Trae Young, the four-time NBA All-Star, is focused on getting acclimated with his new Washington Wizards teammates and finishing the 2025-26 NBA season strong. 

But it’s hard to ignore the feelings that come about this time every year as the NCAA Tournament returns, especially if you’ve played in it. 

They call it March Madness for a reason. Raucous crowds, tense atmospheres on the court, late-second heroics, David versus Goliath moments – you name it, this tournament is what players and fans alike look forward to each year. 

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For Young, it was a one-and-done moment with the Oklahoma Sooners in 2018, a season that put the freshman point guard on the map was one of the best players in the country despite the result. Of course, Young never intended to just play one March Madness game, but Rhode Island got the best of Oklahoma that day in 2018, and the first player to ever lead the NCAA in points and assists in a single season, later declared for the NBA Draft. 

So, as he looks ahead to this year’s tournament, Young has a key piece of advice for all those about to embark on their March Madness journeys, whether they’re from a big program or made “The Dance” as a conference champion.

“I think the main thing I learned was just understanding that you may or may not get another chance at this,” he told Fox News while discussing his exciting partnership with Sling TV and its fun promotion for college basketball fans ahead of the NCAA Tournament. “Going into my freshman year, I thought I was going to have a couple chances. The way the season panned out, I just got the one.

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“So, you never know how many shots you’re going to get to be able to even have a chance to play in the tournament. Just to make sure you’re focused and locked in on every part of this journey, because you never know when you have to move on to the next one.”

For players, it can certainly be hard to take a step back and appreciate the moment all hoopers dream of. Young understands it, too, as he still remembers the emotions he felt when he took the court. 

“I don’t know if nervous is necessarily the word, but I had so many emotions. It was probably in there, but I was anxious and ready to play,” he reminisced. “But I remember everything, from the bus ride, walking to the bus and all the fans being there, and being such a big deal for the university. 

Trae Young of the Oklahoma Sooners drives to the basket against Fatts Russell #2 of the Rhode Island Rams in the second half during the first round of the 2018 NCAA Photos via Getty Images Men’s Basketball Tournament held at PPG Paints Arena on March 15, 2018 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Ben Solomon/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)

“Everything about that whole experience, even if it was just one game, I’ll never forget that whole experience and being a part of March Madness for sure.”

Young went on to score 28 points, while dishing out seven assists with five rebounds. But Rhode Island took the first-round victory in overtime, ending any chance the No. 10 Sooners could go on an underdog run. 

But underdogs are who Young hasn’t stopped rooting for in the tournament since then, and that just might include his Sooners if they can make a run in the SEC Tournament. Oklahoma, ranked 11th for the conference tournament, defeated the No. 14 South Carolina Gamecocks on Wednesday night to start off on the right foot.

“We’re getting hot at the right time and that’s all that matters. If we win a couple wins here, find our way to have more of a foot in for the tournament, I’m going to be really excited,” he said about his former team. 

UNDERDOGS WIN WITH SLING TV

Speaking of those higher seeds in the tournament, Young’s partnership with Sling TV is rewarding college basketball fans with a promotion that mirrors the excitement of every unexpected upset in March Madness. 

Young and Sling TV have invited fans to explore a flexible viewing experience with newly-launched 1-, 3- and 7-Day Pass subscriptions to watch March Madness games live. 

Trae Young partnered with Sling TV to help deliver flexibility for college basketball fans ahead of March Madness. (Sling TV)

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And, from March 19-22, if any No. 12-16 seed advances to the Sweet 16 in either the men’s or women’s tournaments, eligible customers can claim their next 1-Day Pass for just one dollar. 

“It’s super cool just being able to be a part of something [with Sling TV], and the fans are such a big part of doing something like this,” Young explained. “To be able to have more fans engaged on it and be even more ready to watch these games, sitting on their couches and watching these games. It’s super cool to be a part of this with Sling TV and rooting for the underdogs.”

If that underdog makes it to the Sweet 16, fans will be able to redeem their 1-Day Pass at any time through the championship game, which will take at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on April 6. 

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Arsenal are ready to join Manchester City in the race to land Newcastle right back Tino Livramento, while Tottenham defender and captain Cristian Romero is likely to leave at the end of the season. Join us for the latest transfer news and rumors from around the globe.

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TRENDING RUMORS

– Arsenal are considering an offer to sign Newcastle right back Tino Livramento this summer, reports The Daily Telegraph. Livramento, 23, has a contract until 2028, but it’s claimed that talks over a possible extension have been shelved. Newcastle want the England international to stay, but Arsenal are keen, while Manchester City have also been linked with a move at a cost of around £60 million.

– There is a serious possibility that Tottenham defender and captain Cristian Romero could leave in the coming months, according to Fabrizio Romano. A number of top clubs have reportedly been calling about a transfer, as uncertainty continues over his long-term future at Spurs with the club in the midst of a relegation battle. The Argentina World Cup winner has a contract until 2029, so his exit could raise some significant funds.

– Arsenal have held initial talks with RB Leipzig over a possible deal for defender Castello Lukeba, claims L’Equipe. The report suggests that the Gunners are one of several teams looking at the France center back, with Bayern Munich also in the picture. The 23-year-old has a contract with Leipzig until 2029, while the Bundesliga club values his transfer at around €60 million.

– Juventus and AC Milan have joined a number of MLS clubs in the race to sign Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski, reports Calciomercato. The 37-year-old is set to become a free agent in the summer, with his contract entering the final few months, and has scored 115 goals and assisted 23 times for the Blaugrana in 181 appearances since joining from Bayern Munich. However, with no sign of a renewal in sight, teams are circling tp land him as a free agent.

– Bayern Munich are keen to keep hold of forward Michael Olise this summer amid reports linking the France international with a transfer to Liverpool, according to Fabrizio Romano. The Bundesliga giants are looking to downplay talk of an exit and while Liverpool are likely to push for a winger, Olise may not be available. The 24-year-old joined Bayern in 2024 and has 15 goals and 26 assists across all competitions this season.

EXPERT TAKE

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Olley: Tudor’s position will be reviewed after Liverpool vs. Tottenham

James Olley examines Igor Tudor’s future at Tottenham after their 5-2 defeat to Atletico Madrid in the Champions League.

OTHER RUMORS

– Manchester United are stepping up interest in West Ham midfielder Mateus Fernandes but his transfer will cost around £60 million. (Ekrem Konur)

– Joshua Zirkzee is eyeing a possible exit from United in the summer transfer window, with clubs in Serie A interested. (Sun)

– Liverpool have added Real Madrid defender Dean Huijsen to their shortlist, having missed out on signing him last summer when he was at Bournemouth (Ekrem Konur)

– West Ham want to make their loan move for Chelsea defender Axel Disasi permanent in the summer, if they stay in the Premier League. (Daily Mail)

– VfB Stuttgart youngster Finn Jeltsch is attracting transfer interest from Arsenal, Liverpool, and Bayern Munich. (TEAMtalk)

– Arsenal are preparing offers for Bayern’s Leon Goretzka and Dortmund’s Julian Brandt, with the midfield pair set to become free agents at the end of the season. (TEAMtalk)

– Tottenham are still keen on signing left back Andy Robertson as a free agent if he leaves Liverpool, having missed out on landing him in January (Football Insider).

– Juventus want to sign Marcos Senesi as a free agent from Bournemouth this summer (Gazzetta dello Sport)

– Napoli are set to enter talks with Scott McTominay‘s agent over a new contract (Gazzetta dello Sport)

PARIS — Like it or not, Paris Saint-Germain are still the team to beat in the Champions League. Why? The reigning champions can reach levels that the rest can only dream of, and PSG simply blew Chelsea away when they slipped through the gears.

This has been a season of inconsistency and ups-and-downs for PSG, but the side that won the Champions League in such devastating form last season has apparently been lying in wait at Parc des Princes, ready to reawaken. And that moment came as this round-of-16 first-leg tie approached its final fifteen minutes in Paris.

Chelsea had fought back twice to make it 2-2 on the night and the Premier League side threatened to turn the game on its head and take the lead ahead of next Tuesday’s second-leg at Stamford Bridge. But then it happened.

A mistake by goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen — surprisingly selected ahead of first-choice Robert Sánchez — gifted the ball to Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and it ended up with Vitinha, who lofted the ball over Jorgensen to make it 3-2. For Chelsea, it marked their third error leading to goal in the Champions League this season — only on-the-verge-of-relegation Tottenham has more among Premier League teams with six.

From that point onwards, PSG — and especially substitute Kvaratskhelia — were unstoppable. They were ruthless, and a game that was drifting towards a draw — or even a Chelsea win — ended with PSG claiming a 5-2 victory.

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Now, PSG are overwhelming favourites to comfortably reach the quarterfinals. Last season, a similar spark propelled PSG to Champions League glory. In January 2025, PSG fell 2-0 behind at home to Manchester City, who scored twice shortly after the start of the second-half, and the French side were heading out of the competition in the League Phase. But by the end of that game, PSG had won 4-2 and it transformed their season. They never looked back.

Chelsea certainly didn’t help themselves. PSG scored five goals from an expected goals of just 0.87 — that +4.13 goal-above-expected is the second highest in a Champions League knockout match in 15 years. The error that allowed PSG to score the go-ahead goal was a big culprit.

But in the end, Chelsea were the victims of another PSG surge, and it was the home side’s breathless performance in the final 15 minutes that will send put the rest of Europe on notice.

“The last 15-20 minutes were crazy, but that’s on me,” Chelsea coach Liam Rosenior said. “We need to better when setbacks happen, be calm and collected, and that didn’t happen.

“It’s a painful one because we were in the tie for 75 minutes. We have shot ourselves in the foot, made the tie very difficult now and the fifth goal is the painful one.”

PSG simply have incredible attacking talent and it all clicked against Chelsea, starting with Bradley Barcola and Ousmane Dembélé‘s first-half goals — Dembele’s counter-attack goal was a stunning example of the pace PSG possess.

Chelsea were able to expose PSG’s defensive frailties, equalising twice through Malo Gusto and Enzo Fernández, but Enrique’s forwards are so potent that they are able to make up for the lapses at the back that have affected the team all season.

Will those issues cost them a back-to-back Champions League title? That’s the risk, especially after the inexplicable decision to offload Gianluigi Donnarumma to City in the summer following the signing of Lucas Chevalier.

Chevalier has had a difficult first season in Paris and he was on the bench again, overlooked in favour of the inconsistent Matvey Safonov, who should have saved Gusto’s goal.

Perhaps PSG can ride it out all the way to another final simply because they have so much firepower upfront, but they will have to repeat the form that overran Chelsea to ensure that their defensive problems don’t prove to be their downfall.

If Kvaratskhelia can continue to play as he did in the final 15 minutes, PSG will be too strong for every other team left in the competition.

The Georgia winger made it 4-2 with a powerful curling shot from 20 yards on 86 minutes and then put the game seemingly beyond Chelsea’s reach with another, deep into stoppage time.

But even before he started scoring, the former Napoli player destroyed Chelsea’s right flank and it was clear that he was burning with determination to make a point to Enrique for starting him on the bench in the first place.

When Kvaratskhelia hit PSG’s fifth, the Chelsea players slumped to the ground like a boxer that had taken too many blows.

“I think we showed today we are capable of everything,” Kvaratskhelia said. “We just have to continue like this. We conceded two goals and we can see the mistakes we made, but we are happy with a three goal victory. We are still PSG.”

Chelsea still have 90 minutes to turn the tie around next week, but they will know that PSG are more likely to pick them off on the counter-attack whenever they attempt to find the three goals needed to wipe out their deficit.

This was a brutal lesson for Chelsea. They looked like a team that could compete for 70 minutes, but then they encountered the European champions at the top of their game.

That PSG were able to just turn it on and dismantle a Premier League side as strong as Chelsea — a team that was able to beat PSG in the FIFA Club World Cup final last summer — underlined the power and quality that Enrique has at his disposal.

Yes, it has been difficult season for PSG, but they have shown their best again and nobody can live with them like this.