No. 12 High Point put everyone on notice for the second time in as many games this March Madness, but could not find the same success.

After advancing to the Round of 32 following an upset victory over No. 5 Wisconsin, the Panthers’ season ended after No. 4 Arkansas ran away from them late Saturday night.

High Point led by as many as five early in the game, and they were up 56-52 with 14:17 to go after going on a 12-2 run. 

Both teams exchanged buckets for several minutes, with no one expanding their respective leads by more than three points for a little while.

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With 7:04 to play, the Panthers took a 72-71 lead, to which the Razorbacks responded with a 10-2 run, putting them up by seven and giving them their largest lead of the night.

The game was then quickly tied at 83 after a wild run by High Point, but over the final 3:19, Arkansas outscored High Point, 11-5, to snatch the victory, despite a valiant effort from the Panthers.

High Point Panthers forward Terry Anderson (5) drives against Arkansas Razorbacks forward Malique Ewin (12) and forward Billy Richmond III (24) in the second half during a second round game of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Moda Center. (Craig Strobeck/Imagn Images)

VANDERBILT’S HAIL MARY SHOT MISSES BY NARROWEST OF MARGINS AS NEBRASKA ADVANCES TO SWEET 16 IN EPIC FASHION

Arkansas was favored by 11.5, and while they couldn’t cover, it was another Sweet 16 appearance for legendary head coach John Calipari.

Two Panthers, Rob Martin (30) and Cam’Ron Fletcher (25), combined for 55 points, but Darius Acuff Jr. of Arkansas trumped everyone by dropping 36.

Arkansas will face the winner of No. 1 Arizona and No. 9 Utah State in the Sweet 16.

High Point Panthers head coach Flynn Clayman and forward Braden Hausen (15) react in the second half against the Arkansas Razorbacks during a second round game of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Moda Center. (Craig Strobeck/Imagn Images)

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High Point’s victory over Wisconsin on Thursday marked their first ever in March Madness after making the tournament last year for the first time.

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Luka Doncic is on fire, Daniss Jenkins has a great opportunity and Ayo Dosunmu is rockin’ for the Minnesota Timberwolves. Meanwhile, Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks have different visions, Aaron Gordon is prepping for the playoffs and Mikal Bridges isn’t doing much right now.

With only three weeks left in the NBA’s regular season, enjoy the final Risers and Fallers column of the season. It’s been my pleasure!

Resources: Rankings | Adds/Drops | Scoring leaders | Player Rater | Mock draft lobby | Depth charts | Schedule | Injuries

Risers

play

Stephen A. makes case for Luka Doncic to win NBA MVP

Stephen A. Smith explains why Luka Doncic is “a top candidate” for MVP this season.

Luka Doncic, PG, Los Angeles Lakers (100% rostered in ESPN leagues)

Doncic has been on an historic eight-game run and capped it off with a 60-point bonanza in a win over Miami on Thursday night, the Lakers’ 11th win in their last 12 games. Doncic has averaged 50 points over the last two days/games and has scored at least 30 points in eight straight, all of which were Lakers wins.

The fact that he averaged 50 points in a back-to-back set in March is mind blowing and he had averaged 34.9 points, 9.0 rebounds, 7.9 assists and 5.0 3-pointers for the month going into Thursday’s game. He then hit nine 3-pointers and had five steals in that one, and is carrying fantasy teams right now.

He’s the first Laker to score 60 since Kobe Bryant did it in the “Mamba Out” game and his fantasy managers have been on easy street during the run. The only question left in fantasy is, did he peak too early? Unfortunately, the answer is probably ‘yes,’ as the fantasy playoffs are just getting ready to start for most of us. The good news is that the Lakers are going to keep trying to hang onto third-place in the West so Luka should keep putting up stellar numbers through the end of the season. And if he keeps playing like this he might end up with some MVP hardware, while his fantasy managers might end up with some hardware of their own.

Daniss Jenkins, PG, Detroit Pistons (21.0% rostered)

Cade Cunningham left Tuesday’s game after just five minutes with what was originally reported as back spams, but it turned out to be a serious injury in the form of a collapsed lung. He’ll be re-evaluated in two weeks, which is some of the worst fantasy news I’ve heard this season.

Jenkins stepped in for Cunningham on Tuesday and finished with 15 points and seven assists in 21 minutes, and then got the start on Thursday. Unfortunately, he hit just 3-of-16 shots to finish with nine points and five dimes in a win over Washington. But the good news is that he started, played 34 minutes, took more shots than anyone else on his team and even had a block.

Jenkins, who has played well when given an opportunity this season, was likely grabbed in 12-team leagues as soon as the Cunningham news broke thanks to his potential to help in most categories, including steals, blocks and threes. But regardless of what size league you play in, go check and make sure he’s not still available. He’s about to go on a two-week tear, if not longer.

Ayo Dosunmu, SG, Minnesota Timberwolves (33.0% rostered)

Dosunmu is going to get a huge opportunity due to Anthony Edwards‘ right knee inflammation, which will cause him to miss one-to-two weeks. Dosunmu has already played two games without Edwards and he’s been stellar, to the tune of 21 points, 7.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 1.5 steals and 2.0 3-pointers in two wins for the Wolves.

Dosunmu gets a bad rap in fantasy circles thanks to a lack of steals, blocks and 3-pointers and much of it is deserved, but he did have three steals on Thursday night and he should get about 34 minutes per game for the next two weeks.

Flip a coin as to whether he or Jenkins is the better pickup right now.

Fallers

play

Shams reveals latest on Giannis’ back-and-forth with Bucks

The ‘Get Up’ crew discusses the tension between Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks over shutting him down for the rest of the season.

Giannis Antetokounmpo, PF/C, Milwaukee Bucks (98.3% rostered)

ESPN’s Shams Charania reported on Thursday that the Bucks and Antetokounmpo are in disagreement over whether or not he should play again this season. To his credit, Antetokounmpo wants to play, despite a current hyperextended knee. The reality is that while the Bucks have yet to be mathematically eliminated, they’re not going to make the playoffs … and Antetokounmpo is not healthy.

Even if he comes back to play this season, how many minutes are the Bucks going to be willing to give their franchise player in meaningless games? And what kind of damage will this impasse do to his relationship and future with the franchise? My guess is the team will get its way in the end and I’ll put Antetokounmpo’s over/under for games played the rest of the season at 2.5.

With those kinds of odds, I’m afraid he probably belongs on the waiver wire, assuming you don’t have an injured reserve spot available on your roster. Hold Antetokounmpo for as long as you can, but if you need to drop him to make the playoffs — or to win in the playoffs — it makes sense.

Bobby Portis (55.9% rostered) has been playing very well for the Bucks of late, while Ousmane Dieng (1.8% rostered) should be widely available and have a big opportunity for the final few weeks of the season.

Mikal Bridges, SG/SF, New York Knicks (96.0% rostered)

The Knicks are sitting comfortably in third place in the East and are 7-3 over their last 10 games. And while they haven’t played much competition, they did have a big win at Denver on March 6. But the Knicks’ player not getting much attention on SportsCenter, or anywhere else right now, is Bridges.

Over his last seven games Bridges is averaging just 7.0 points, 1.0 3-pointers, 0.7 steals and 1.3 blocks while shooting a dreadful 32% from the floor. Most of his fantasy appeal comes from his efficiency and ability to steal, block and hit 3-pointers, but it just isn’t happening for him right now. And with Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, OG Anunoby and Karl-Anthony Towns doing all the heavy lifting for the Knicks, I don’t see it changing any time soon.

Bridges still has some fantasy appeal, but it’s crunch time in fantasy right now, and tough decisions are in order. If your team with Bridges on it is struggling, or if you’re in a field goal percentage battle, dropping Bridges isn’t a crazy idea. He’ll break out of the funk at some point, but the fact remains he’s going to likely be the fifth offensive option in New York the rest of the way.

Aaron Gordon, PF, Denver Nuggets (71.1% rostered)

Gordon is playing for the Nuggets again after a hamstring injury but Peyton Watson (hamstring) should be back any day now. That’s going to leave the Nuggets crowded up front with Gordon, Watson and Spencer Jones all needing minutes, not to mention Christian Braun, Bruce Brown and Tim Hardaway Jr. And the only thing the Nuggets should really care about is having Gordon healthy for the playoffs.

Gordon is struggling over his last five games, averaging just 13 points and 5.4 rebounds on 42% shooting. Meanwhile, Watson was playing at a pretty high level when he went down with his injury. I expect Gordon and Watson to be in a timeshare, at best, over the final few weeks of the season and I can envision Gordon’s minutes being monitored closely in hopes of having him 100% for the start of the playoffs.

Gordon is more important to the Nuggets than he is to your fantasy team and it makes sense for managers to look for a potential “silly-season” hero with upside for their playoff run. I would drop Gordon to pick up Jenkins, for example.

The 2026 men’s basketball tournament rolls into the second round Saturday with some giant matchups. Which are the games to bet on?

Throughout the tourney, I will provide my best bets for each round as well as my picks for the new ESPN Men’s Tournament Challenge Eliminator game.

Saturday’s picks went 2-0, with Mark predicting Michigan State to cover and Duke to reach the over on their team total.

Note: Odds by DraftKings Sportsbook at time of Friday’s publication and subject to change.

Sunday’s best bets

Note: Odds by DraftKings Sportsbook at time of Saturday’s publication and subject to change.

(1) Arizona -11.5 (-110) vs. (9) Utah State
Game time: 7:50 p.m. ET (truTV)

The Wildcats were beyond impressive against Long Island, dominating both offensively and defensively. Utah State, on the other hand, needed to shoot 55% from the field — combined with Villanova scoring just three total points over the last 6:04 of the game — to steal a come-from-behind win in its first game. What stands out to me here is that this line feels short. Arizona was laying this same 11.5 to BYU, a better team in KenPom’s adjusted efficiency margin, which says a lot. The Wildcats were also favored by 9.5 over Kansas, which is 21st in adjusted efficiency margin. Add in the Aggies’ poor 3-point shooting defense (214th in the nation), and Arizona should overwhelm them over the course of 40 minutes.

(7) Kentucky vs. (2) Iowa State OVER 145.5 (-110)
Game time: 2:45 p.m. ET (CBS)

Kentucky needed overtime to escape Santa Clara, and Iowa State won easily over Tennessee State but likely lost All-American forward Joshua Jefferson in the process. Even without Jefferson, I still like the Iowa State offense here. The Cyclones are excellent from 3-point range, making 38.9% from beyond the arc, and I don’t see Kentucky being able to slow them down. Santa Clara shot 41% from the field and still managed to score 73 points in regulation against the Wildcats.

Led by Otega Oweh, who is coming off a 35-point performance, Kentucky will use its pace and size to score. And while the Cyclones don’t play fast overall on offense, they average just 16.6 seconds per offensive possession, which is 68th in the country. Kentucky will do the rest on offense here. If these teams shoot to their season average, they should get over this number.

Sunday’s Eliminator pick

Iowa State

The Cyclones are a question mark as we go forward because of Jefferson’s injury status, so it’s best to use them now. If they get deeper, the possible loss of Jefferson would loom even larger. Plus, I don’t see Iowa State coming out of this bracket.

How to play ESPN Eliminator Challenge.

Saturday’s best bets in review

Best bets

(3) Michigan State -4.5 (-112) vs. (6) Louisville
Game time: 2:45 p.m. ET

The Spartans’ defense is the key here. Offensively, I don’t expect Michigan State to duplicate its 59% shooting from the field recorded against North Dakota State. But the Spartans’ defense will be equally menacing. It should be no surprise that Louisville shot 54% from the field and 52% from the 3-point range, but that won’t be the case against the Spartans’ D, which is 13th in adjusted efficiency. Louisville has played against a team in the top 20 in defensive efficiency six times this season and it has lost five times, with the only win coming over offensively inept Cincinnati. The Cardinals almost blew a 23-point lead in the second half. I’ll play against the 3-point variance of Louisville here and back the Spartans.

(1) Duke team total OVER 75.5 (-125) vs. (9) TCU
Game time: 5:15 p.m. ET

Duke survived a major scare from 16-seed Siena to advance. Duke also put forth it’s fourth-lowest shooting percentage from the field this season and its worst 3-point shooting percentage (19%) against the Saints. That will normalize and regress to the mean against TCU. The Horned Frogs are not a great D in terms of opposing shooting percentage, ranking 154th in effective field goal percentage defense. The Blue Devils should also feast inside as the more dominant rebounding team. TCU goes fast on offense, averaging just 16.7 second per possession, which is 75th in the nation. If the Horned Frogs are scoring, it will force Duke to continue pushing the pace. After a disappointing performance in the round of 64, I expect a focused effort from Duke on the offensive end.

Eliminator pick

Vanderbilt

The Commodores’ elite shooting and inside presence are worth backing. It’s telling that the lower-seeded team is favored here. I’m also willing to play against Nebraska’s 3-point variance and the high of its first-ever NCAA tournament win.

How to play ESPN Eliminator Challenge