Who needs top 100 recruits to win a natty? Not these guys that’s for sure.

Today’s Lineup

🎉 Happy birthday to Saddiq Bey and 1950s Warriors legend Paul Arizin! 🎉

Game Recaps

Gators grit past Houston 65-63 for third National Championship

In the tumultuous era of NIL, there’s something wholly refreshing about a team without a single top 100 high school prospect cutting down the nets.

Not quite a Cinderella, but not exactly built like the blue-bloods either—the 2025 Florida Gators just hooped. With a title run every bit as impressive as their ‘06 and ‘07 predecessors, Florida battled through a brutal bracket to bring a third championship back to Gainesville.

Their final test? A war against a rugged Houston squad fresh off slaying Cooper Flagg’s Duke in the Final Four. But, when the Cougars jumped out to a 12-point lead early in the second half, powered by L.J. Cryer (18 PTS), the Gators didn’t back down an inch.

The final minutes turned into a defensive slugfest, with buckets hard to come by. And when it mattered most, Florida made the winning plays: Will Richard (18 PTS) poked away a crucial steal with 26 seconds left, and tournament star Walter Clayton Jr. (11 PTS, 7 AST) locked up the final possession, forcing Emmanuel Sharp into a bailout play that will forever be engrained in March Madness lore.

Porzingis torches former squad; Celtics win OT thriller over Knicks 119-117

On a night where the Western Conference’s best battled it out for critical playoff seeding, the Knicks and Celtics proved that you can’t beat a good ol’ fashioned classic regional rivalry.

The Knicks started this one on the front foot, riding some excellent post work from Karl-Anthony Towns (34 PTS, 14 REB) to a six point halftime lead. But, he wasn’t about to be outdone by his fellow seven footer on the other side. While KAT dominated the paint Kristaps Porzingis (34 PTS, 8 3PM) rained in triples with impunity to give the Celtics offense some life.

And in the clutch, Jayson Tatum (32 PTS) burying the tough stepback triple over OG Anunoby to send it to OT where Porzingis nailed another clutch three to send the Celtics home from Madison Square Garden with a W. 🍀

Elsewhere around the NBA…

• Are we going crazy, or is nobody talking about how insane Paolo Banchero (33 PTS, 10 REB) has been down the stretch this season. He’s averaging nearly 30 and 8 since the all-star break, and put up some monster numbers once again last night in the Magic’s 119-112 win over Atlanta.

• The Lakers and Thunder looked like they were headed for a photo finish until Luka Doncic (23 PTS) got ejected for talking trash to a fan. Led another MVP-level performance from SGA (42 PTS), OKC cruised through the rest of the 4th to pull away for a comfortable 136-120 W.

• Fueled by a flurry of threes and a Giannis Antetokounmpo (23 PTS, 13 REB, 10 AST) triple double, the Bucks pulled off one of the most astounding comebacks you will ever see. Down 24 in the 4th, Milwaukee ripped off a 34-3 run to somehow not only beat the Timberwolves 110-103, but have it wrapped up with time to spare.

NBA News Roundup

Malone and Booth fired as Nuggets clean house in shocking move

Baffling, befuddling, bewildering, head-scratching, perplexing. .Just a few of the reactions we had as news broke that the defending champs are cleaning house two weeks before the playoffs. Head Coach Michael Malone and GM Calvin Booth are both out in Denver—and we’re still picking our jaws up off the floor.

That’s not to say everything has been bright and rosy in the Mile High City. The Nuggets form under Malone has been up-and-down in 2025, and Booths decisions to part ways with key role players in off-season’s past like Bruce Brown and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is looking more and more painful as the bench continues to thin. But still… this? From the outside, it didn’t feel anywhere near this level of drastic.

And yet, here we are—another twist in what’s shaping up to be one of the wildest, weirdest NBA seasons in recent memory…

Three in the Key

Seeking impartial news? Meet 1440.

Every day, 3.5 million readers turn to 1440 for their factual news. We sift through 100+ sources to bring you a complete summary of politics, global events, business, and culture, all in a brief 5-minute email. Enjoy an impartial news experience.

Join for free today!

Signing Off

Thanks for reading y’all. Before we go, sending our thoughts and prayers to Grizzlies rookie Jaylen Wells after his scary fall last night. Hoping for a speedy and full recovery. 💙

Talk soon,

Spencer Poole