NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament: 68 Names to Know Heading Into March Madness

Cameron Boozer is this year’s can’t-miss star — the dominant Duke freshman and favorite for national player awards who could push Duke to its first title in 11 years.
AJ Dybantsa is the nation’s leading scorer and BYU’s freshman phenom — expect big scoring nights and plenty of NBA buzz.
The tourney is full of must-watch storylines: coaching names like Jon Scheyer, Rick Pitino and Tom Izzo, availability questions for players such as Darryn Peterson and Mikel Brown, and underdog threats like TJ Power (Penn) and Pryce Sandfort (Nebraska).

Sports

March 19, 2026 at 5:49 AM

President Trump said Israel struck Iran’s South Pars gas field and warned the U.S. could respond massively if Iran retaliates — a sharp escalation in the war.
Iran’s missile attacks hit Qatar and Saudi energy sites, causing fires and “extensive damage” at Qatar’s Ras Laffan LNG facilities and pushing energy prices up.
Foreign ministers of 12 Muslim-majority countries in Riyadh condemned Iran’s strikes and warned they could take military action as the region considers steps to protect oil routes (including possible extra U.S. troops).

War and Conflicts Business and Finance

March 19, 2026 at 4:42 AM

Miami (Ohio) snapped a 27-year NCAA Tournament drought with an 89-79 First Four win over SMU — Eian Elmer scored 22 (6-of-9 3s) and the 32-1 RedHawks advance to face No. 6 Tennessee.
Prairie View A&M notched its first-ever NCAA Tournament victory, beating Lehigh 67-55; Dontae Horne had 25 and played all 40 minutes as the Panthers move on to play defending champ Florida.
Lehigh’s star Nasir Whitlock was stifled (5 points, 2-of-15), despite Hank Alvey’s 23 and 15 rebounds — a rough night for the Patriot League champs.

Sports

March 19, 2026 at 4:01 AM

Japan pushed back on a U.S. intelligence assessment that PM Sanae Takaichi’s comments about a possible military response to a Chinese attack on Taiwan represented a “significant shift” in policy.
Takaichi’s remarks angered Beijing, prompting travel warnings and export restrictions that have worsened Japan–China ties to their lowest point in over a decade.
The disagreement could cloud an imminent summit with U.S. President Trump, already tense over his demand that Japan help escort ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

Politics

March 19, 2026 at 3:12 AM

An unredacted 2009 email from Jeffrey Epstein’s lawyer reportedly appears to contradict Donald Trump’s claim that he expelled Epstein from Mar-a-Lago.
The Justice Department had largely blacked out that email before releasing it in its Epstein records dump.
Rep. Dan Goldman said he viewed the full email and publicly displayed it on the House floor this week.

Crime Politics

March 19, 2026 at 1:51 AM