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The Saint Mary’s Gaels punched their ticket to the 2019 NCAA tournament with a 60-47 upset of the top-ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs in the West Coast Conference championship game.  

This is the first time since 2012 that Gonzaga failed to win the conference tournament.

Gaels guard Jordan Ford was one of three Saint Mary’s players to score in double figures. He led the team with 17 points, while center Jordan Hunter (12 points, 15 rebounds) posted a double-double.

The Gaels held the Gonzaga offense to nearly half its scoring average (90.2 points). The Bulldogs shot 38.3 percent from the field and went 2-of-17 (11.8 percent) from beyond the arc.

Although Brandon Clarke had 16 points in the defeat, fellow Zags stars Rui Hachimura and Zach Norvell Jr. were largely invisible. Hachimura attempted just six shots en route to a nine-point night, while Norvell shot 1-of-11 and finished with two points.

Tuesday’s result is bound to have a domino effect on the seeding for the NCAA tournament.

From Gonzaga’s perspective, the selection committee may not look kindly upon such a heavy defeat this close to the Big Dance. The Bulldogs might be the No. 1 team in the country, but their hold on a No. 1 seed is far from airtight.

While slipping to a No. 2 seed wouldn’t be the worst outcome for Gonzaga, that would make the team’s road to the Final Four a little more difficult.

The Gaels’ win was the worst-case scenario for any at-large teams on the bubble. In his most recent edition of Bracketology, ESPN’s Joe Lunardi projected Saint Mary’s as one of his “next four out.” Now, the squad is guaranteed a place in the 68-team field.

The Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, ACC, SEC and Pac-12 tournaments haven’t even started yet, with all six set to tip off Wednesday. Bubble teams still have an opportunity to either impress the selection committee or claim a guaranteed tournament berth.

Conversely, a few more schools may emulate Saint Mary’s and play the role of spoiler, shrinking the margin for error even further for those programs with work to do in the coming days.

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Following his reported trade to the Cleveland Browns, Odell Beckham Jr. wants to restructure his contract, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported the Browns have agreed to send the 17th overall pick in the 2019 draft, a third-round pick and safety Jabrill Peppers to the New York Giants for Beckham.

Beckham’s request comes after the Oakland Raiders amended Antonio Brown‘s contract immediately after they acquired him from the Pittsburgh Steelers.

According to Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, Brown will receive a little over $50.1 million through the 2021 season, up from $38.9 million under the deal’s original terms. Brown’s guaranteed money also climbed from zero to $30.1 million, per Florio.

Beckham signed a five-year, $95 million extension with the Giants last August, but he has good reason to either seek a new deal or renegotiate the particulars fo his current contract.

While he has $72.7 million total left between now and 2023, only $16.7 million of that is guaranteed salary, per Over the Cap. That guaranteed money is entirely contained in the 2019 season as well, so Beckham has little in the way of long-term security.

The Browns made a big investment in Beckham through Tuesday’s trade. Cleveland would have few hurdles, however, if it wanted to release him at any point in the future.

In order to avoid any friction with their newest star, acceding to his demand is arguably the smart move for the Browns. Adding a few million dollars and increasing his guarantees wouldn’t significantly alter their financial flexibility going forward—at least much more than adding his existing contract to the payroll did.

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The New York Giants reportedly are trading superstar wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. to the Cleveland Browns, in a move sure to send reverberations throughout the NFL.

Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Giants are receiving this year’s No. 17 overall pick, a 2019 third-rounder and safety Jabrill Peppers.

Although Beckham’s off-field antics often generated unwanted headlines, the Giants appeared willing to look past those issues because of his on-field success.

The 26-year-old LSU product recorded 390 catches for 5,476 yards and 44 touchdowns across 59 games after the Giants selected him with the 12th overall pick in 2014. He tallied at least 90 receptions, 1,300 yards and 10 scores in each of his first three seasons.

His 2017 campaign came to a premature end in October when he suffered a fractured ankle. He also missed the final four games in 2018 because of a quad injury.

Tensions between Beckham and the Giants began to rise in March 2018.

Giants co-owner John Mara caused the trade winds to start blowing when he refused to say whether Beckham would be with the team for the 2018 season, per Ralph Vacchiano of SNY.

“I can’t answer that one way or another,” Mara said. “We’re certainly not shopping him if that’s what you’re asking. But again, when you’re coming off a season where you’re 3-13 and played as poorly as we played, I wouldn’t say that anybody is untouchable.”

In late March 2018, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported Beckham would “not set foot on a field without a new contract extension.” 

The Giants wound up giving Beckham a five-year, $95 million contract extension in August, but they’re moving on from him less than a year later. Trying to replace one of the league’s most explosive playmakers will be an uphill battle for New York.

Beckham should immediately take over as the Browns’ top target. He’ll join a promising receiving corps that also features Jarvis Landry, Antonio Callaway and Rashard Higgins.

No one should be happier about the trade than Baker Mayfield, who showed signs of improvement throughout his rookie year and now has a true No. 1 wideout at his disposal.