Here are the clues and answers for the April 3 NYT Connections: Sports Edition #557 puzzle.
Gael Fashingbauer Cooper, CNET editor-in-chief, journalist and pop culture junkie, is co-author of “Whatever Happened to Pudding Pops? The Lost Toys, Tastes and Trends of the ’70s and ’80s,” as well as “The Totally Sweet ’90s.” She has been a journalist since 1989 and works for Mpls.St.Paul Magazine, Twin Cities Sidewalk, the Minneapolis Star Tribune and NBC News Digital. She is part of Generation X in terms of date of birth, words and deeds. If Marathon candy bars ever come back, she’ll be first in line.
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- Co-author of two Gen X pop culture encyclopedias for Penguin Books. Won the “Headline Writer of the Year” award for 2017, 2014 and 2013 from the American Copy Editors Society. Won first place in the Society for Features Journalism 2013 headline writing.
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Today’s Connections: Sports Edition has a timely theme, and if your bracket has already been broken (or even if it hasn’t been), you should be fine. If you’re having trouble solving today’s riddle but still want to solve it, read on for tips and answers.
Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the Times-owned subscription sports journalism site. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it online for free.
Learn more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle exits beta
Tips for Connections Groups: Sports Today’s Edition
Here are four clues for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ordered from the easiest yellow group to the difficult (and sometimes weird) purple group.
Yellow group index: More points!
Green group index: Home for hoops.
Blue group index: March madness.
Purple group index: Exceptional Hoopsters.
Connections Group Answers: Today’s Sports Edition
Yellow group: Ways to score.
Green group: Areas on the basketball court.
Blue group: Locations of this year’s Final Four women’s teams.
Purple group: Most Outstanding Players of the NCAA Women’s Tournament.
Learn more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words
What are the answers from today’s Connections: Sports Edition?
The NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle completed by April 3, 2026.
NYT/Screenshot by CNETYellow words in today’s Connections
The theme is ways to score. The four answers are 3 point, floater, free throw and layup.
Green words in today’s Connections
The theme is the areas of the basketball court. The four answers are corner, elbow, paint and wing.
Blue words in today’s Connections
The theme is the locations of this year’s Final Four women’s teams. The four answers are Austin, Columbia, Los Angeles and Storrs.
Purple words in today’s Connections
The theme is the Most Outstanding Players of the Women’s NCAA Tournament. The four answers are Azzi, Boston, Cash and Fudd.
