager to seize it as they make the most of their current funk.
“The mood is good, I think. I truly do. I think adversity right now could be a positive,” defenseman Jake Middleton said. “We’ve got a lot of new bodies in the room. The lineup is kind of interchangeable game-to-game. Learning how to play in these types of situations could be a good thing for this group.”
Minnesota is entrenched in third place in the Central Division, six points behind the Dallas Stars and 14 ahead of the Utah Mammoth.
The Wild can thank the Blackhawks for preventing the Mammoth from creeping closer in the standings.
While Chicago is just 3-4-2 since play resumed after the Olympic break, all three victories during that span came against Utah.
After sweeping a home-and-home with the Mammoth last week, with both games requiring overtime, the Blackhawks were unable to sustain momentum Saturday in a 4-0 road loss to the Vegas Golden Knights.
Vegas beat Chicago goaltender Spencer Knight for three goals in the first 12 minutes. The Blackhawks allowed multiple power-play goals for the first time since Dec. 7.
“I don’t think we started well enough, pretty evidently,” Blackhawks defenseman Alex Vlasic said. “They jumped on us quick. (Against) a good team like that, they’re hard to compete with once they get a lead.”
Minnesota can attest to the difficulty of emerging from early holes, as home losses to the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday and New York Rangers on Saturday showed.
In Sunday’s 4-2 loss to visiting Toronto, the Maple Leafs struck for three goals in the middle period. Although Vladimir Tarasenko responded, scoring twice in 23 seconds to reach 700 career points, Minnesota fell short.
“Obviously when you’re down three, it feels like a huge mountain to climb,” Wild goalie Jesper Wallstedt said. “But I thought we did an unbelievable job with sticking with what works for us and we continued to play the style of hockey that we want to play.
“We gave it a good push, but unfortunately (Sunday) it wasn’t enough.”
Tuesday marks the beginning of a home-and-home between the Blackhawks and Wild, who are set to conclude the season series on Thursday in Minnesota.
Minnesota defeated host Chicago 4-3 in overtime on Nov. 26 and earned a 4-3 shootout win at home on Jan. 27.
The Blackhawks expect defenseman Wyatt Kaiser (left shoulder) to play Tuesday after he missed the Vegas game due to injury.
Also set to return: former Blackhawks captain Nick Foligno. Tuesday is his first game in Chicago since the Blackhawks traded him to Minnesota on March 6.
Reunited with his brother Marcus, who is week-to-week with a lower body injury, Nick Foligno tallied one assist in his first five games with the Wild.
–Field Level Media
Reports: 49ers agree to 1-year deal with WR Christian Kirk
Nate Diaz to make MMA return on Ronda Rousey-Gina Carano undercard
