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    The Gonzaga duo of twin sisters Kaylynne and Kayleigh Truong is a big reason why the Zags find themselves in the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2015. The duo arrived at Gonzaga in 2019 and could have left after last season. But the chance to start together and the possibility of Gonzaga having one of its strongest teams led the pair to return for a final year. The reward has been a West Coast Conference regular-season title, a program record for wins and now a matchup with top-seeded Texas in the Portland 4 Regional semifinals.

      Houston is playing in its fifth Sweet 16 in a row, its best March Madness run since making three consecutive Final Four appearances in the Phi Slama Jam era four decades ago. The Cougars were Big 12 regular-season champions this season after making the move into that power conference. They play blueblood Duke on Friday night at the home of the NBA's Dallas Mavericks, about 250 miles from the Houston campus. Another Atlantic Coast Conference team, No. 11 seed North Carolina State, takes on second-seeded Marquette and former Texas coach Shaka Smart in the first Dallas game.

        North Carlina State's Sweet 16 game against Stanford in the women's NCAA Tournament is bit of a harbinger of what's to come. That's because next season the perennially talented Cardinal are headed to the Atlantic Coast Conference. Second-seeded Stanford plays No. 3 seed N.C. State on Friday night in the Portland 4 Region, before top-seeded Texas plays No. 4 seed Gonzaga. Stanford is among five Pac-12 teams — most of any conference — that have advanced to the Sweet 16 as the league's days dwindle due to conference reallignment.

          South Carolina comes into its Sweet 16 matchup with No. 4 seed Indiana in Albany on Friday four wins from becoming just the 10th team in NCAA women's basketball history to put up a perfect season. South Carolina would join UConn (which has done it six times), Tennessee (1997-98), Baylor(2011-12) and Texas (1985-86). The Gamecocks (34-0) are 105-3 over the last three seasons and 21-1 against ranked opponents over that time. Defense is expected to be the focus in other half of the Albany 1 regional where Notre Dame faces Oregon State on Friday. The Irish (28-6) have been giving up an average of 57.5 points during their current 10-game winning streak. Oregon State (26-7) is allowing opponents just 59.3 points this season.

          Michael Penix Jr. used his pro day to demonstrate the athleticism that wasn't always on display during his two seasons carving up opposing defenses at Washington.

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          As a gambler, Mathew Bowyer bet big, often unsuccessfully, listing nearly half a million dollars in losses to two Las Vegas casinos in his 2011 bankruptcy. As bookmaker, the Orange County man wagered that a client’s relationship with baseball phenom Shohei Ohtani would pay off by boosting Bowyer’s reputation in the gambling world. Bowyer, who turns 49 next week, instead, ended up at the center ...

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