ON TODAY'S SCORECARD
His Airness

Michael Jordan had a bunch of iconic moments over the course of his basketball career.

There was his game-winning shot in the 1982 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament championship game, as he gave UNC the lead – and the ultimate win – with a jumper with 15 seconds to go.

There was his game-winning shot in Game 6 of the 1998 NBA Finals, as he crossed over Jazz guard Byron Russell before rising up, sinking a jumper and giving the Bulls the win.

Jordan, now 63, has a resume longer than just about anyone else in the basketball world. But there is one underrated – and perhaps under talked about – moment in Jordan’s career.

And it happened 31 years ago yesterday, in 1995, when Jordan returned to the NBA floor, following a 21-month absence. Jordan, who had last played in the 1993 NBA Finals, returned to the Chicago Bulls, after leaving the team to pursue minor league baseball following the death of his father.

Jordan and the Bulls took on the Indiana Pacers in an NBA regular season game airing live on NBC. Bob Costas and Marv Albert were on the call for NBC.

The game is viewed as arguably the most “anticipated” regular season game in NBA history.

The iconic Chicago Bulls star, wearing number 45 instead of his famed No. 32, played 43 minutes and shot 7-of-28 from the field.

The Bulls would go on to lose in the NBA Playoffs that year, falling to the Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

But beginning in 1995-96, MJ and the Bulls would rattle off three straight NBA championships, giving the North Carolina legend six total championships.

The player all-time player in NBA history is now a NASCAR team owner and loving every minute of it.

Sunday, March 22

BOSTON over Minnesota by 14

This marks the sixth game on this weekend’s card that pairs teams from the Eastern Time Zone against those from the Western. For what it’s worth, Minnesota brings a lot of “False Contender Tax” into this tiff, meaning they bring a strong overall record (43-27), a flashy scorer (Anthony Edwards, but an extremely wobbly ATS record (30-40-1). To top it off, the Celtics welcome the Timberwolves to TD Garden, where the Celtics turn games into half-court chess matches and force opponents to play at their tempo. To top it off, the Shamrocks are currently four games back of the Pistons for the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference. There is a rich tradition in Boston where the Celtics were the No. 1 seed eight times in nine years (1980–88). And now they’re looking to reclaim that same fame. We seal the deal with THE CLINCHER: Boston is 10-2 SU / ATS when seeking same-season revenge in this series, including 7-0 ATS from Game 38 out.

Extracted from this week’s

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Fresh from the 2026 Playbook March Madness Tournament Guide are the numbers you need to know before going to the window. Enjoy...

NCAA 2ND ROUND NOTES

• #1 Seeds are 2-18 ATS off 3+ SU & ATS    wins

• #2 Seed favs > 9 pts are 7-0 ATS

• #3 Seed favs > 4 pts are 4-12 ATS L11Y

• #4 Seed favs 4 < pts are 13-4 ATS L8Y

• #5 Seeds are 11-4 ATS L18Y

• #7 Seeds are 8-24 ATS vs opp off BB SU    wins

• #8 Seeds are 13-4 ATS L11Y

• #10 Seed or worse favs are 18-6 ATS

• 2nd Round teams off 100 > pts in Round 1    are 11-1 ATS

Best Team ATS records in this round

Alabama, Michigan, Purdue 4-0, Clemson, N Carolina 3-0, Connecticut 6-1, Miami-Fla 5-1, Arizona 9-2, Arkansas, Louisville 4-1, Villanova 3-1, Texas Tech 6-2, Duke 8-3, Iowa St, UCLA 5-2.

Worst Team ATS records in this round

Kansas, Ohio St 0-6, Florida, St Marys-Cal 0-4, Wisconsin 0-3, Iowa 1-4, Missouri, St Johns, St Louis 1-3, Virginia 2-6, Illinois 2-5, Tennessee, Texas A&M 2-4.

Best Conference ATS records in this round

SEC: 7-1 as dogs, Big 10: 6-1 as favs 5 > pts, AAC: 5-1, ACC: 17-5, Miss Valley: 6-2, Big East: 11-4, Moun West: 4-1 as favs.

Worst Conference ATS records in this round

CUSA: 0-7 L15Y, Sunbelt: 0-4, A-10: 0-4 L7Y, MAC: 1-5, MWC 3-14 as dogs, Big 12: 3-12 as favs L5Y.