4:45 LRN Sportscast April 4

The NFL Draft doesn’t begin until April 28, but the New Orleans Saints have already shaken up the first round with a major trade with the Philadelphia Eagles. The Saints will receive picks 16, 19, and 194, a sixth-rounder, in exchange for picks 18, 101, and 237 this season, a 2023 first-round pick, and a second-rounder in 2024. Ross Jackson, of the Locked on Saints podcast, says the deal puts the Saints in position to fill some immediate areas of need.

Cut 21 (19) “…three of those.”

New Orleans could also package the picks to move up higher in the first round.

The Saints announced the signing of defensive tackle Jaleel Johnson. Johnson is a five-year veteran who spent last season with the Houston Texans.

Tonight in New Orleans, the next NCAA men’s basketball champion will be crowned. Kansas, the top-overall seed beat Villanova to reach its ninth national final, while eighth-seeded North Carolina upended Duke to reach the final for the 12th time in program history. Carolina is the lowest-seeded team to advance to the title game since Villanova, also an eighth seed won the title in 1985. Both teams have been frequent visitors to New Orleans. The Jayhawks lost championship games in 2003 and 2012, while the Tarheels won the tournament in 1982 and 1993.

South Carolina claimed the women’s championship Sunday night with a 64-49 victory over Connecticut. Dawn Staley earned her second national championship as a head coach after the Gamecocks dominated the Huskies, on their way to handing UConn its first-ever loss in a national title game, becoming the first Black coach in men’s and women’s NCAA Division I history to win multiple titles. Destanni Henderson had a game-high 26 points and Aliyah Boston finished with 11 points and 16 rebounds for South Carolina.