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Chicago Tribune
17-04-2025
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
Northwestern lacrosse and star Madison Taylor want to create ‘something special' for Thursday's game
Northwestern attacker Madison Taylor had a big afternoon Sunday, even by her own NCAA Division I-leading standards. In the Wildcats' first game this season outside at the upgraded Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium, Taylor had seven goals and four assists in the first half to lead No. 3 Northwestern's 19-10 win over Oregon. Taylor, who leads the nation with a 5.07 goals per game average, called it 'a really cool experience' — and she's expecting an even better one Thursday night at Northwestern's lakefront stadium. When Northwestern hosts No. 13 Michigan in an event it's calling 'Lacrosse Night in Chicago,' the Wildcats hope to set a program attendance record at Northwestern Medicine Field, also the temporary home of the football team in 2024 and 2025 as Ryan Field is rebuilt. Northwestern expanded capacity at the stadium to about 12,000 and made upgrades such as video boards and premium seating. 'The atmosphere is going to be amazing,' Taylor said. 'I think it's going to be a once-in-a-lifetime type of experience. I think we really are trying to take advantage of the new stadium that's been built here. There's just going to be a lot of special people that have come through Northwestern lacrosse there, and it's going to be really exciting.' Coach Kelly Amonte Hiller, who has led Northwestern lacrosse to eight NCAA championships, said the Wildcats came up with the idea for the event after seeing the larger-scale successes of Iowa women's basketball and Nebraska volleyball playing at football stadiums. They plan to have a FanZone, will welcome back former Northwestern lacrosse stars Izzy Scane and Erin Coykendall — who now play for the new professional Women's Lacrosse League — to sign autographs and hope to draw in hundreds of young players and fans. Amonte Hiller wants the game, which will air on the Big Ten Network, to showcase the program in a stadium that in January was selected to host the NCAA women's lacrosse national championship in 2026. It will be the first venue outside of the Eastern Time Zone to host the NCAA Division I title game. 'We really feel like we have something special here at Northwestern with lacrosse, with the amount of success that we've had over the years,' Amonte Hiller said. 'With the new stadium we have, we felt this was a great opportunity. When we go outside, let's do something special where we can really get a lot of people in the stands and really do something special for the sport of lacrosse, for women's sports at Northwestern and really show that people can show up for a women's game, and really see the beauty of how hard these women work, how athletic they are, how cool this game is.' The game has added meaning because it is against a Michigan team coached by former Northwestern player Hannah Nielsen. And it will feature Taylor, whom Amonte Hiller called 'really a transcendent player in lacrosse.' Taylor hails from Long Island, New York, where she played for the club team of former Northwestern player Shannon Smith, who inspired her to pursue playing at the college level. Now a junior, Taylor has been a difference-maker for the Wildcats since she came in as a freshman and scored five goals in her first game, despite making the switch from midfielder to attacker for the first time. She benefited that season from playing in a dynamic offense and consistently contributed, including becoming the first freshman to score four goals in the NCAA Championship game since at least 2005. For the NCAA runner-up last season, Taylor ranked third in Division I with 83 goals scored and 116 points, behind national leader Scane, who had 88 goals. Using what Amonte Hiller called 'next level' body control that she developed from playing multiple sports, including soccer and basketball, a great sense of the game and a work ethic to back up her talent, Taylor played her way to being named a Tewaaraton Award finalist in 2024. This year has been a different challenge as the Wildcats had to overhaul much of their roster after losing multiple players to graduation, including Scane and Coykendall. Northwestern has counted on Taylor to provide leadership on and off the field for a team that is 12-2 entering Thursday's game and is beginning to find a next level of cohesion heading into the postseason. 'This year has been a huge growth year,' Amonte Hiller said of Taylor. 'She's really the focal point of the offense relative to other teams and scouting, and just her leadership has been amazing. We have a full new group on the offensive end. And just everything that she's done to help the group come together. 'She is really developing other aspects of her game even more. She's really a dynamic player. She's a great cutter, she's a great dodger, you're now seeing she's really an elite feeder too. So it's been fun to kind of see that develop. And I think she's enjoyed taking on that additional responsibility and really lifting up the rest of the offense.' Taylor, who also tops Division I with a 7.14 points per game average, has always been a lead-by-example type, but she has pushed herself into being a more intentional communicator this season. Amonte Hiller said that despite the increased role, she doesn't see Taylor carrying a weight or pressure — but instead enjoying the relationship building. Taylor said she learned that from some of her former elite teammates. 'It's being a really positive communicator and showing everyone I believe in them so much and making everyone feel as confident as they can when they step onto the field,' Taylor said. 'When everyone has trust and confidence in each other, it makes the team play a lot better. '(The older players) showed me you don't have to take everything so seriously and just have a lot of fun. For the most part, what you're going to remember is the memories you have and the friendships you make, not all the little things in between. That's one thing I've been trying to implement to all the new people here now.' Northwestern wants the fun to continue Thursday night in their regular-season home finale. Taylor said the team hopes to host a contingent of young players from local club teams, and college players take pride in interacting with them. 'They'll come to support us every game, so we want to make sure they feel supported back,' Taylor said. 'I think it's just so fun to interact with them after the games. It kind of makes you realize that it's more than just a lacrosse game.'
USA Today
05-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Duke vs Houston live updates: Final Four predictions, game time, where to watch
Duke vs Houston live updates: Final Four predictions, game time, where to watch Show Caption Hide Caption Grant Hill talks Final Four storylines, takes playful jab at Charles Barkley We caught up with Hall of Famer Grant Hill at the Final Four and he tells us what he loves about this Final Four field. Sports Seriously On Saturday night, two of the best teams in men's college basketball throughout the 2024-25 season will face off, with the winner taking one important step closer to a national championship and the other having to endure a long trip home with the emotional scars of an unfulfilled dream. No. 1 seeds Duke and Houston will meet Saturday night in the Final Four of the 2025 NCAA Tournament at the Alamodome in San Antonio, with the winner advancing to take on either Florida or Auburn in Monday night's national championship game. Watch Duke vs Houston Final Four live with Fubo (free trial) The game will be a matchup of the sport's No. 1 team in offensive efficiency, Duke, and its No. 1 team in defensive efficiency, Houston, according to KenPom. The Blue Devils, led by national player of the year Cooper Flagg, are 35-3 and have the second-best net efficiency ever on KenPom, behind only Duke's 1998-99 team. They'll meet the red-hot Cougars, who are riding a Division I-leading 17-game win streak and have won 30 of their past 31 games. Of their four losses this season, only one came in regulation. Follow along here for the live score, updates, highlights and more from Duke's game against Houston in the 2025 Final Four: REQUIRED READING: Duke coach Jon Scheyer makes replacing a legend look easy. It's unbelievably hard. Duke vs Houston Final Four live score This section will be updated. Team 1H 2H Final Duke — — — Houston — — — Duke vs Houston Final Four live updates This section will be updated closer to tip-off. Duke vs Houston odds Odds courtesy of BetMGM as of Saturday, April 5 Spread: Duke (-4.5) Duke (-4.5) Over/under: 136.5 136.5 Moneyline: Duke -250 | Houston +200 National championship odds Here are the championship odds of the four remaining teams, which Duke leads the way on at time of publish. Duke: -110 Auburn: +300 Houston: +450 Florida: +600 What channel is Duke vs Houston on today? TV channel : CBS : CBS Live stream: March Madness Live, Fubo (free trial) The Final Four game between the Blue Devils and Cougars will air on CBS. Ian Eagle (play-by-play), Bill Raftery (analyst) and Grant Hill (analyst) will be on the call while Tracy Wolfson serves as the sideline reporter. Streaming options for the game include March Madness Live and Fubo, the latter of which offers a free trial to potential subscribers. Duke vs Houston start time Date : Saturday, April 5 : Saturday, April 5 Start time: 8:48 p.m. The Blue Devils and Cougars are scheduled to tip off at 8:49 p.m. ET, though that could get pushed back depending on when the preceding Florida vs. Auburn game ends. We occasionally recommend interesting products and services. If you make a purchase by clicking one of the links, we may earn an affiliate fee. USA TODAY Network newsrooms operate independently, and this doesn't influence our coverage.
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Numbers to know for each of the 16 teams remaining in March Madness
The smaller the number, the larger the impact at this year's NCAA Tournament. Arkansas, the No. 10 seed in the West Region, is the only double-digit seed still alive heading into the regional semifinals. All four No. 1 seeds and three of the four No. 2 seeds are still standing. But the seeds aren't the only numbers that bear watching as the tournament enters its second week. Here's a look at a notable statistic for each of the remaining 16 teams, starting with the two regions playing Thursday. East Alabama: The Crimson Tide score a Division I-leading 90.8 points per game. The 90-81 first-round victory over Robert Morris marked the DI-leading 19th time this season they've scored at least 90 points. BYU: The Cougars outrebounded each of their first two tournament opponents by nine boards, and they have a plus-6.2 rebound margin this season that ranks 19th in Division I. They now face Alabama, which ranks 20th nationally with a plus-6.1 rebound margin. The Tide beat Robert Morris despite getting outrebounded. Arizona: Caleb Love scored 28 points when North Carolina beat Duke 81-77 in the 2022 Final Four. He hasn't been as successful the four times he's faced Duke since that game, twice with North Carolina and twice with Arizona. Love has averaged 10.5 points in those four games while shooting a combined 14 of 50 overall and 4 of 27 from 3-point range. Love's teams went 1-3 against Duke in those games. Love faces Duke again in a regional semifinal. Duke: The Blue Devils have a net rating of plus-39 according to That represents the highest net rating for any team since Duke in 1998-99 had a rating of plus-43.01. Net rating is calculated by subtracting a team's defensive efficiency from its offensive efficiency. The resulting number – 39 in Duke's case – measures its expected margin of victory over an average team. West Florida: Walter Clayton Jr. has gone 22 of 43 from 3-point range over his last five games (13 of 26 in the Southeastern Conference Tournament and 9 of 17 in the NCAA Tournament). The former Iona guard has gone 16 of 33 from 3-point range in four career NCAA games. Maryland: Derik Queen, who made a buzzer beater against Colorado State in the second round, puts up 16.2 points per game for the highest scoring average of any Maryland freshman since 1947-48. Queen is actually behind only Joe Smith, who had 19.4 points per game in 1994-95 before getting taken first overall in the 1995 draft. Arkansas: John Calipari is the third coach to take four different schools to the Sweet 16. He got here eight times with Kentucky, four times with Memphis and three times with UMass. The other coaches to accomplish this feat were Eddie Sutton (six times with Oklahoma State, four with Arkansas, two with Kentucky and once with Creighton) and Lon Kruger (twice with Oklahoma and once each with Kansas State, Florida and UNLV). Texas Tech: The Red Raiders play in the Big 12 and Arkansas is in the SEC, but they used to be rivals in the old Southwest Conference. They've faced each other 80 times before, and the series is tied at 40-all. Midwest Houston: The Cougars have the nation's longest active streak with six straight Sweet 16 appearances. Gonzaga had the longest streak with nine straight regional semifinal berths before losing 81-76 to Houston in the round of 32. Purdue: Trey Kaufman-Renn has made 287 baskets this season to lead all Division I players. Zach Edey, Kaufman-Renn's former Purdue teammate, led Division I last season with 336 baskets. Kentucky: Not a single player on Kentucky's roster scored a point for the Wildcats last season. The only other power conference team that didn't return any of its scoring production from last season was Louisville, which lost to Creighton in the first round. Tennessee: Chaz Lanier has gone 7 of 12 from 3-point range in the first two rounds and has a school-record 120 3-pointers this season, the sixth-highest total in Southeastern Conference history. The SEC record is held by Auburn's Bryce Brown with 141 in 2018-19. Lanier went a combined 3 of 17 from 3-point range in Tennessee's two regular-season losses to Kentucky, its Sweet 16 opponent. South Auburn: Johni Broome is the only player in Division I men's basketball history to have 2,500 points, 1,500 rebounds plus 400 blocks in his career. Broome, a fifth-year senior who spent two seasons at Morehead State and three at Auburn, is averaging 18.4 points, 10.7 rebounds and 2.2 blocks this season. Michigan: Tre Donaldson came to Michigan after spending two seasons at Auburn, the Wolverines' Sweet 16 opponent. After averaging 6.7 points, 3.4 assists and 2.4 rebounds at Auburn last season, the 6-3 guard averages 11.5 points, 4.2 assists and 3.6 rebounds for Michigan. Mississippi: Sean Pedulla has scored at least 19 points in each of his three career NCAA games. He scored 19 points in just 19 minutes while playing for Virginia Tech in a first-round loss to Texas in 2022, and he has collected 20 points in each of the first two rounds this season. Michigan State: The Spartans have outscored their first two NCAA opponents 96-66 in the second half. That includes a 71-63 victory over New Mexico in which they trailed by two points at halftime. Now they face an Ole Miss team that has outscored its first two tournament opponents 84-55 in the first half. ___ AP March Madness bracket: and coverage: Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. Steve Megargee, The Associated Press
Fox Sports
26-03-2025
- Sport
- Fox Sports
Numbers to know for each of the 16 teams remaining in March Madness
Associated Press The smaller the number, the larger the impact at this year's NCAA Tournament. Arkansas, the No. 10 seed in the West Region, is the only double-digit seed still alive heading into the regional semifinals. All four No. 1 seeds and three of the four No. 2 seeds are still standing. But the seeds aren't the only numbers that bear watching as the tournament enters its second week. Here's a look at a notable statistic for each of the remaining 16 teams, starting with the two regions playing Thursday. East Alabama: The Crimson Tide score a Division I-leading 90.8 points per game. The 90-81 first-round victory over Robert Morris marked the DI-leading 19th time this season they've scored at least 90 points. BYU: The Cougars outrebounded each of their first two tournament opponents by nine boards, and they have a plus-6.2 rebound margin this season that ranks 19th in Division I. They now face Alabama, which ranks 20th nationally with a plus-6.1 rebound margin. The Tide beat Robert Morris despite getting outrebounded. Arizona: Caleb Love scored 28 points when North Carolina beat Duke 81-77 in the 2022 Final Four. He hasn't been as successful the four times he's faced Duke since that game, twice with North Carolina and twice with Arizona. Love has averaged 10.5 points in those four games while shooting a combined 14 of 50 overall and 4 of 27 from 3-point range. Love's teams went 1-3 against Duke in those games. Love faces Duke again in a regional semifinal. Duke: The Blue Devils have a net rating of plus-39 according to That represents the highest net rating for any team since Duke in 1998-99 had a rating of plus-43.01. Net rating is calculated by subtracting a team's defensive efficiency from its offensive efficiency. The resulting number – 39 in Duke's case – measures its expected margin of victory over an average team. West Florida: Walter Clayton Jr. has gone 22 of 43 from 3-point range over his last five games (13 of 26 in the Southeastern Conference Tournament and 9 of 17 in the NCAA Tournament). The former Iona guard has gone 16 of 33 from 3-point range in four career NCAA games. Maryland: Derik Queen, who made a buzzer beater against Colorado State in the second round, puts up 16.2 points per game for the highest scoring average of any Maryland freshman since 1947-48. Queen is actually behind only Joe Smith, who had 19.4 points per game in 1994-95 before getting taken first overall in the 1995 draft. Arkansas: John Calipari is the third coach to take four different schools to the Sweet 16. He got here eight times with Kentucky, four times with Memphis and three times with UMass. The other coaches to accomplish this feat were Eddie Sutton (six times with Oklahoma State, four with Arkansas, two with Kentucky and once with Creighton) and Lon Kruger (twice with Oklahoma and once each with Kansas State, Florida and UNLV). Texas Tech: The Red Raiders play in the Big 12 and Arkansas is in the SEC, but they used to be rivals in the old Southwest Conference. They've faced each other 80 times before, and the series is tied at 40-all. Midwest Houston: The Cougars have the nation's longest active streak with six straight Sweet 16 appearances. Gonzaga had the longest streak with nine straight regional semifinal berths before losing 81-76 to Houston in the round of 32. Purdue: Trey Kaufman-Renn has made 287 baskets this season to lead all Division I players. Zach Edey, Kaufman-Renn's former Purdue teammate, led Division I last season with 336 baskets. Kentucky: Not a single player on Kentucky's roster scored a point for the Wildcats last season. The only other power conference team that didn't return any of its scoring production from last season was Louisville, which lost to Creighton in the first round. Tennessee: Chaz Lanier has gone 7 of 12 from 3-point range in the first two rounds and has a school-record 120 3-pointers this season, the sixth-highest total in Southeastern Conference history. The SEC record is held by Auburn's Bryce Brown with 141 in 2018-19. Lanier went a combined 3 of 17 from 3-point range in Tennessee's two regular-season losses to Kentucky, its Sweet 16 opponent. South Auburn: Johni Broome is the only player in Division I men's basketball history to have 2,500 points, 1,500 rebounds plus 400 blocks in his career. Broome, a fifth-year senior who spent two seasons at Morehead State and three at Auburn, is averaging 18.4 points, 10.7 rebounds and 2.2 blocks this season. Michigan: Tre Donaldson came to Michigan after spending two seasons at Auburn, the Wolverines' Sweet 16 opponent. After averaging 6.7 points, 3.4 assists and 2.4 rebounds at Auburn last season, the 6-3 guard averages 11.5 points, 4.2 assists and 3.6 rebounds for Michigan. Mississippi: Sean Pedulla has scored at least 19 points in each of his three career NCAA games. He scored 19 points in just 19 minutes while playing for Virginia Tech in a first-round loss to Texas in 2022, and he has collected 20 points in each of the first two rounds this season. Michigan State: The Spartans have outscored their first two NCAA opponents 96-66 in the second half. That includes a 71-63 victory over New Mexico in which they trailed by two points at halftime. Now they face an Ole Miss team that has outscored its first two tournament opponents 84-55 in the first half. ___ AP March Madness bracket: and coverage: Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. recommended
Associated Press
26-03-2025
- Sport
- Associated Press
Numbers to know for each of the 16 teams remaining in March Madness
The smaller the number, the larger the impact at this year's NCAA Tournament. Arkansas, the No. 10 seed in the West Region, is the only double-digit seed still alive heading into the regional semifinals. All four No. 1 seeds and three of the four No. 2 seeds are still standing. But the seeds aren't the only numbers that bear watching as the tournament enters its second week. Here's a look at a notable statistic for each of the remaining 16 teams, starting with the two regions playing Thursday. East Alabama: The Crimson Tide score a Division I-leading 90.8 points per game. The 90-81 first-round victory over Robert Morris marked the DI-leading 19th time this season they've scored at least 90 points. BYU: The Cougars outrebounded each of their first two tournament opponents by nine boards, and they have a plus-6.2 rebound margin this season that ranks 19th in Division I. They now face Alabama, which ranks 20th nationally with a plus-6.1 rebound margin. The Tide beat Robert Morris despite getting outrebounded. Arizona: Caleb Love scored 28 points when North Carolina beat Duke 81-77 in the 2022 Final Four. He hasn't been as successful the four times he's faced Duke since that game, twice with North Carolina and twice with Arizona. Love has averaged 10.5 points in those four games while shooting a combined 14 of 50 overall and 4 of 27 from 3-point range. Love's teams went 1-3 against Duke in those games. Love faces Duke again in a regional semifinal. Duke: The Blue Devils have a net rating of plus-39 according to That represents the highest net rating for any team since Duke in 1998-99 had a rating of plus-43.01. Net rating is calculated by subtracting a team's defensive efficiency from its offensive efficiency. The resulting number – 39 in Duke's case – measures its expected margin of victory over an average team. West Florida: Walter Clayton Jr. has gone 22 of 43 from 3-point range over his last five games (13 of 26 in the Southeastern Conference Tournament and 9 of 17 in the NCAA Tournament). The former Iona guard has gone 16 of 33 from 3-point range in four career NCAA games. Maryland: Derik Queen, who made a buzzer beater against Colorado State in the second round, puts up 16.2 points per game for the highest scoring average of any Maryland freshman since 1947-48. Queen is actually behind only Joe Smith, who had 19.4 points per game in 1994-95 before getting taken first overall in the 1995 draft. Arkansas: John Calipari is the third coach to take four different schools to the Sweet 16. He got here eight times with Kentucky, four times with Memphis and three times with UMass. The other coaches to accomplish this feat were Eddie Sutton (six times with Oklahoma State, four with Arkansas, two with Kentucky and once with Creighton) and Lon Kruger (twice with Oklahoma and once each with Kansas State, Florida and UNLV). Texas Tech: The Red Raiders play in the Big 12 and Arkansas is in the SEC, but they used to be rivals in the old Southwest Conference. They've faced each other 80 times before, and the series is tied at 40-all. Midwest Houston: The Cougars have the nation's longest active streak with six straight Sweet 16 appearances. Gonzaga had the longest streak with nine straight regional semifinal berths before losing 81-76 to Houston in the round of 32. Purdue: Trey Kaufman-Renn has made 287 baskets this season to lead all Division I players. Zach Edey, Kaufman-Renn's former Purdue teammate, led Division I last season with 336 baskets. Kentucky: Not a single player on Kentucky's roster scored a point for the Wildcats last season. The only other power conference team that didn't return any of its scoring production from last season was Louisville, which lost to Creighton in the first round. Tennessee: Chaz Lanier has gone 7 of 12 from 3-point range in the first two rounds and has a school-record 120 3-pointers this season, the sixth-highest total in Southeastern Conference history. The SEC record is held by Auburn's Bryce Brown with 141 in 2018-19. Lanier went a combined 3 of 17 from 3-point range in Tennessee's two regular-season losses to Kentucky, its Sweet 16 opponent. South Auburn: Johni Broome is the only player in Division I men's basketball history to have 2,500 points, 1,500 rebounds plus 400 blocks in his career. Broome, a fifth-year senior who spent two seasons at Morehead State and three at Auburn, is averaging 18.4 points, 10.7 rebounds and 2.2 blocks this season. Michigan: Tre Donaldson came to Michigan after spending two seasons at Auburn, the Wolverines' Sweet 16 opponent. After averaging 6.7 points, 3.4 assists and 2.4 rebounds at Auburn last season, the 6-3 guard averages 11.5 points, 4.2 assists and 3.6 rebounds for Michigan. Mississippi: Sean Pedulla has scored at least 19 points in each of his three career NCAA games. He scored 19 points in just 19 minutes while playing for Virginia Tech in a first-round loss to Texas in 2022, and he has collected 20 points in each of the first two rounds this season. Michigan State: The Spartans have outscored their first two NCAA opponents 96-66 in the second half. That includes a 71-63 victory over New Mexico in which they trailed by two points at halftime. Now they face an Ole Miss team that has outscored its first two tournament opponents 84-55 in the first half.
