This weekend in women's basketball was all about the hype, the competition, and a healthy dose of mutual respect between those committed to growing the game. |
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South Carolina completes their undefeated season
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Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
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The South Carolina Gamecocks are the 2024 college basketball National Champions, finishing 38-0 in the first undefeated season in DI women's basketball since 2016.
- South Carolina defeated Iowa 87-75 on Sunday, utilizing strong defense and hot shooting from behind the arc to neutralize Iowa's strengths.
- The Gamecocks defeated NC State to reach the final, while Iowa benefitted from a controversial call to defeat UConn.
Background: South Carolina's staff and players still remembered their loss to Iowa in the Final Four of last year's tournament, showing up on Sunday determined to get a different outcome.
- Gamecocks sophomore Raven Johnson kept Clark quiet for much of the second half, after Clark scored 18 points in the first quarter alone.
- Johnson spoke this postseason about her mental journey after being waved off by Clark from behind the arc in the 2023 semifinal game.
Nine South Carolina players played double digit minutes during the game, with true freshman Tessa Johnson leading the Gamecocks in scoring on the night.
- Johnson scored 19 points in 25 minutes of playing time, as South Carolina's bench outscored Iowa's 37-0 on the night.
South Carolina also dominated in the paint, out-rebounding Iowa 51-29, of which 18 were on the offensive glass.
- "Kamilla Cardoso was not going to let us lose a game in the NCAA tournament," Staley said after the game.
Cardoso earned the Most Outstanding Player title for MVP of the Final Four, behind a 15 point and 17 rebound performance.
- The South Carolina defense stifled the Hawkeyes in the second half, not allowing Iowa to score in the final minutes of the game.
Bottom line: Women's college basketball has arrived on the big stage, and both teams showed up as the best version of themselves on Sunday, with South Carolina's depth and talent winning through.
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Caitlin Clark's illustrious college career comes to an end
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Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
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After 3,951 career points scored, Iowa megastar Caitlin Clark walked off the court in black and gold for the last time in the Hawkeyes' loss to South Carolina on Sunday.
- "It's really hard to win these things. I think I probably know that better than most people by now," Clark said after the game.
- Clark finished the championship game with 30 points, eight rebounds and five assists.
Big picture: Clark's many accolades include the DI career scoring record, having shattered the tally previously held by Kelsey Plum.
- Clark also holds the DI record for scoring in a single season, also formerly held by Plum.
- She is also the Big Ten's all-time assist leader, and she leaves college as the first Division I women's player to score at least 1,000 points in two different seasons, according to ESPN.
Despite the loss, Clark and her teammates reflected on their legacy after the game, which goes far beyond the box score.
- "This team came along at a really good time, whether it was social media, whether it was NIL, whether it was our games being nationally televised," Clark said on Sunday.
- "No matter what sport it is, give [women] the same opportunities, believe in them the same, invest in them the same, and things are really going to thrive."
What's next: With little time to reflect on her college career, Clark will head to the 2024 WNBA Draft next Monday, in which she is expected to be selected first by the Indiana Fever.
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The USWNT advances to the SheBelieves Cup final
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Jaedyn Shaw (Robin Alam/ISI Photos/Getty Images)
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The USWNT will play in the SheBelieves Cup final on Tuesday, after advancing past Japan 2-1 in a back-and-forth matchup on Saturday.
- Japan started on the front foot, scoring barely seconds into the game.
- However, Jaedyn Shaw earned the U.S. an equalizer in the 21' with a brilliant strike from distance.
- Lindsey Horan then put the USWNT ahead, sinking a penalty won by Sophia Smith.
Happy returns: The game also saw a quality shift from Mallory Swanson, who started her first USWNT game since her season-ending injury in April 2023.
- Swanson didn't hit the back of the net on Saturday, but did put pressure on Japan's backline consistently.
- The game also saw the return of Catarina Macario to the international stage after a long journey back from her ACL tear suffered in 2022.
- One major concern for the U.S., however, was an early substitution for Naomi Girma, which was later confirmed to be due to a right thigh injury.
The crowd of 50,644 fans in attendance in Atlanta set a new record for women's soccer, in the most-attended USWNT friendly ever hosted in the U.S.
- The USWNT will now travel to Columbus to face Canada in the SheBelieves final, after Canada advanced past Brazil.
- The game will feature as a rematch of the Concacaf W Gold Cup semifinals, which was impacted by poor weather and won by the USWNT in penalties.
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International Hockey: U.S. Hockey began their 2024 IIHF World Championship campaign this week, outlasting Czechia and then Finland in their first two games.
College Gymnastics: Oklahoma, LSU, Alabama, Cal, Utah, Arkansas, Florida, and Stanford will compete in the 2024 national championship semifinals, after excelling in the regional round.
College hoops: Tennessee has hired Marshall head coach Kim Caldwell as their new head coach, replacing the recently let-go Kellie Harper. |
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109-3
South Carolina's record the past three seasons. Complete and total dominance. |
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Written by Claire Watkins
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