North Carolina have set up a tantalising Final Four matchup with historic rivals Duke after ending the 'Cinderella' run of the 15-seed Saint Peter's Peacocks.
The Peacocks assumed the role of this year's loveable underdogs of March Madness when they became the first 15 seed to make it through to the Elite Eight, but they were no match for North Carolina, going down 69-49 in a game that was never close.
Armando Bacot was the star of the show for the Tar Heels, finishing with 20 points on eight-of-15 shooting to go with a monstrous 22 rebounds.
With the win, North Carolina booked their spot against Duke in the Final Four as Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski searches for his sixth national title in his 42nd and final year in charge.
One of the fiercest rivalries in American sports, North Carolina and Duke have played 256 times since their first meeting in 1920, but incredibly have never met in the NCAA Tournament.
Earlier in the day, it was a tale of two halves as one-seed Kansas took on 10-seed Miami, with the higher-ranked Jayhawks struggling out of the gate to trail 35-29 at half-time.
Kansas shot zero-for-five from long range and three-for-nine from the free throw line in the first half but flipped a switch in the second half, showing why they are considered one of the favourites to win the tournament.
The second half was total domination, out-scoring the Hurricanes 47-15 in the 20 minutes to pull away for an easy 76-50 win.
The top performance in the game came from the top NBA prospect, Kansas' Ochai Agbaji, who finished with 18 points on eight-of-12 shooting, including two-from-two from long range. He also registered five rebounds, four assists and four steals as he continues to build his case as a potential lottery pick in this year's NBA Draft.
Jones makes mockery of Canada as USA dominate T20 World Cup opener
The United States recorded a statement victory over rivals Canada in their first-ever T20 World Cup outing, as Aaron Jones and Andries Gous stole the show in a seven-wicket triumph.
Canada opener Navneet Dhaliwal powered 61 off just 44 balls, while Nicholas Kirton's 51 and an unbeaten 32 from Shreyas Movva helped their side set a target of 195 in Dallas.
The USA responded by losing Steven Taylor for a two-ball duck and slipped to 42-2 after the powerplay when Dilon Heyliger had captain Monank Patel caught behind for 16.
Yet that set the stage for an eye-catching partnership between Jones and Gous, who combined for a 131-run blitz at a whirlwind run rate of 14.3 for the third wicket.
Number three Gous bludgeoned 65 from only 46 deliveries but was somehow overshadowed by the impressive Jones, who finished 94 not out after facing just 40 balls.
Gous holed out off the bowling of Nikhil Dutta but Jones fittingly finished the chase with 14 balls to spare, securing USA's fifth straight win over Canada in the pair's first-ever World Cup appearance.
Data Debrief: Jones almost matches Gayle record
Jones cleared the ropes 10 times during his destructive performance, with only West Indies' Chris Gayle hitting more sixes in one World Cup innings (11 against England in 2016 at Wankhede).
USA vice-captain Jones had only reached 50 once in this format before this innings, but announced his arrival on the world stage with an emphatic performance.
Inter Miami 3-3 St. Louis City: Alba stars as Messi makes history in MLS draw
Lionel Messi achieved an unprecedented MLS feat on Sunday but his heroics, and a star Jordi Alba performance, could not drag Inter Miami past St. Louis City in a thrilling 3-3 draw.
The Argentina and Barcelona great levelled proceedings after Chris Durkin's early opener, taking Messi to 25 goal contributions this term in just 12 MLS appearances – shattering the previous record by Carlos Vela.
Indiana Vassilev edged the visitors back ahead before Luis Suarez restored parity on the stroke of half-time at Miami's Chase Stadium.
Gerardo Martino's side fell behind again after Suarez turned into his own net but Alba, who assisted Miami's first two goals, saved the day with an 85th-minute equaliser to salvage a point.
The draw left Miami top of the Eastern Conference by two points but second-placed FC Cincinnati have two games in hand over Martino's star-studded line-up.
Meanwhile, St. Louis remain 11th in the Western Conference but just three points adrift of ninth-placed Portland Timbers having played two games fewer.
Data Debrief: Messi history in MLS
Having shattered records across historic spells with Barcelona and Argentina, Messi now has another MLS achievement on his sparkling resume.
Messi became the fastest player to 25 goal contributions in an MLS season, recording 12 goals and 13 assists to surpass the previous record established by Vela in 2019 (16 games, four more than Messi).
Bellingham hails 'world-class' Ancelotti after Champions League heroics
Jude Bellingham lauded Carlo Ancelotti for unlocking previously unknown potential in his game as the pair celebrated Champions League success on Saturday.
The England international ended his first season in the Spanish capital with LaLiga and European glory, after the 2-0 victory over Bellingham's former club Borussia Dortmund at Wembley Stadium.
A battling victory secured Los Blancos' 15th trophy in Europe's top competition, at least eight more than any other side (Milan, seven), as Ancelotti made further history.
The Italian has won the European Cup/UEFA Champions League more times than any other manager (five), with three of those coming in charge of Madrid.
That is also the joint-most for a manager in charge of a specific team, along with Bob Paisley at Liverpool (three) and Zinedine Zidane, also at Madrid (three).
Bellingham was quick to hail the work of veteran boss Ancelotti before the party started for Madrid in London.
"He has unlocked a part of my game that I didn't know I had," Bellingham told TNT Sports. "That is the thing about world-class coaches, they make you realise how good you can be.
"They test the limits of your potential. It is like being at school again, you learn something new every day and get better and better."
This was the sixth winning campaign for Madrid quadruple Toni Kroos, Luka Modric, Dani Carvajal and Nacho in the Champions League, taking them level with Paco Gento (six) as the players who have won the European competition the most times in history.
Working alongside those players comes with its challenges, though, Bellingham says.
The 20-year-old continued: "Special feeling. Some of my team-mates have five or six titles and they said enjoy your first as it's a feeling like no other when you reach the top of the mountain.
"It's important to maintain that level but never forget your first and enjoy it. They were the better team for the majority but it comes down to moments and if you don't kill us, then it will come back to haunt you."
Having celebrated their league and continental double, Madrid could soon welcome the arrival of world-class forward Kylian Mbappe, who is set to leave Paris Saint-Germain when his contract expires.
With Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo usually either side of him up top, Bellingham expressed his excitement over an enticing link-up with the France attacker.
"It would be amazing if a player like him arrived," Bellingham added. "One of the best in the world."
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