Editor’s note: This story, which was originally published March 26 before the start of the NCAA tournament, has been updated.

AS A BLUE-BLOOD college hockey power stacked with high-end talent, Michigan’s expectations never waver. It’s a program built on nine national championships, where the postseason isn’t about participation, but what happens next.

For star sophomore Michael Hage, the fact the path to a national title runs through Las Vegas this year — the site of the Frozen Four — includes an element of karmic fate.

It was in Las Vegas where one of the most significant moments of Hage’s hockey career occurred. The 19-year-old center doesn’t remember everything about his NHL draft night at the Sphere in June 2024: not the exact sequence, not every name called before him.

But he can still describe the unmistakable energy of his friends and family sitting alongside him, a traveling party of nearly 60. He remembers the way his heart sped up when the Montreal Canadiens were on the clock at No. 21. And a moment, right before the pick, when he leaned toward his mom.

“Do you think it’s going to be me?” he asked.

“I was hoping,” Rania Saba says now.

Then it happened.

“Surreal,” she said. “There’s no way you could’ve scripted it any better.”

Few things in Hage’s life have gone according to script. But there’s one throughline in his journey, and it’s a mantra from his mother: “Don’t move on, just move forward.” That was on full display this season, as Hage emerged as one of the top playmakers in the country for the top overall seed in the NCAA tournament.

Michigan will face Denver in a Frozen Four semifinal Thursday night (8:30 ET, ESPN2), and while Hage was limited in the first two games because of a lower-body injury, Michigan coach Brandon Naurato says he is probable to play against the Pioneers.

“Every time the puck is on his stick,” Naurato said, “you think there could be some highlight reel coming.”

“If you’re ever under pressure,” teammate Will Horcoff said, “you know he’s gonna make a play.”

Hage entered the NCAA tournament as Michigan’s second-leading scorer — and tied for third nationally — with 51 points through 37 games. He is both grounded and ascendant.

“Everyone has their own story,” Hage said. “Just trying to be grateful is probably the biggest thing I’ve learned.”

GROWING UP IN Greater Toronto, Michael Hage was a shy kid, the kind who needed his mom to stand beside him on the soccer field.

“I had to hold his hand,” Saba said.

Then he stepped on the ice.

“When I put skates on, it was something that I just loved to do,” he said. “And didn’t need any pushing.”

Hockey fandom, on the other hand, was presented without a choice. Hage came home from the hospital in Canadiens gear.

“There was no option,” Saba said. “He was born into it.”

His dad, Alain, made sure of that. Alain’s family emigrated from Egypt to Montreal in the 1960s.

“Hockey wasn’t really something that was affordable for him and his family,” Michael said. Alain Hage settled on playing high school football.

But hockey remained his passion, especially the Canadiens. He yelled at the TV during games. He celebrated Montreal’s 1993 Stanley Cup in the decades that followed.

The other thing Alain loved was Rania. They were introduced through their families when they were 13. She had a crush first. He caught on later.

They went to Concordia University together; she studied accounting, he was in finance.

Saba described her husband: “Driven. Stubborn at times. Competitive. And a good person.”

And as he became a father to Michael and his younger brother, Alex, there was nothing Alain dialed into more than his sons’ hockey careers.

Michael’s breakthrough came when he was 10 at the Brick Invitational Tournament, the biggest youth hockey showcase in North America. Hage was the tournament’s leading scorer.

“He kind of set himself away from everyone else,” Alex Hage said.

It set the entire family on a path, as Alain knew how to push his sons. As a hockey dad, he was quiet during games, and exacting afterward.

“If I knew I didn’t play well, it was a little scary getting back into the car,” Alex said. “He’d tell me everything I could’ve done better. I think that’s part of why I’m not set for the bare minimum.”

Naurato got to know Alain through the recruiting process. “He was intense, in an awesome way,” Naurato said. “Educated hockey guy, big fan of the game, and he wanted to know the information.”

That continued at home, during living room tape sessions.

“He’d be pausing the video every two seconds,” Alex recalled. “Correcting this, correcting that.”

At age 16, Michael moved to the States to further his hockey career as a top prospect, playing for the Chicago Steel of the USHL. Away from home, he constantly thought about the values Alain instilled in him. They were simple, even if the delivery wasn’t always easy: Compete, pay attention to details and don’t settle.

IT WAS AN ordinary summer night — that’s something Saba still comes back to. The Hages hosted a barbecue at their house in June 2023. Michael’s billet (or host) family was visiting from Chicago. Kids ran in and out of the pool. The air was filled with conversation, laughter and music.

“We were having a normal day,” Saba said.

At some point between dinner and dessert, Alain dove into the pool. No one noticed anything right away.

Then came a voice from one of the children in the pool, half-joking at first, something like “He’s playing dead.”

Saba walked closer.

“And when I looked in the pool,” she said, “something looked off.”

That’s when everything changed. Saba started screaming. Michael and one of his friends were nearby, sitting in the hot tub.

“I had to dive in there and grab him,” Michael said. “It was a horrible moment. It was one of the hardest things in my life. And it just, like, just didn’t feel real honestly. I try not to think about it.”

Everything that followed was a blur: calls, CPR, people scrambling to help however they could, sirens approaching. Within an hour, Alain had died.

“Alain had an accident in the backyard in the pool and banged his head, and our life changed,” Saba said.

“I just remember having so many questions,” Michael said. “Like, why? Why me? Why our family?”

NOTHING FELT THE same for a while. Eventually, Michael Hage knew there was only one place to go: back to the rink. Playing hockey didn’t fix anything or make sense of what happened.

“It provided him with stability, routine, his happy place,” Saba said. “When he’s training, when he’s with his hockey friends, when he’s on the ice, that’s his meditation.”

Hage had dealt with adversity before. In his first year with the Chicago Steel, a shoulder injury cost him the entire season.

“It was a long, long time. Three, four months just sitting on my couch doing not much, waiting,” he said. “It made me that much more excited. Just being healthy, able to do what I love.”

As he returned to Chicago following his father’s death — in a pivotal season to prove his worth to NHL scouts — he heeded the advice of his mother: “Don’t move on, just move forward.”

The following fall he made an immediate impact at Michigan, scoring four points in his opening weekend against Minnesota State. He was named the Big Ten Rookie of the Year for the 2024-25 season after finishing second on his team in scoring (34 points in 33 games).

“He reminds me of Mike Modano. Like when Mike skates, that jersey flaps in the back,” Naurato said. “But we’ll see, he’s carving his own path.”

At Michigan, Hage developed a brotherhood that became his support system. He and teammates live together in a house, which Horcoff describes as loud, messy and normal. Saba has become a legend to the crew, especially when she visits and helps with cleaning and cooking.

“She’s the best,” Horcoff said. “She takes care of all of us.”

Hage’s teammates see the way his family still honors Alain, who shaped so much of Michael’s development.

“He doesn’t let things define him,” said Dakoda Rheume, another one of his best friends at Michigan. “I know every time he has a good game, he pictures his dad up there.”

Michael felt Alain’s presence the last time he was in Vegas, putting on a Montreal Canadiens sweater bearing his name for the first time.

“I know he was there with me,” Michael said. “Just knowing that he was watching over me, it meant everything.”

He is back in the same city, but for a different moment. For Hage, he’ll never move on from what happened. He’ll just continue to move forward.

ESPN’s Jon Fish contributed to this report.

The women’s college basketball transfer portal officially opened Monday, and by day’s end more than 1,000 players had entered.

In past years the portal opened during the NCAA tournament. New regulations this year prevented any official activity until after the season concluded Sunday with UCLA beating South Carolina for the championship. The transfer portal window is also shorter this year, closing on April 20.

Iowa State‘s Audi Crooks, the nation’s second-leading scorer, is the biggest impact player in the portal to date. The Cyclones’ roster was decimated, with 10 players entering the portal. Georgia lost nine players after letting go of coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson, but no program was hit harder, or more publicly, than Tennessee.

Lady Vols coach Kim Caldwell is now tasked with replacing her entire roster. She also lost the No. 2 recruit in the country, Oliviyah Edwards, who had committed to the Lady Vols but has requested a release from her national letter of intent. Every player from Caldwell’s No. 2-rated recruiting class from a year ago is gone.

Few players have announced where their next destinations will be, but that process will play out over the next few weeks. As players find their new teams, and as more players enter the portal over the next 14 days, this list will evolve and change. And we’ll continue to update the rankings.

1. Audi Crooks, 6-3, C, Jr., Iowa State

Crooks is the best of the available transfers and also the most intriguing. While she’s a nearly unstoppable post presence and ranked second in the nation in scoring (25.8 PPG), Crooks doesn’t fit every system and has limitations. Incorporating her could require coaches to alter their approach. Crooks could be the big scorer that a contender needs to take that next step, but a program’s willingness to make big philosophical changes for just the one season she has left might shrink Crooks’ market.

2. Kymora Johnson, 5-7, G, Jr., Virginia

In the wake of the firing of coach Amaka Agugua-Hamilton, Virginia has lost multiple players to the transfer portal, but none more impactful than Johnson. One of the best players in the ACC, who broke into the national spotlight with her sparkling NCAA tournament performance, Johnson helped the Cavaliers reach the Sweet 16. She ranked second in the ACC in scoring (19.5 PPG) and first in assists (6.3 APG).

3. Liv McGill, 5-9, G, So., Florida

The only player in the country to average at least 20 points, six rebounds and six assists, McGill was the cornerstone of the Gators for two seasons but will not be sticking around for new coach Tammi Reiss. McGill, who is from Minnesota and played at the same high school as Paige Bueckers, can score in a variety of ways and would have the potential to be a game changer for a top-tier program that needs to replace a top offensive player or two.

4. Talaysia Cooper, 6-0, G, Jr., Tennessee

Cooper is eligible for the WNBA draft but has decided to play one more college season — but at a third school after stops at South Carolina and Tennessee. One of the few Lady Vols that consistently produced in Kim Caldwell’s unorthodox system in Knoxville, Cooper might still benefit from more consistent minutes. She averaged 16.0 points per game and shot an improved 34.3% from 3-point range. Her length is an asset both as a perimeter defender and a finisher at the rim.

5. Dani Carnegie, 5-9, G, So., Georgia

One of the best under-the-radar portal acquisitions a year ago (from Georgia Tech), Carnegie was named first-team all-SEC, averaging 17.8 points per game, and helped the Lady Dogs to their best season in eight years. An even better scorer than she was with the Yellow Jackets, Carnegie is a shot creator, for herself or teammates, and can handle the responsibility of being a No. 1 option.

6. Zamareya Jones, 5-7, G, So., NC State

Doubling her minutes, point production and assists in her second season, Jones appeared on the verge of becoming one of the ACC’s top guards. She and Zoe Brooks might have been the conference’s best backcourt next year had Jones elected to stay in Raleigh. She was second on the team to Brooks with 14.9 points and 3.8 assists per game. Jones was also the Wolfpack’s best 3-point shooter and excels in transition.

7. Addy Brown, 6-2, F, Jr., Iowa State

The 11 games Brown missed this season derailed the Cyclones’ season. Her versatility was the perfect complement to Crooks, but now they are both leaving Ames, Iowa. She was all-Big 12 honorable mention as a freshman and second-team all-conference last season, averaging 13.6 points, 8.1 rebounds and 5.2 assists over her career. Brown has proved she can be impactful playing off the ball and should fit nearly any system.

8. Taryn Barbot, 5-10, G, Jr., Charleston

The best mid-major player in the portal, Barbot is a two-time CAA player of the year who averaged 20.1 points per game, good for 17th nationally. She showcased her ability for the Power 4 conferences by scoring 36 points against Duke in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Her sister, Taylor Barbot, was 12th in the country at 6.0 assists per game. Taryn and Taylor have played together for three years at Charleston, so expect a package deal.

9. Jada Williams, 5-8, PG, Jr., Iowa State

The move to Iowa State was a good one for Williams despite staying just one year after two with Arizona. Williams became a better shooter, a more disciplined point guard and ranked third in the country with 7.7 assists per game. With her quickness and experience, Williams could step into another major conference program to fill a one-year gap at the point, much like Tonie Morgan did at Kentucky this season.

10. Nunu Agara, 6-2, F, Jr., Stanford

After averaging more than 15 points per game in consecutive seasons — but no NCAA tournament appearances to show for it — Agara is looking to finish her career elsewhere. Limited as a 3-point shooter but outstanding in the lane, Agara shot 51.3% on 2-point field goal attempts and pulled down 8.7 rebounds per game. Not being the No. 1 option and a primary focus of the defense might help Agara’s efficiency and her WNBA draft standing.

11. Aaliyah Crump, 6-1, F, Fr., Texas

Health was an issue for Crump in her lone season with the Longhorns, but the talent was clearly there. The highest-rated recruit for Vic Schaefer at Texas — No. 5 overall — and a starter to begin the season, Crump suffered a foot injury in November that forced her to miss two months. She averaged 7.9 points per game and had 16-point outings against LSU and Arkansas in February. Texas is bringing in two highly regarded freshmen wings in this recent recruiting class, but Crump was a likely starter next season and a possible No. 1 scoring option in 2027-28 after the departure of Madison Booker.

12. Tilda Trygger, 6-6, F, So., NC State

A native of Sweden, Trygger spent the first two years in the United States in Raleigh. She was productive with 10.6 points and 7.0 rebounds after being more of a role player as a freshman. With good shooting range and improved physicality, Trygger has a high ceiling and has all-conference potential for her final two seasons.

13. Mia Pauldo, 5-6, G, Fr., Tennessee

Of all the departures from the Lady Vols, this one might hurt the most. Pauldo was Kim Caldwell’s biggest get in 2025’s No. 2-rated recruiting class. The entire recruiting class is now gone after one season. Pauldo was Tennessee’s third-leading scorer (10.4 PPG) and its best 3-point shooter (36.5%). Pauldo is also a pure point guard but was seldom able to show off those skills to their fullest in Knoxville. She is joined by her sister, Mya Pauldo, in the portal.

14. Madison St. Rose, 5-10, G, Sr., Princeton

The least surprising player in the portal, St. Rose could not stay at Princeton because of Ivy League rules prohibiting redshirts. She missed most of the 2024-25 season with a knee injury, so St. Rose has eligibility left that she can’t use with the Tigers. St. Rose could help any national contender at either guard spot after averaging 15.8 points on 47.9% shooting this season.

15. Kiyomi McMiller, 5-8, G, So., Penn State

A volume shooter with electric offensive abilities, McMiller is looking for her third team in as many years. A clash with the coaching staff her freshman season at Rutgers pushed her to Penn State, where this season was calmer and more productive for McMiller (21.6 PPG). A coaching change for the Lady Lions opened the door for another transfer. McMiller’s raw talent should necessitate being higher on this list, but her two teams were a collective 14 games below .500, and where she might fit best is the biggest question mark.

16. Mia Woolfolk, 6-3, F, So., Georgia

With noticeable improvement in her second season in Athens, Woolfolk played some of her best games against Georgia’s best opponents. She had 29 points against Oklahoma, 19 points and seven rebounds in the upset of Vanderbilt and 27 in the NCAA tournament loss to Virginia. Woolfolk’s strength is in the low post, but she moves well and uses her quickness facing up to get by taller opponents and to the rim.

17. Lara Somfai, 6-3, F, Fr., Stanford

The Cardinal roster suffered some big losses when the portal opened, but none bigger than Somfai. Losing Agara hurts, but Somfai and fellow freshman Hailee Swain were supposed to be the building blocks that brought Stanford back to prominence. Somfai has three years of eligibility remaining. She averaged 10.8 points and 9.1 rebounds.

18. Justice Carlton, 6-1, F, So., Texas

A 28-game starter for a Final Four team this season, Carlton appeared to gain more and more of Vic Schaefer’s trust as the season progressed. Her strength is elite and she uses it to score from close range against taller defenders. Carlton averaged 8.5 points and 4.0 rebounds that included a 15-point effort in the SEC tournament championship game. Her physicality made her an ideal fit for Texas, and her loss is a big one for the Longhorns.

19. Kaylene Smikle, 6-0, G, Sr., Maryland

Health is the question mark, otherwise Smikle might be higher in these rankings. She was first-team all-Big Ten in 2025 after scoring 17.9 points per game before being limited to seven games this season and then opting for knee surgery. That preserved Smikle’s final year of eligibility, which will now be used at her third school. Smikle, who began her career at Rutgers, has never averaged fewer than 16.1 points in a full season.

20. Jaida Civil, 6-0, G, Fr., Tennessee

The numbers were modest (6.4 PPG, 4.0 PPG), but Civil demonstrated defensive skills and athleticism that should fit anywhere. Ranked No. 20 in that recruiting class that also featured the Pauldo sisters and Deniya Prawl, Civil’s playing time swelled in February before those minutes were trimmed again in the postseason.

Also considered:

Achol Akot, Oklahoma State; Carys Baker, Virginia Tech; Essence Cody, Alabama; Skylar Forbes, Marquette; Lanie Grant, North Carolina; Gracie Merkle, Penn State; Zahirah Walton, George Mason; Jadyn Wooten, Oklahoma State

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has issued no-objection certificates to several national players, allowing them to participate in various overseas leagues.

According to the board, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Abbas, Usama Mir and Sufiyan Muqeem have been granted NOCs for their respective commitments.

Nawaz, Usama Mir and Sufiyan Muqeem have been cleared to feature in the Vitality Blast, while Test cricketer Mohammad Abbas has been issued an NOC to play county cricket in England.

The move reflects the board’s continued policy of allowing players to gain international exposure through participation in foreign leagues while ensuring their availability for national duties.