New Maryland men’s basketball head coach Buzz Williams still has six roster spots to work with as he builds his first team in College Park.

So far, he has done an impressive job after taking over a Maryland team with no returners from its 2024-25 Sweet 16 squad. Williams has brought in eight transfers, four who have followed him from Texas A&M, and one incoming freshman in McDonald’s All-American and 6-foot-5 combo guard Darius Adams.

Of course, the landscape in college basketball has changed vastly over the last few years. But the 52-year-old Williams, who has 373 career wins and has been to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament four times, is familiar with change. Maryland is Williams’ fifth stop of his head coaching career. While he will not be expected to win big in Year One, expectations across the sport are expedited with the transfer portal, NIL and soon-to-be revenue sharing.

How have Williams’ first teams at each destination failed? Let’s take a look.

2019-20 TEXAS A&M AGGIES

Record: 16-14, 10-8 SEC (Tied-6th place)

Outcome: Postseason canceled

2018-19 Record: 14-17, 6-12 SEC (11th place)

While the 2020 NCAA Tournament never happened, Williams was not taking a team that finished 131st at KenPom to The Big Dance. But after starting the season 3-5, the Aggies finished the season 13-9 and went above .500 in the SEC, which was then the sixth-best league in the country. They won their final two games and five of their final seven games before the SEC Tournament was canceled. 

Williams did not have a completely blank slate, as 50.3% of the team’s minutes returned from the 2018-19 squad, including leading scorer Savion Flagg and second-leading scorer Wendell Mitchell. Williams took over for Billy Kennedy, who was fired. The season was not anything special to write home about, especially after Texas A&M went just 8-10 in the ensuing, wacky 2020-21 season, but the Aggies ultimately were NIT runner-ups in 2022 and NCAA Tournament participants (as single-digit seeds) in each of the previous three seasons.

2014-15 VIRGINIA TECH HOKIES

Record: 11-22, 2-16 ACC (15th place)

Outcome: No postseason

2013-14 Record: 9-22, 2-16 ACC (15th place)

Williams’ successful tenure at Virginia Tech was hardly defined by his first season, which would have been impossible to find success for virtually anybody at the helm. The Hokies were in bad shape following three straight under-.500 seasons from 2011-14, eventually leading to James Johnson getting fired after only two seasons.

Virginia Tech had returned just 33.1% of the minutes from its 2013-14 squad, headlined by second-leading scorer Adam Smith (who then transferred after one year with Williams). Williams’ first season in Blacksburg, while not great record-wise, ultimately set the foundation for an NIT bid in 2016 and three straight NCAA bids from 2017-19, culminating in a Sweet 16 appearance in 2019.

2008-09 MARQUETTE GOLDEN EAGLES

Record: 25-10, 12-6 Big East (5th place)

Outcome: NCAA Tournament Round of 32

2007-08 record: 25-10, 11-7 Big East

Williams had massive success at Marquette, and it started from Day One. Tom Crean left Marquette for Indiana, and Williams took over after one season (2007-08) as an assistant in Milwaukee. Williams had the benefit of 74.2% of the minutes returning from the 2007-08 team, including Marquette’s top-four scorers in Jerel McNeal, Dominic James, Lazar Hayward and Wesley Matthews.

He brought Marquette to five straight NCAA Tournament appearances, including the Sweet 16 in 2011 and 2012 and the Elite Eight in 2013. Marquette went 17-15 overall and 9-9 in the Big East during the 2013-14 season, his last with the program before leaving for Virginia Tech.

2006-07 NEW ORLEANS PRIVATEERS

Record: 14-17, 9-9 Sun Belt (4th place in West)

Outcome: No postseason

2005-06 record: 10-19, 6-9 Sun Belt (tied-4th place in West)

After two seasons as an assistant at Texas A&M, Williams took the New Orleans job. He was only there for one season, leading a four-win improvement. The Privateers’ leading scorer from the 2005-06 team, Bo McCalebb, returned. He averaged 25 points per game under Williams. 

Devin Johnson, Williams’ longtime assistant, started as an undergraduate assistant with him during the 2006-07 season at New Orleans.

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South Dakota State makes its way north to Grand Forks to close out the regular season as the Jackrabbits prepare to take on North Dakota in a three-game series. The series at Albrecht Field between the Jacks and Fighting Hawks closes out each program’s regular season before heading into Summit League Championship action. SDSU and UND will play a 2 p.m. doubleheader on Friday followed by a 1 p.m. finale on Saturday.

The meeting features the two squads that can still claim the second seed in the upcoming conference tournament. SDSU heads into the series with a 10-5 Summit League record while UND is 7-8. One win for South Dakota State in the series will be enough to clinch a bye to the double-elimination portion of the tournament hosted by the Jacks. A series sweep by the Fighting Hawks would clinch a two seed and force SDSU into single elimination which begins play on Wednesday in Brookings. 

South Dakota State is 25-24 overall this season and North Dakota is 25-25. The Jackrabbits hold a 65-31 all-time record over the Fighting Hawks. SDSU and UND have played annually since 2010. The Jacks currently have a 12-game active win streak over the Hawks. 

SDSU is coming off a tightly contested series against Omaha at Jerald T. Moriarty Field. The series began with a pitcher’s duel that resulted in a 10-inning, 2-0 win for the Mavs. SDSU evened the series with a 7-6 victory on Saturday to begin a doubleheader. The series finale saw the Mavericks get out to a 9-0 lead, but Omaha had to withstand a Jackrabbit rally though held on for a 9-8 triumph.

Several individuals have sparked the Jackrabbit lineup over the course of the season, but none more so than Abby Gentry. The sophomore third baseman is not only the leader on the team in multiple statistical categories, but in The Summit League across nearly 50 games. Gentry leads the conference in batting average (.428), slugging percentage (.754) and RBIs (52), as well as top five in on-base percentage (.512), runs (34), hits (59), home runs (9) and walks (27). She has four current top three single-season ranks in program history including batting average, slugging percentage, on-base percentage and RBIs.

Brooke Dumont and Mia Jarecki have made their impact on the Jackrabbits’ record book. Jarecki has 11 marks that rank among the top 11 in individual categories, while Dumont has top 12 marks in 10 categories. Jarecki is at 149 career runs scored which is two runs away from breaking the school record of 150 set last year by Lindsey Culver. Dumont, who primarily plays catcher, is one runner caught stealing from setting a program record. Dumont currently has 100 RBIs while Jarecki is one away from hitting the century mark.

The Summit League schedule has seen a variety of Jackrabbits step up their play. The lineup has had the benefit of play from shortstop Emma Vike. A junior who had only four collegiate at-bats prior to the season, Vike is hitting a team-best .451 against league foes. In 15 games, Vike has two home runs, 11 RBIs, four doubles and 12 runs scored. 

SDSU’s rotation has seen Hailey Herman and Sylvia Shromoff have increased roles during Summit League action. Herman has the team’s best ERA among pitchers with over 10 innings of work with a 1.85 mark. Shromoff has made a team-high six starts across eight appearances in league play. She’s 3-1 in her Summit League outings with a 2.41 ERA. Shromoff has struck out 13 batters to 12 walks over the course of a team-best 40 2/3 innings pitched.

Coverage Information

South Dakota State’s series versus North Dakota will be streamed on The Summit League Network Powered by Midco Sports. The doubleheader on Friday will be televised on Midco Sports. Fans can watch on summitleaguenetwork.tv or on The Midco Sports Plus app with a subscription. Live stats for all games the Jackrabbits play in are available on the South Dakota State schedule page. For more information about Jackrabbit softball, you can follow the team social media accounts (@GoJacksSB) or visit the team page at GoJacks.com.

 

-GoJacks.com-

 

The 2025 NCAA Tournament ended just three weeks ago while the tip-off to next season is still about six months out. Still, in looking ahead to the next year in college basketball, ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has released an update to Bracketology with a projected field for the 2026 NCAA Tournament.

Lunardi shared that they’ll release an updated bracket, based on roster movement and anticipated offensive and defensive efficiency, once a month from now through October. This is the first edition of those for what the Field of 68 could look like in ’26.

Coming off a record-breaking year, in berths and finishes, by the conference this postseason, the SEC is atop the list again with 13 teams in the bracket, which would be one shy of last year’s new record. The Big Ten, who often projected to have double-digits in this last postseason before ending with eight in, is then still second with a dozen. The Big 12, ACC, and Big East are from there with eight, five, and four in respectively from those leagues.

Again, this is way, way early considering the portal and draft decisions still needing to be made going into the summer before the season begins in November. Still, here’s Lunardi’s first look at what March Madness could look like in 2026 with ten and a half months until Selection Sunday:

ESPN Bracketology: On the Bubble

Last Four Byes: Georgia, Maryland, Creighton, Miami
Last Four In: Marquette, Indiana, Ole Miss, NC State
First Four Out: SMU, Washington, Texas A&M, Nebraska
Next Four Out: TCU, Notre Dame, Clemson, Georgetown

The bubble is full of several teams who made the field or just missed out on the tournament last year. It’s also key for several of the leagues with the SEC close to adding a record-tying one with a 14th, the Big Ten nearing 14 in total as well, and the ACC having a chance at as many as eight

New coaches is also a theme among multiple of these programs. Buzz Williams at Maryland, Jai Lucas at Miami, Darian DeVries at Indiana, and Will Wade at NC State have their new teams just in the field in this projection while Bucky McMillan at Texas A&M is right there among the First Four Out.

Midwest Region – Chicago

Purdue is projected as one of the top teams for next season with the roster they’ll have for next season with Braden Smith, Trey Kaufman-Renn, and Fletcher Loyer leading their returners while they’re also bringing in Oscar Cluff (South Dakota State) from the portal and Omer Mayer from overseas. Lunardi also cited their consistency, both in seeding and in postseason finishes, as the reasoning why the Boilermakers were the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament for him.

The Midwest Region also includes five others teams that should rate highly coming into next season in Kentucky, Iowa State, Auburn, and Louisville. Oregon at No. 8 for the Big Ten vs. Oklahoma at No. 9 for the SEC as well as Creighton at No. 10 for the Big East rounds out the seeding before the mid-majors.

1. Purdue vs. 16. South Carolina State/Central Connecticut
8. Oregon vs. 9. Oklahoma
5. Louisville vs. 12. Liberty
4. Auburn vs. 13. High Point

6. Missouri vs. 11. San Diego State
3. Iowa State vs. 14. South Dakota State
7. Illinois vs. 10. Creighton
2. Kentucky vs. 15. North Alabama

West Region – San Jose

Houston still has some heartbreak coming off their loss in the national title game earlier this month in this year’s tournament. That said, the Cougars will be right back in contention next season as a No. 1 seed for a fourth-straight season here, with Emanuel Sharp, Joseph Tugler, and possibly Milos Uzan back and them bringing in Pop Isaacs (Creighton) plus the No. 1 recruiting class in the nation, for their dozenth year under Kelvin Sampson.

The West Region then has Michigan, led by a top portal class, at No. 2 and Tennessee, now since adding a trio of transfers and one of the best recruits in the country, at No. 3. Also of note here is UCLA at No. 4, Arkansas at No. 5 under John Calipari, and Kansas with a consecutive seeding as a No. 7 with the Jayhawks having lost much of their corps from the past few seasons.

1. Houston vs. 16. Southeast Missouri State
8. Vanderbilt vs. 9. Iowa
5. Arkansas vs. 12. Yale
4. UCLA vs. 13. Charleston

6. Gonzaga vs. 11. VCU
3. Tennessee vs. 14. McNeese State
7. Kansas vs. 10. Miami
2. Michigan vs. 15. Youngstown State

East Region – Washington D.C.

Duke is then projected to get a second-straight seeding as a No. 1 in the tournament. The Blue Devils are losing several lottery picks and some veteran guards but still have pieces like Isaiah Evans, Caleb Foster, Maliq Brown, and Patick Ngongba to complement the roster, now currently have a top incoming transfer in Cedric Coward (Washington State), and then have a trio of top freshman in their top-three class, the two legacy recruits in Cameron Boozer and Cayden Boozer plus Nikolas Khamenia, with enough to compete again next season.

The East Region also has Connecticut as a No. 2 seed, with the Huskies getting an additional boost this morning with the return of Alex Karaban, while Arizona is a No. 3 seed with some of their roster still intact to pair with their own top-three incoming class. Blue bloods like Michigan State at No. 4 and North Carolina as a No. 7, with an all-new roster with the Tar Heels, are also here with three teams from the Lonestar State as well, who are all dealing with some roster overhaul, with No. 5 Texas Tech, No. 8 Texas now under Sean Miller, and No. 9 Baylor.

1. Duke vs. 16. Vermont/Jackson State
8. Texas vs. 9. Baylor
5. Texas Tech vs. 12. Illinois State
4. Michigan State vs. 13. Miami (OH)

6. Alabama  vs. 11. Memphis
3. Arizona vs. 14. Troy
7. North Carolina vs. 10. Maryland
2. Connecticut vs. 15. Siena

South Region – Houston

St. John’s, coming off one of their best seasons in school history, could now be even better in year three under Rick Pitino as the last of the projected No. 1 seeds for the tournament. The Red Storm did lose some notable pieces, due to eligibility or the portal, but do return Zuby Ejifor to go with six of the very best transfers in the country.

The South also has BYU, coming off a great season with two returning starters to pair with AJ Dybantsa, the No. 1 recruit in the country for 2025, and Rob Wright (Baylor) out of the portal, at No. 2 while Florida, the defending national champions, are at No. 3. This region has several of those new coaches or programs getting back into the bracket too like Eric Musselman with the Trojans at No. 4 plus DeVries and the Hoosiers as well as Wade and the Wolfpack.

1. St. John’s vs. 16. Navy
8. Cincinnati vs. 9. Georgia
5. Ohio State vs. 12. Grand Canyon
4. USC vs. 13. UC Santa Barbara

6. Wisconsin vs. 11. Ole Miss/NC State
3. Florida vs. 14. Furman
7. Mississippi State vs. 10. Marquette/Indiana
2. BYU vs. 15. Idaho

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Middle Tennessee softball will host UTEP at Blue Raider Softball Field for its final series of the 2025 season. The games are scheduled for 6:00 p.m. on Friday, 4:00 p.m. on Saturday—followed by the Senior Day ceremony—and 12:00 p.m. on Sunday to close out the series. Each game will be streamed on ESPN+, and live stats will be available via StatBroadcast.

In their most recent Conference USA series, the Blue Raiders were swept by NM State, dropping all three games. MTSU now holds a 23-27 overall record and sits at 10-14 in conference play, ranking eighth in Conference USA.

The Blue Raiders rank second in the conference with 59 home runs this season and set the NCAA’s longest home run streak of 2025, hitting at least one in 23 consecutive games from March 1 through April 12. Their 59 home runs also rank 38th nationally. Leading the power surge are Ansley Blevins with 12 home runs, and Addy Edgmon and Jana Want with 10 each. In total, 11 Blue Raiders have contributed to the home run total.

Individually, Ava Tepe leads Conference USA in hit-by-pitches with 12 this season. With 39 in her Blue Raider career, Tepe set the program record after being hit twice last Friday. The senior first baseman ranks 35th nationally in the category. Another Blue Raider atop a conference leaderboard is Macie Harter, who has recorded five triples this season—tied with Claire Raley of LA Tech for the CUSA lead and ranking 26th nationally.

Scouting NM State

The 2025 UTEP Miners hold a 22-25 overall record and are also 10-14 in Conference USA play. In their most recent series, the Miners defeated Kennesaw State two games to one. MTSU holds a 7-12 all-time record against UTEP but has gone 6-4 over the last 10 matchups. The Miners are led by head coach T.J. Hubbard, who has held the role since 2019.

UTEP’s standout player is Ajia Richard, who is having a historic season. Richard boasts a .493 batting average with 68 hits, 12 doubles, and 12 home runs.

FOLLOW THE BLUE RAIDERS     

Follow Middle Tennessee Softball on social media on Facebook (Blue Raider Softball), Twitter (MT_Softball) and Instagram (@mt_softball). 

MADISON, Wis. – Senior Braeden Carrington has signed with the Wisconsin men’s basketball team, head coach Greg Gard announced Wednesday. 

“Braeden brings three years of college basketball experience to our program along with a level of maturity and understanding of the Big Ten that is crucial in today’s landscape of roster composition,” Gard said. “We’ve followed his career since he was in high school where he won a state championship in Minnesota.  He knows our program and several of our current and former players very well which made for an easy and comfortable transition for him to come back to the Big Ten.  We’re excited to have Braeden on campus starting in June as we prepare our team for the 2025-26 season.”

“I’m excited to be a part of a winning program,” Carrington said. “They have been solidified in the Big Ten for plenty of years. It’s a great coaching staff and I’m excited to get to Madison”

A 6-5 guard, Carrington spent his first two seasons of college basketball at Minnesota, before playing at Tulsa during the 2024-25 season. 

As a member of the Golden Hurricane, Carrington played in 29 games, making 19 starts while averaging 7.4 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. He recorded his first career double-double against Missouri State, putting up 20 points and 10 boards. 

Before transferring to Tulsa, Carrington played for the Golden Gophers in his home state of Minnesota. Carrington started 10 of 29 games as a sophomore, averaging 4.6 points in 21.0 minutes per game. His season-high came on the road against Iowa, scoring 18 points. He earned Academic All-Big Ten honors. 

During his freshman year, Carrington played in 22 games, missing action due to injuries. He put up 5.9 points per game as a true freshman, impressing in his Big Ten debut by scoring 9 points with six rebounds against Purdue. Carrington got his first taste of a Border Battle, collecting 11 points and eight rebounds in a 71-67 loss to Wisconsin. 

A Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, native, Carrington played for Park Center High School, guiding the team to a 31-1 record and 2022 4A state title in his senior season. Carrington was named Minnesota’s Mr. Basketball after averaging 17.8 points per game and was the 140th nationally ranked recruit for the class of 2022.

VILLANOVA, Pa. – The 2025 regular season will end this weekend for Villanova softball (24-24-1, 12-9 BIG EAST) as the Providence Friars come to town for a three-game series at the VU Softball Complex that’s pivotal for conference tournament berths.

PREPARING FOR PROVIDENCE 

It’s a critical BIG EAST weekend for both teams playing at the Villanova Softball Complex this weekend when the Providence Friars come to the Main Line for the regular season finale. Both teams are fighting for a berth at next week’s BIG EAST Tournament with just one game separating these two squads in the standings. The Wildcats and Friars have met on nearly 90 occasions all-time with Villanova owning 25 more wins than PC, including a 14-W edge at home and victories in the last 14 contests of the series. VU has swept the last four series matchups with Providence, including the 2024 bouts at Glay Field. The ‘Cats picked up a pair of run-rule victories to bookend that weekend with a 4-1 Friday win rounding out the set.

CELEBRATING THE SENIORS    

The regular season comes to a close this weekend in college softball, so it’s time for the Wildcats to officially honor their seniors. Villanova will recognize their four-person senior class in a pregame ceremony on Saturday, slated to begin at 11:50 a.m. on the field at the VU Softball Complex. The ‘Cats will recognize seniors Ava Franz, Alexa Raphael, Elaina Wagner and Kelsey White, a class that has won over 125 games and a pair of league titles in addition to appearing in six NCAA Tournament games. This group has combined for over 380 hits, 270 runs and 250 RBI while White alone has racked up more than 300 innings and 180 strikeouts in the circle. Raphael has been critical as a pinch runner and depth outfielder, Franz is a two-time All-BIG EAST selection whose name is all over the record books, White has won a pair of BIG EAST All-Tournament Team nods as a two-way player and Wagner had a breakout all-conference junior year before serving as a team captain in 2025.

THE BOOK ON THE BIG EAST STANDINGS    

It’ll be a dramatic weekend to close BIG EAST regular season play as three spots remain up for grabs in the conference tournament. St. John’s and Connecticut have locked up the top two seeds and first round byes as none of the others can catch those two, but the Red Storm and Huskies will compete at UConn this weekend for the league’s regular season title. Butler is the team on bye this week, stuck at 14-10 in league play which is good enough to lock in a bid but the seed line is still up in the air. Beyond that, it’s four teams competing for three spots, and all four play another team still in contention. Villanova is currently in fourth at 12-9 and two victories over PC would lock in a spot, but VU winning just one means it’s tiebreaker time. Creighton and Seton Hall are currently in fifth and sixth but the Bluejays and Pirates play each other and will need some wins to earn another week together.

FEELING OUT THE FRIARS

• Providence owns a 22-26 overall record, but is right in the BIG EAST Tournament hunt with an 11-10 mark in conference. The Friars own series wins over Creighton, Seton Hall and Georgetown as well as DePaul (a sweep), but haven’t played a BIG EAST game since April 17 due to last week being PC’s bye.
• Elisa Smith is Providence’s top hitter with 57 hits, 36 runs and a .388 batting average. Cameron Dunn adds an OPS over 1.000 with a team-best eight homers and 80 total bases, Gabriella Lee contributes 41 hits and 15 stolen bases and Emma Douma leads the team with 11 doubles on the campaign.
• The PC pitching staff features a number of talented arms, led by Tori Grifone’s 18 starts and 105 innings with a .243 average against her. Jessica Walter contributes a 2.91 ERA, Alyssa Twomey has 54 strikeouts in 22 appearances and Alannah Hopkins has pitched 16 times for the Friars.

All three matchups will stream on FloCollege with statistics courtesy of StatBroadcast. First pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. on Friday, 12:15 p.m. on Saturday due to Senior Day festivities and 12:00 p.m. for Sunday’s regular season finale.

Keep up with the Villanova University softball program through social media by following on X formerly known as Twitter (@VUSoftball) and Instagram (@novasoftball) and ‘liking’ on Facebook (/VUSoftball).