Enjoy that sh!t
From The GIST (hi@thegistsports.com)
Leveling The Playing Field
Hump day!
On Wednesdays, we crown champions. The Unrivaled title game tips off tonight at 9:30 p.m. ET, so of course we’ll have a special edition preview in your inbox later today. And until then, hoop to the latest sports news.
— Two-time Olympian and UCLA gymnast Jordan Chiles, who partnered with humanitarian organization CARE for their International Women’s Day campaign all about breaking down the systemic barriers that hold gals back. A message we can certainly get behind.
NCAA women’s basketball
🎓🏀 Gotta stretch before you dance
The GIST: March Madness is nearly here, but first conference tournaments serve as the perfect warmup, with NCAA squads fighting for rivalry wins, trophies, and most importantly, automatic bids to The Big Dance. The women’s action gets underway today — let’s boogie right into this primer.
⚙️ How it works: Thirty-one conferences will host single-elimination tourneys from now through next Friday, leading up to Selection Sunday on March 15th (when the March Madness bracket is officially set). Of the 68 spots available, 31 will automatically go to the conference tournament winners, making these end-of-season competitions especially crucial.
- And while the top squads can count on at-large bids if they don’t win their conference, bubble teams rely on strong conference tourney performances to make their case. No pressure.
📺 What to watch: The Power Four conferences — the ACC, SEC, Big Ten, and Big 12 — tip off today, but you’ll have to wait until Friday to see nationally-ranked teams like No. 2 UCLA (Big Ten), No. 3 South Carolina (SEC), and No. 10 TCU (Big 12), as their regular-season performance earned them byes to their respective quarter-finals.
- In the meantime, we recommend checking out the stacked SEC, arguably the most competitive of the bunch, with teams like No. 7 Oklahoma and No. 17 Kentucky hitting the hardwood in the next 24 hours. Let the madness begin.
World Baseball Classic
⚾ Signs of spring
The GIST: Missing high-stakes international competition? Have no fear. The World Baseball Classic (WBC) — the quadrennial tourney featuring baseball’s best competing for their countries — officially begins tonight at 10 p.m. ET. From how it works to the superstars taking the diamond, here’s everything you need to know ahead of first pitch. Play ball, baby.
✅ The set-up: Twenty teams were divided into four pools (A, B, C, and D). Every squad plays round-robin tilts against each team in their pool, with games taking place at ballparks around the world (Tokyo, San Juan, Houston, and Miami). The top two teams from each group advance to a traditional single-elimination style tourney, culminating in the March 17th championship game.
- And there’s a lot more than bragging rights on the line: The two top WBC finishers from the Americas will secure a spot in the LA 2028 Olympics — excluding Team USA, who automatically qualify as the hosts — when baseball returns after a one-cycle hiatus. Hey batter batter.
⏪ Last time around: The 2023 edition had a storybook ending as Japan’s Shohei Ohtani struck out his former MLB teammate, Team USA’s Mike Trout, to give Samurai Japan its third WBC title. That magnificent moment kickstarted a run of dominance for the inimitable Ohtani. Now he’s back for more — but this time only as a hitter.
- Across the diamond, Team USA is once again stacked with MLB talent and enter as the favorites to win their second title and first since 2017. Aaron Judge, Cal “Big Dumper” Raleigh, Bryce Harper, and so many more in the same lineup? It’s championship or bust.
🏈 Detroit Lions trade star running back (RB) David Montgomery to Houston Texans
It’s the end of the Sonic and Knuckles era in Detroit after the 28-year-old was traded on Monday. Montgomery and his partner-in-touchdowns RB Jahmyr Gibbs made up one of the NFL’s best backfields, but Gibbs took on a larger role last season, relegating Montgomery to a career-low 158 rushing attempts. Now, Montgomery heads to a Texans team in dire need of a superstar RB.
- Expect the NFL trade market to keep heating up with the start of the new league year slated for March 11th. Two superstars to watch? Free agents Super Bowl MVP, Seattle Seahawks RB Kenneth Walker III, and Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson.
🏀 WNBA, Players’ Union exchange proposals as March 10th collective bargaining agreement deadline looms
Though the WNBPA’s February 27th proposal included some concessions on housing and revenue sharing, a major sticking point continues to be whether the revenue share model should hinge on gross or net revenue — something that notably wasn’t updated in the league’s March 1st counterproposal, which stood firm on its original 70% of net revenue offer.
- Still, the WNBA did offer intriguing counters: the ability for young superstars to sign maximum contracts in their fourth year (one year earlier than the current CBA allows) and a $5.75M salary cap (up from $1.5M in 2025). Focusing on “the gain not the gap.”
🇺🇸⚽ No. 2 USWNT hosts No. 10 CanWNT in the SheBelieves Cup tonight at 6:45 p.m. ET
Today officially marks 99 days until the FIFA men’s World Cup, but tonight, expect sparks to fly at SheBelieves in Columbus, Ohio. ICYMI, the Americans pulled out a gritty 2–0 tourney opening win on Sunday, but forward Trinity Rodman took a hard fall and potentially reaggravated a back injury in the final minutes. Thankfully, she’s been cleared to play tonight. Phew.
Take Your Pick
👻 Phantom BC
🌧️ Mist BC
The countdown is on to tonight’s 9:30 p.m. ET Unrivaled championship. Ahead of our special edition preview sliding into your inbox later today, which team are you rolling with in the title game?
Today’s email was brought to you by Alessandra Puccio, Lisa Minutillo, Lauren Tuiskula, Grace DePaull, and Charlotte Mackenzie. Fact-checking by Elisha Gunaratnam and Mikaela Perez. Ops by Briana Ekanem and Elisha Gunaratnam. Managing edits by Lauren Tuiskula and Alessandra Puccio. Head of content Ellen Hyslop.