The 2025 NCAA volleyball tournament rolls on as the Sweet 16 begins with four matches in the Lexington and Pittsburgh regionals on Thursday.

Will the undefeated No. 1 overall seed Nebraska Cornhuskers move on to compete for their first championship since 2017? Will the Cal Poly Mustangs continue their magical Cinderella run? Or will another team rewrite history? These questions, and so many more, will be answered when the first game of the Round of 16 kicks off between Creighton and Arizona State.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year with the best volleyball of the season. Here’s a preview of the matchups including players to watch.

(Number before team name represent its tournament seed)

No. 3 Creighton (27-5) vs. No. 2 Arizona State (28-3)

Thursday, Dec. 11: 1 p.m. ET (ESPN2)

Creighton starting lineup

Head coach: Brian Rosen

• 2 Abbey Hayes | OH 6-foot-1 – Freshman
• 5 Kiara Reinhardt | MB 6-3 – Senior
• 6 Jaya Johnson | RS/MB 6-2 – Sophomore
• 8 Ava Martin | OH 6-1 – Senior
• 10 Eloise Brandewie | MB 6-3 – Junior
• 17 Annalea Maeder | S 6-1 – Senior
• 24 Sydney Breissinger | DS 5-7 – Junior

Arizona State starting lineup

Head coach: J.J. Van Niel

• 3 Tatum Parrott | OH 6-0 – Senior
• 4 Ella Lewis | OH/L 5-11 – Freshman
• 5 Sydney Henry | S 5-11 – Senior
• 10 Noemie Glover | OPP 6-2 – Junior
• 11 Colby Neal | MB 6-4 – Graduate Student
• 15 Faith Frame | L 5-7 – Sophomore
• 22 Bailey Miller | OH 6-3 – Senior

Player to watch: Ava Martin, Creighton

The 2025 Big East Player of the Year finished top 10 in the conference in points per set (5.16), kills per set (4.52) and aces per set. Martin also ranks top 25 or better in the country in points per set, total points and total kills. She had a solid hitting percentage (.376) during her senior season, which helped her earn Big East Tournament MVP and be selected No. 2 overall by the Atlanta Vibe in the 2025 Major League Volleyball Draft.

Cal Poly (27-7) vs. No. 1 Kentucky (27-2)

Thursday, Dec. 11: 3:30 p.m. ET (ESPN2)

Cal Poly starting lineup

Head coach: Caroline Walters

• 1 Emma Frederick | OH 5-10 – Junior
• 2 Chloe Leluge | MB 6-3 – Sophomore
• 6 Maren O’Farrell | L 5-8 – Freshman
• 13 Kendall Beshear | OH 5-10 – Sophomore
• 14 Emme Bullis | S 5-11 – Redshirt Senior
• 15 Charlotte Kelly |MB 6-3 – Freshman
• 20 Annabelle Thalken | OH 6-3 – Redshirt Senior
• 21 Elif Hurriyet | L/DS 5-6 – Sophomore

Kentucky starting lineup

Head coach: Craig Skinner

• 6 Kassie O’Brien | S 6-1 – Freshman
• 7 Eva Hudson | OH 6-1 – Senior
• 10 Kennedy Washington | MB 6-0 – Sophomore
• 11 Molly Berezowitz | DS 5-5 – Junior
• 12 Molly Tuozzo | L 5-7 – Junior
• 15 Lizzie Carr | MB 6-6 – Redshirt Junior
• 17 Brooklyn DeLeye | OH 6-2 – Junior

Player to watch: Eva Hudson/Brooklyn DeLeye, Kentucky

Hudson and DeLeye are one of the most dynamic duos in the country, if not the most dangerous in college volleyball. Hudson brings the explosiveness and DeLeye brings scoring and domination. Hudson, who transferred from Purdue, won the 2025 SEC Player of the Year, averaging 4.6 kills per set and tallying 482 total kills. Not to be left out, DeLeye had 495 kills while averaging 4.7 kills a set.

No. 4 Minnesota (24-9) vs. No. 1 Pitt (28-4)

Thursday, Dec. 11: 7 p.m. ET (ESPN2)

Minnesota starting lineup

Head Coach: Keegan Cook

• 1 Stella Swenson | S 6-1 – Redshirt Freshman
• 5 McKenna Garr | L/DS 5-7 – Freshman
• 7 Carly Gilk | OPP 6-2 – Freshman
• 15 Jordan Taylor | MB 6-5 – Freshman
• 20 Lourdes Myers | MB 6-3 – Graduate Student
• 22 Julia Hanson | OH 6-1 – Senior
• 33 Kelly Kinney | OH 6-2 – Freshman

Pitt Panthers starting lineup

Head coach: Dan Fisher

• 3 Emery Dupes | L/DS 5-6 – Redshirt Senior
• 5 Olivia Babcock | RS 6-4 – Junior
• 8 Blaire Bayless | OH 6-2 – Junior
• 10 Marina Pezelj | OH 6-1 – Freshman
• 13 Mallorie Meyer | L/DS 5-7 – Sophomore
• 17 Brook Mosher | S 6-0 – Redshirt Senior
• 20 Abbey Emch | MB 6-4 – Freshman
• 21 Bre Kelley | MB 6-4 – Redshirt Senior

Player to watch: Olivia Babcock, Pitt

Perhaps no one can quickly (and rather casually) rack up a 30-kill game faster than Babcock, the ACC Player of the Year. She’s a rare combination of speed, power and skill that for which few opponents have an answer. The 2024 AVCA Player of the Year had a whopping 545 kills on a .323 hitting percentage, along with 235 digs and 110 total blocks during Pittsburgh’s 2025 season, as the team pushes for a fifth straight appearance in the NCAA tournament semifinals.

No. 3 Purdue vs. No. 2 SMU

Friday, Dec. 11: 9:30 p.m. ET (ESPN2)

Purdue starting lineup

Head coach: Dave Shondell

• 3 Ryan McAleer | L 5-6 – Sophomore
• 4 Kenna Wollard | OH 6-1 – Junior
• 5 Taylor Anderson | S 6-1 – Junior
• 9 Dior Charles | MB 6-1 – Junior
• 12 Lindsey Miller | MB 6-4 – Graduate Student
• 13 Akasha Anderson | OH 6-3 – Senior
• 14 Grace Heaney | OPP/RS 6-2 – Redshirt Sophomore

SMU starting lineup

Head coach: Sam Erger

• 1 Malaya Jones | OPP 6-0 – Graduate Student
• 5 Casey Batenhorst | S 6-1 – Senior
• 9 Averi Carlson | S 5-11 – Senior
• 14 Jordyn Schilling | L 5-11 – Senior
• 20 Maggie Croft | MB 5-10 – Freshman
• 21 Favor Anyanwu | MB 6-2 – Sophomore
• 42 Jadyn Livings | OH 6-1 – Sophomore

Player to watch: Averi Carlson, SMU

Carlson is the 2025 ACC Volleyball Setter of the Year and for good reason. She’s elite in every sense of the word. Her 1,268 total assists ranked third in the country, and her average of 11.22 assists per set ranks second nationally. Carlson, the No. 7 pick in the 2025 MLV Draft, also tallied 243 digs, 47 kills and 26 service aces this season.

No. 4 Indiana (25-7) vs. No. 1 Texas (25-3)

Friday, Dec. 12: 12 p.m. ET (ESPN)

Indiana starting lineup

Head coach: Steve Aird

• 1 Madi Sell | MB 6-3 – Senior
• 3 Candela Alonso-Corcelles | OH 6-2 – Freshman
• 5 Audrey Jackson | OH/DS 5-11 – Freshman
• 7 Hannah Lefridge | DS 5-10 – Freshman
• 10 Teodora Krickovic | S 6-2 – Freshman
• 13 Avry Tatum | OPP 6-2 – Senior
• 23 Victoria Gray | MB 6-2 – Freshman
• 24 Jaidyn Jager | OH 6-1 – Freshman

Texas starting lineup

Head coach: Jerritt Elliott

• 1 Ella Swindle | S 6-3 – Junior
• 2 Emma Halter | L 5-5 – Senior
• 4 Torrey Stafford | OH 6-2 – Junior
• 5 Ayden Ames | MB 6-4 – Sophomore
• 23 Cari Spears | OH 6-3 – Freshman
• 32 Ramsey Gary | DS 5-7 – Junior
• 55 Nya Bunton | MB 6-3 – Redshirt Sophomore

Player to watch: Torrey Stafford, Texas

Don’t blink. Stafford is sneaky good and unsuspecting. She currently leads the Longhorns with 488 total kills, including 4.74 kills per set and is hitting .359 on the season. Stafford also leads Texas with 32 aces.

No. 3 Wisconsin (26-4) vs. No. 2 Stanford (29-4)

Friday, Dec. 12: 2:30 p.m. ET (ESPN)

Wisconsin starting lineup

Head coach: Kelly Sheffield

• 1 Una Vajagic | OH 6-0 – Redshirt Sophomore
• 7 Kristen Simon | L 5-8 – Freshman
• 15 Mimi Colyer | OH 6-3 – Senior
• 17 Alicia Andrew | MB 6-3 – Redshirt Senior
• 24 Charlie Fuerbringer | S 5-11 – Sophomore
• 32 Grace Egan | RS 6-1 – Redshirt Sophomore
• 52 Carter Booth | MB 6-7 – Senior

Stanford starting lineup

Head coach: Kevin Hambly

• 5 Jordyn Harvey | OPP 6-1 – Junior
• 6 Koko Kirsch | DS 5-9 – Redshirt Sophomore
• 7 Julia Blyashov | OH 6-3 – Redshirt Sophomore
• 9 Spencer Etzler | L 5-7 – Freshman
• 13 Elia Rubin | OH 6-1 – Senior
• 22 Erika Sayer | MB 6-2 – Freshman
• 30 Taylor Yu | S 6-0 – Sophomore

Player to watch: Mimi Colyer, Wisconsin

Colyer is highly explosive and a power hitter. She’s also precise in her decision-making, and that makes her a walking nightmare on a court. The Oregon transfer averages 5.32 kills per set, which is good for third in the nation.

No. 3 Texas A&M (25-4) vs. No. 2 Louisville (26-6)

Friday, Dec. 12: 7 p.m. ET (ESPN2)

Texas A&M Aggies starting lineup

Head coach: Jamie Morrison

• 1 Ifenna Cos-Okpalla | MB 6-2 – Senior
• 2 Addi Applegate | L/DS 5-5 – Freshman
• 9 Logan Lednicky | OPP 6-3 – Senior
• 12 Ava Underwood | L/DS 5-7 – Senior
• 16 Maddie Waak | S 5-10 – Senior
• 37 Kyndal Stowers | OH 5-11 – Sophomore

Louisville starting lineup

Head coach: Dan Meske

• 3 Kamden Schrand | L 5-7 – Junior
• 7 Chloe Chicoine | OH 5-10 – Junior
• 8 Nayelis Cabello | S 6-0 – Sophomore
• 11 Hannah Sherman | MB 6-3 – Redshirt Junior
• 13 Cara Cresse | MB 6-6 – Redshirt Senior
• 21 Payton Petersen | OH 6-0 – Sophomore
• 24 Kalyssa Blackshear | OPP 6-5 – Freshman

Player to watch: Chloe Chicoine, Louisville

At 5-foot-10, Chicoine is undersized for an outside hitter, but for what she lacks in size, she makes up for it with some insanely good verticality and hitting power. Chicoine’s touch, quickness and speed are assets on the court. The junior is second on the team in digs and leads the Cardinals with 387 total kills.

No. 4 Kansas (24-10) vs. No. 1 Nebraska (32-0)

Friday, Dec. 12: 9:30 p.m. ET (ESPN2)

Kansas starting lineup

Head coach: Matt Ulmer

• 4 Rhian Swanson | PIN 6-2 – Senior
• 5 Selena Leban | PIN 6-0 – Freshman
• 7 Katie Dalton | S/PIN 6-1 – Senior
• 9 Jovana Zelenovic | PIN 6-7 – Freshman
• 10 Reese Ptacek | MB 6-3 – Sophomore
• 22 Ryan White | L/DS 5-9 – Senior
• 24 Aisha Aiono | MB 6-3 – Junior

Nebraska starting lineup

Head coach: Dani Busboom Kelly

• 2 Bergen Reilly | S 6-1 – Junior
• 5 Rebekah Allick | MB 6-4 – Senior
• 6 Laney Choboy | L 5-3 – Junior
• 9 Virginia Adriano | OPP 6-5 – Freshman
• 11 Teraya Sigler | OH 6-3 – Freshman
• 15 Andi Jackson | MB 6-3 – Junior
• 27 Harper Murray | OH 6-2 – Junior

Player to watch: Andi Jackson, Nebraska

Jackson is one of the most electric players in college volleyball. She can seemingly do it all. Pick a spot on the court, Jackson can hit forwards, backwards, or any way that she decides. The 6-foot-3 currently leads the country in hitting percentage with an astounding .483.

One of the reasons the Boston Bruins are third in the Atlantic Division is that most of their offseason additions have paid off in one way or another.

While a breakout season from Morgan Geekie, consistently elite play from David Pastrnak and improved goaltending from Jeremy Swayman have played huge roles in the Bruins performing surprisingly well, GM Don Sweeney’s additions have been solid.

For starters, left wing Viktor Arvidsson – acquired this past summer from the Edmonton Oilers for a fifth-round draft pick – has seven goals and 13 points in 24 games. Three of those goals are game-winners. At a $4 million cap hit, the 32-year-old isn’t exactly cheap, but he’s making the most of averaging 14:32 of ice time, and he’s giving great value for the trade price Sweeney paid for him.

Another Bruins offseason addition – former Columbus Blue Jackets forward Sean Kuraly, who signed at the relative bargain of $1.85 million per year on a two-year contract – is a crucial part of Boston’s penalty kill.

The Bruins’ penalty-kill rate is the ninth best in the league thus far at 82.5 percent, and Kuraly is averaging 3:09 of penalty-kill time. Only veteran defenseman Nikita Zadorov (3:16) is averaging more PK time than Kuraly.

Finally, forward Alex Steeves – a fringe NHLer with the Toronto Maple Leafs for the past four years – was signed to a one-year contract at $850,000 this past summer. While Steeves came into the season with only 14 career NHL games to his credit, he has eight points in 15 games since being called up in early November, including three multi-point games. The 26-year-old is making the most of the opportunity and carving out a role for himself at the NHL level.

Now, not every addition Sweeney made has exactly thrived.

Left wing Tanner Jeannot was signed to a five-year contract at a salary-cap hit of $3.4 million, but he’s generated only three goals and 12 points in 31 games this season. But given that Sweeney has more hits than misses when it comes to offseason changes, Bruins fans have to be happy with where this Boston team is right now. 

The newcomers to the Bruins have taken some pressure off the other veterans, such as Pastrnak and Elias Lindholm, and it shows. Boston is a better-balanced group than the underperforming team we saw last season.

If they can continue getting contributions from up and down the lineup, earning a playoff berth won’t be too tall a task.   

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I wasn’t a John Cena fan. Not back then. Not even a little bit.

As a kid, I was in the minority. I recognize that. Watch back any Cena entrance from 2007-15 and you’ll find the same crowd reaction: every adult in attendance booing mercilessly while every child simultaneously screams in glee. 

This was the John Cena experience. No matter how you felt about him, you gave him a reaction. And as any pro wrestler will tell you, that’s the job, brother.

Love him or hate him, Cena represented everything great about this weird, niche genre of entertainment. He embraced its quirks with determination, its grueling schedule with endless effort and its spoils with grace.

You didn’t have to be a fan of Cena to recognize his mastery.

Lifelong wrestling fans born between the mid-1990s and early 2000s have been on a roller coaster ride with John Cena. Most of them went from idolizing Cena as kids to resenting his gimmick as young adults. 

Or maybe you’re like me, a kid who grew up in the Ruthless Aggression era but didn’t care much for Cena’s schtick. Then you stopped watching WWE for a while. You saw Cena pop up on your screen in a movie or TV show. You thought, ‘Hey, I remember that guy.’ Eventually, you heard about Cena’s retirement. You were curious and tuned in. 

And if your experience was anything like mine, you remembered why you fell in love with this whole pro wrestling thing in the first place.

Cena’s farewell tour held up a mirror to all of us, whether we’re hardcore WWE fans or casual enjoyers. To Cena, whether we booed or cheered − and most of us have done both − 2025 showed us we aren’t ready to sever an emotional tie with a character that’s provided us with laughs, cheers and utter frustration for nearly 25 years.

But while our feelings toward the character have changed over the years, the one constant has been Cena. He’s one of only a few who got a visceral crowd reaction with every entrance, every move, every word. Cena always got a reaction. That’s everything.

Sure, not every reaction was a positive one. Cena embraced that. His commitment was undeniable. As a kid, I wondered why he didn’t switch up his character or leave wrestling altogether.

Nope, not Cena. He rode the wave. Took what WWE gave him, took what the fans gave him ― good or bad. And Cena always came out smelling like roses.

Cena’s farewell tour is a perfect microcosm. It was questionably booked, muddled with a shocking heel turn that never got paid off. It felt poorly planned with strange segments and uninspiring opponents.

In spite of it, Cena elevated his work and made 2025 one of the best years of his career. He gave us an entertaining heel persona and, after WWE decided to abruptly pull that plug, had multiple match-of-the-year contenders, as well as helping to springboard young talent. 

So thank you, Cena. You helped me rediscover my love for pro wrestling. I would apologize for booing you in Manchester, New Hampshire, in 2008, but something tells me you preferred it that way.

Indiana football coach Curt Cignetti told reporters Wednesday leading pass-rusher Stephen Daley suffered a ‘serious’ leg injury following the Hoosiers’ Big Ten Championship game win and will likely miss the rest of the season.

Video shared on social media showed Daley apparently injuring his leg while jumping up to high-five Indiana fans after Saturday’s Big Ten win. The Kent State transfer was seen exiting the field at Lucas Oil Stadium on a cart with his right leg immobilized. Per Pro Football Focus, Daley played a team-high 57 snaps for the No. 1 Hoosiers (13-0) in a 13-10 win over Ohio State and had six quarterback pressures with a sack.

Daley, an injury replacement himself filling in after starter Kellan Wyatt suffered a season-ending injury Oct. 18, has been one of the most impactful defenders in the country. He has 5.5 sacks and 19.0 tackles for loss — second most in the FBS — with six or more quarterback pressures in four of the team’s past seven games.

‘I can confirm he did sustain an injury, a serious injury that will probably make him not available for the remainder of the season,’ Cignetti said.

Cignetti briefly addressed IU’s injury situation Sunday and was careful with the wording of his update while the team awaited for more information on Daley’s injury.

‘There was a little more information that had to come in, and I was still processing the whole thing because it was sort of unbelievable when I heard about it,’ Cignetti said. ‘That was why I said we had nobody hurt in the game, during the game.’

It’s a huge blow for an Indiana team that’s prepping for a matchup against the No. 8 Oklahoma-No. 9 Alabama game winner in the Rose Bowl.

With Wyatt and Daley out, Indiana doesn’t have much experience left on the bench and will likely turn to sophomore Daniel Ndukwe to get the bulk of the reps alongside Mikail Kamara. Mario Landino can also slide over to edge rusher, with Hosea Wheeler, Tyrique Tucker and Dominique Ratcliff sharing the load along the D-line.

With the margin in the NBA Cup West Quarterfinal between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Phoenix Suns approaching 40 points, tensions momentarily flared — and one player got ejected.

Midway through the third quarter, Phoenix Suns guard Grayson Allen was on defense near the right wing when he braced himself and threw his weight into Thunder center Chet Holmgren, who was trying to slide past Allen into the right corner. Holmgren crashed into Allen and tumbled to the court, which led to Thunder forward Jalen Williams walking over to Allen and shoving him.

‘Felt like I gave a good foul within the physicality of the game and what was going on both ends, especially with the bumps on screens, some of the hits on blockouts that were happening,’ Allen told reporters after the game, an eventual 138-89 Oklahoma City victory. ‘It was straight up. He was cutting into me. Definitely a foul, but I thought it was within the physicality of the game. I think the reaction afterwards kind of played into that.’

Players from each team then squared up, though officials were quick to defuse the situation and restore calm.

Upon replay review, NBA referee James Williams announced that Allen was being administered a flagrant 2 foul, prompting Allen’s ejection from the game. Williams cited windup and follow-through in assessing the flagrant foul.

Allen disagreed with Williams’ assessment of the foul.

‘When he said the explanation, I thought that was the description of a flagrant 1,’ Allen said. ‘They looked at it a bunch of times. I didn’t feel like there was wind up. I braced myself. Definitely delivered a bump and a hard foul, but it was straight up.’

Allen has had a history of physical — if not reckless — play on the court, including one incident against a Thunder player.

Back in January 2022, when Allen was a member of the Bucks, the NBA suspended him for one game without pay after he ‘made unnecessary and excessive contact’ on current Oklahoma City guard Alex Caruso, who was then with the Bulls. During that play, Caruso was driving to the basket on a fastbreak when Allen lunged at Caruso’s arms and flung him down to the court. Allen received a flagrant 2 foul on that play and was subsequently ejected.

Caruso ended up suffering a wrist fracture on the play and missed the following 22 games, which was nearly two months.

Allen developed a reputation at Duke and early in his NBA career for making perceived dirty plays. In July 2019, during a summer league game when he was a member of the Memphis Grizzlies, Allen was ejected after he received two flagrant fouls in the span of seven seconds — both of which were against then-Celtics forward Grant Williams.

While he was at Duke, then-Blue Devils coach Mike Krzyzewski stripped Allen of his captaincy after he tripped players out of frustration, which also led to a suspension.

Allen left Wednesday’s game against the Thunder having recorded 10 points on 3-of-9 shooting and added 4 assists, 1 rebound and 1 steal.

‘I just think when two really good teams are going at it and being physical, plays happen,’ Holmgren told reporters after the game. ‘I think it was officiated correctly, but it happened and then I moved on and kept trying to play the basketball game.’

The Thunder went on to rout the Suns, 138-89. Oklahoma City will play the winner of the other NBA Cup West Quarterfinal game Wednesday night between the San Antonio Spurs and Los Angeles Lakers.

The NBA Cup West Semifinal is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 13 in Las Vegas.

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