 | Powered by  Edition #1235 Apr 07, 2025 |
| From The GIST Team |
Happy championship Monday!As confetti cleanup continues following the No. 2 seed UConn women's record-setting 12th March Madness title win yesterday, the countdown is on to tonight's men's final between No. 1 seeds Florida and Houston.
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| Quote of The Day |
 | He told me he loved me and I told him I hated him. No, I love that man more than words can describe. |
 | — Newly crowned national champion Paige Bueckers, jokingly revealing what UConn head coach (HC) Geno Auriemma said to her as she walked off the NCAA court for the very last time yesterday. Mission accomplished, indeed. |
| The Latest |
🎓🏀 Poetry in motion Source: Tyler Sizemore/Hearst Connecticut Media The GIST: And with that, the 2024–25 women's college basketball season has come to an end. Hopefully, you had your notepad handy for yesterday's sold-out national championship game because No. 2 seed UConn put on an absolute hoops clinic.
UConn's best-in-the-country defense shines bright: The "defense wins championships" adage rang true for the Huskies, who held South Carolina to under 60 points for the second time this season. In fact, UConn dominated all tournament long, crushing opponents by a stunning 32.8 points per game.
Looking ahead: It's the end of an era for Bueckers and a quartet of South Carolina stars — Te-Hina Paopa, Bree Hall, Sania Feagin, and (possibly) Raven Johnson — all five of whom could hear their names called in next week's WNBA draft.
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🎓🏀 Don't call it a comeback Source: Stephanie Scarbrough/AP News The GIST: The Madness isn't over just yet: No. 1 seeds Florida and Houston will battle for the men's championship tonight at 8:50 p.m. ET on CBS in the U.S. and TSN in Canada. One (last) shining moment, loading. What happened in the Final Four: One of the chalkiest Final Fours in history turned unexpectedly dramatic on Saturday. Call 'em comebacks, call 'em chokes — whatever your take, both of the victors came roaring back from sizable halftime deficits to survive and advance.
Tonight's matchup: No matter which team wins, the HC will be a first-time champ: Houston's old-school HC, Kelvin Sampson, is seeking a ring to prove he's one of the GOATs, while Florida's problematic Todd Golden is among the youngest HCs to ever make the Final Four, let alone the title game.
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| Together With LOVB 🏐 League One Volleyball is best enjoyed in-person Source: League One Volleyball (LOVB) The only thing better than watching pro volleyball at home? Seeing history unfold in front of your eyes at the upcoming LOVB Finals, running from April 10th through 13th in Louisville, KY. The tournament-style weekend competition will feature all six teams duking it out, with tickets still available for: 🎟️ The quarter-finals and semis 🏆 Sunday's championship showdown 👀 And if you're feeling extra fancy, grab a session pass to catch every match Don't wait — LOVB expects the inaugural championship weekend to be a sold-out affair. Grab your tickets now. |
🏒 Sound the alarm Source: Geoff Burke/Imagn Images The GIST: The GR8 Chase is over — Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin scored his 895th career goal in yesterday's 4–1 loss to the NY Islanders, making him the top goal scorer in NHL history. Here's a look at the historic hockey moment, by the numbers. 31: The legendary (though recently polarizing) Wayne Gretzky held the league's all-time scoring record for 31 years after retiring with 894 career goals. Someone breaking his mark was considered impossible…until Ovi (who notably stirs his own conflicting feelings) started closing in. 1,487: It took Ovi 1,487 games to break Gretzky's record, which is the exact number of NHL games "The Great One" played in his career. Spooky. 65: Of Ovi's 895 career goals, 65 were empty-netters. While some think this stat lessens Ovechkin's claim to greatness, Gretzky notched 56 empty-netters en route to his long-standing record. It's just part of the game. Two hours, 10 minutes and 37 seconds: That's how long it'll take you to watch all 895 of Ovechkin's NHL goals, generously compiled by the Caps, the only team the Great Eight has ever played for. 39: Ovi's still playing at an extremely productive clip at age 39. With five regular-season games remaining, he's already scored 42 goals this season alone, only 23 less than his all-time season high of 65, which he accomplished in his prime 17 years ago. And with the postseason looming, he's just getting started. |
| Buzzer Beaters |
| 🏀 WNBA legends Sue Bird, Maya Moore, and Sylvia Fowles headline the 2025 Basketball Hall of Fame class that will be enshrined in September. Beyond well deserved. ✌️ Two-time WNBA MVP Elena Delle Donne announced her retirement on Friday after a 10-year pro career that included seven All-Star selections and one championship with the Washington Mystics. 🏈 Legendary Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones also retired over the weekend, hanging up his cleats after 13 NFL seasons, seven Pro Bowl selections, and 60 receiving touchdowns. 🇺🇸⚽ World No. 1 USWNT forward Trinity Rodman needed just five minutes to score in Saturday's 2–0 friendly win over No. 8 Brazil. Fingers crossed for more pink braid magic in tomorrow's 10:30 p.m. ET rematch. 🏎️ Red Bull's Max Verstappen raced to his fourth straight Japanese Grand Prix win early Sunday morning thanks to a lightning fast qualifying lap on Saturday. ✅ The Detroit Pistons punched a postseason ticket for the first time since 2019 on Friday. It's been quite the glow-up for the Pistons, who won a franchise-worst 14 games total last season. 🏛️ The House v. NCAA settlement approval hearing starts today, paving the way for colleges to share revenue with student-athletes as early as next school year. But don't expect this to be the last you hear of it — the NCAA still faces legal challenges regarding the tenuous settlement agreement. |
| Together With Knix  Source: Kt by Knix Nothing says Monday like unexpectedly getting your period. Luckily, Kt — Knix's period activewear line designed specifically for teens — is serving up confidence, comfort, and protection, one leakproof tennis skort at a time.
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| The GIST's Picks |
Here's what has The GIST team currently hyped:
📺 What to watchThis sneak peek of "My Next Guest Needs No Introduction With David Letterman," featuring basketball superstar Caitlin Clark. 🏉 Who to followThese women's rugby players making history in the new Women's Elite Rugby (WER) league. Ruck yeah. 🏀 What to playMore ball games. A London-based campaign is taking down "no ball games" signs and replacing them with basketball hoops. Because kids should be able to play outside. |
| Fun & Games |
Take Your Pick | ||
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No. 1 Florida | vs | No. 1 Houston |
| The Florida Gators or the Houston Cougars — which team do you think will get their one shining moment in tonight's 8:50 p.m. ET championship? Sound off below. | ||
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Today's email was brought to you by Katie Kehoe Foster, Alessandra Puccio, Lisa Minutillo, Lauren Tuiskula, Marga Sison, Megan Murray, and Briana Ekanem. Editing by Laura Pastore. Fact-checking by Marga Sison and Rachel Fuenzalida. Ops by Marga Sison. Ads by Katie Kehoe Foster, Alessandra Puccio, and Lisa Minutillo. Managing edits by Lauren Tuiskula and Alessandra Puccio. Head of content Ellen Hyslop.
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