Stanzel’s Sports Takeout — BREAKING NEWS: 3.31.25

Mar 31

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Gophers and Florida tonight in the WBIT semis in Indy; winner gets Belmont or Villanova on Wednesday.

Between NHL signings and graduation, the Gophers have lost their top six scores from the season that ended Thursday night. Good thing is…more than 75 eligible players in the portal already.

Least intriguing March Madness I can remember.

Wolves Fight Back - Literally - for 19-Point Win over Pistons

The Pistons messed with the wrong guy. Donte DiVincenzo got pushed three rows deep in a melee that extended into the stands and featured seven ejections, igniting a sleepy Wolves team in a 123-104 win at Target Center. DD may not pay for a drink in this city again.

The Wolves trailed by as many as 16 in the first half - and it was 10 points when chaos ensued. The game had plenty of emotion before it, but Naz Reid and DiVincenzo found themselves initial combatants in a fight that spilled into the stands behind the basket. Five players were ejected - including both Reid and DiVincenzo - and a pair of coaches, including Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff.

Minnesota cut the lead to six at the half. The first half included 32 fouls, 44 free throws, eight technical fouls and seven ejections. The second quarter alone took 48 minutes to play.

The Wolves outscored Detroit 69-44 in a dominating second half. Anthony Edwards, struggling from the field for weeks, found his game in the final 24 minutes, finishing with 25 points. ANT did pick up a technical, though, meaning with one more he’ll have to sit out a game (seven games remain). Without Reid to compliment him inside, Rudy Gobert was an absolute force (19 points, 25 rebounds).

Golden State also won, meaning Minnesota is a half game back of the Warriors for sixth, and a half game ahead of the Clippers for eighth. The Wolves visit Denver on Tuesday but then two non playoff teams - Brooklyn and Philadelphia - later this week.

Wild Flat in 5-2 Loss to Devils; Six Up for Final Playoff Spot

It’s hard to imagine, unless you watch this team regularly, how flat the Wild came out in Saturday’ 5-2 loss to the Devils. They gave up two goals in a lackluster first period, and while much of the second and third periods were played with a one-goal deficit, the damage was done.

The Wild can’t get Kaprizov and JEEK back soon enough - they were on the plane yesterday to the New York metropolitan area, where the Wild will play three games including a rematch tonight against New Jersey. Kaprizov’s surgeon is in New York, and both players practiced with the team yesterday.

St. Louis has now won nine straight to move into a tie with the Wild, which benefited from a Canucks loss yesterday to remain six points up on Vancouver for the final playoff spot. It’s sure looking like a crossover to the Pacific and a first-round matchup with Vegas, which is dynamite at home and is heating up, having won six straight.

Twins Swept to Begin Season

The Twins were outscored 19-6 in three ugly losses to the Cards to begin the 2025 season. They’ve been sloppy to say the least.

Yesterday, Bailey Ober, their second best pitcher last year, allowed eight runs in three innings. He started despite having a nasty case of the flu Friday. They couldn’t rush Chris Paddack into action, but I don’t know, maybe a bullpen game could have been in order.

Carlos Correa, a notorious slow starter, is hitless in 11 at bats. Byron Buxton is 1-for-12.

The good news is, they face a White Sox today that had one of the worst seasons in MLB history in 2024. Paddack starts, he of 93 innings pitched the last two seasons, against Martin Perez.

Frost Back into Playoff Spot Headed into World Championship Break

The PWHL will never escape the World Championships, which makes for an awkward schedule. The Frost bested Toronto 5-2 at The X on Sunday afternoon to move back into fourth in the league with three games left. But now? After four more teams play games Monday and Tuesday, the league takes a three week break due to the World Championships.

Then they’ll come back for three games before the playoffs. Hard to get on a roll.

Taylor Heise scored two goals for the Frost, who could still finish third but also could slide out of the playoff race. Ottawa is two points behind them with a game in hand. Two of their three games remaining beginning April 26 are against the bottom two teams - Ottawa and New York.

Loons Win Soggy One

I’ll steal a great line from KSTP’s Chris Long - you’d expect the Loons to be good in the rain.

On a night not fit to sit outside, Minnesota beat Real Salt Lake 2-0 in a game where the pitch really deteriorated in the second half. Tani Oluwaseyi scored both of the Loons goals.

The Loons, who have points in five straight since their first game of the season resulted in a loss, visit the hallowed grounds of Yankee Stadium on Saturday.

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