This is no ordinary season for the DeSoto girls’ basketball team. This, as coach Andrea Robinson coined it, is the Eagles’ “legacy tour.”

DeSoto, after all, won the Texas Class 6A state championship last season and returned a senior class that includes seven Division I commits.

The leader of the pack for the No. 3 Eagles is 6-foot-4 power forward Sa’Myah Smith, an LSU commit and a 4-star recruit, per ESPN. Smith has elevated her game as the Eagles have won their first three postseason games, earning her the honors of JWS Player of the Week.

“I have more of a ‘kill ‘em and win ‘em,’ mentality this season,” Smith said. “Winning a second [state title] in a row would be huge.”

On Feb. 17, in DeSoto’s 67-32 thrashing of Legacy (Tyler, Texas), Smith scored 18 points to go along with 12 rebounds and seven steals. Four days later, on the eve of Smith’s 18th birthday, she poured in 22 points and brought down 10 rebounds as the Eagles rolled past Lake Ridge (Mansfield, Texas), 63-28 and advanced to the Region II semifinals.

For all of Smith’s superlative feats, she’s hardly winning games by herself. Next season’s college basketball landscape will reflect that. Amina Muhammad, an Eagles forward, is committed to Texas. Post Tionna Herron is going to Kentucky. Wing Ayanna Thompson will play at Ole Miss. Wing Jiya Perry will continue her career at SMU. And guards Jamia Harris and Michayla Gatewood will team up next season at Kansas State.

“It’s pretty amazing if you think about it,” Smith said, “just knowing that any of us can go off for 20 [points] a night.”

The team has created palpable excitement around town. Even DeSoto Mayor Rachel Proctor is urging supporters to buy shirts celebrating the team.

🚨🚨🚨🚨 ATTENTION 🚨🚨🚨🚨

Everyone has still been asking about the 75115 shirts and when they’re coming back. Well…

THEY’RE BACK!

You can now purchase 75115 shirts for $15 and play off shirts at the athletic office.

Call Michelle at 972-274-8118 and get yours today! pic.twitter.com/pMJJxfPGIr

— Rachel L. Proctor (@rachellproctor) February 23, 2022

Still, it is Smith who is DeSoto’s engine. A versatile athlete who can finish and grab rebounds inside, Smith also is a skilled offensive initiator who often plays point-forward for the Eagles. In the offseason, she spent extra time working on her mid-range jumper, and that work has led to results this season.

She takes pride in her work ethic, picked up by osmosis on trips to her family’s farms growing up. As the lone girl, she was not required to do farm work, but she observed her brothers toiling in the summer sun and learned what it takes to get things done.

Smith brought that sense of purpose to the hardwood, where she’s made her family proud. She has big plans for the future, at LSU and beyond, but first, she wants to take care of business at DeSoto, starting with Friday’s clash against Tomball Memorial (Tomball, Texas).

There are four stops left on the Legacy Tour, with all roads leading to the Alamodome and the state championship game on March 5.

Josh Needelman is the High School Sports Editor at Just Women’s Sports. Follow him on Twitter @JoshNeedelman.

Two key upsets headlined Thursday's WNBA bill, sending the Phoenix Mercury soaring into third place in the league standings while the No. 6 Golden State Valkyries continued to outwit opponents.

The red-hot Mercury snagged their fourth straight win by taking down the No. 2 New York Liberty 89-81 on Thursday night, overcoming an 35-point performance from two-time MVP Breanna Stewart with five double-digit Phoenix scorers.

Meanwhile out West, the Valkyries stifled a surging No. 7 Fever, downing Indiana 88-77 in part by holding star guard Caitlin Clark to just 3-for-14 from the field — and 0-for-7 from behind the arc.

"We were being disruptive, we know that she doesn't like physicality, we know that she wants to get to that left step-back," Golden State head coach Natalie Nakase said about the Valkyries' strategy to effectively contain Clark.

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Though the No. 1 Minnesota Lynx and 2024 WNBA champions New York still hold court atop the table, Thursday's actions proves that other squads are making some unexpected in-roads.

Putting together an impressive road record are the Mercury, who will ride a 4-2 away record into their Saturday matchup against the No. 11 Chicago Sky — the last stop on a four-game road trip that's been perfect for Phoenix thus far.

Already flipping the script on expectations is Golden State, with the 2025 expansion team rising despite relying on a hodgepodge roster as several players compete at EuroBasket 2025. The Valkyries will aim to keep their winning momentum in their Sunday clash with the No. 12 Connecticut Sun.

How to watch the Mercury, Valkyries this weekend

Both of Thursday's victors will be back in action this weekend, with Phoenix facing Chicago at 1 PM ET on Saturday, airing live on ABC.

Then on Sunday, Golden State will host Connecticut at 8:30 PM ET, with live coverage on WNBA League Pass.

In another weekend full of WNBA action, all eyes are on Las Vegas, as the No. 8 Aces will try to curb a two-game losing streak against two formidable opponents.

A successful weekend for Las Vegas could hinge on three-time WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson's potential return from injury, with the star forward recently upgraded to "questionable" after landing in concussion protocol last week.

Overall, the margin for error has narrowed in the middle of the WNBA pack, as talented teams continue to translate quality performances into consistency.

• No. 5 Seattle Storm vs. No. 8 Las Vegas Aces, Friday at 10 PM ET (ION): The Aces will try to end their free fall in Friday's head-to-head battle with a Seattle side that can beat anybody at their best.

• No. 7 Indiana Fever vs. No. 8 Las Vegas Aces, Sunday at 3 PM ET (ESPN): Las Vegas next faces a Fever team still smarting from Thursday's away loss to the Golden State Valkyries, with both teams narrowly clinging to positions above the playoff line.

• No. 2 New York Liberty vs. No. 5 Seattle Storm, Sunday at 7 PM ET (WNBA League Pass): The Liberty have a comfortable hold on second place, but with two losses in their last three games, New York is flirting with danger entering their Sunday game with Seattle — particularly if star big Jonquel Jones is out after suffering a knock to the ankle on Thursday.

Ultimately, there's no rest for the weary in the WNBA, as a series of difficult matchups can see a single error quickly slide into a losing streak.

The final NWSL weekend heading into the league's six-week summer break has arrived, giving teams one more chance to prove themselves before regular-season play pauses to make way for major international tournaments.

With a five-point gap separating No. 1 Kansas City from No. 2 Orlando in the NWSL standings, the Current will enter the break as the 2025 Shield frontrunners regardless of this weekend's results.

Despite Kansas City's grip atop the table, there's still plenty of room for movement both above and below the postseason cutoff line, as clubs across the NWSL look to wrap their midseason finales on a high note:

• No. 1 Kansas City Current vs. No. 10 Angel City FC, Friday at 8 PM ET (Prime): Angel City has a shot at launching themselves above the cutoff line on Friday, but they'll have to snap the Current's five-game winning streak to make it happen.

• No. 8 Gotham FC vs. No. 9 Bay FC, Saturday at 7:30 PM ET (ION): Gotham and Bay FC enter the weekend tied on points while staring at each other from on opposite sides of the playoff line — meaning a Saturday win for either club could set the tone for the rest of the 2025 season.

• No. 3 San Diego Wave FC vs. No. 4 Washington Spirit, Sunday at 10 PM ET (CBS Sports): The weekend's only top-table clash could see San Diego sprint back into second place — unless Washington leapfrogs the upstart Wave to claim the third-place spot.

The LPGA Tour has turned its attention to Texas, with the 2025 KPMG Women's PGA Championship — the third major of the pro golf season — teeing off in Frisco to a flurry of first-round action on Thursday.

All of the sport's Top 100 athletes are participating in this week's event, including No. 1 Nelly Korda, who sits in a 14th-place tie with an even-par first-round performance, and surging US dark horse No. 50 Lexi Thompson, who tied for 10th in her Thursday return from a brief retirement.

However, leading the pack heading into Friday's second round is Thailand's world No. 2 Jeeno Thitikul, who finished the first day of competition atop the leaderboard with a score of 4-under-par.

Australia's No. 24 Minjee Lee also posted a strong start, capping Thursday at 3-under to sit in second place.

While the sport's best chase victory on the links, the 2025 KPMG Women's PGA Championship is already making history off the green.

Not only is it the first-ever women's major to tee off at Frisco's Fields Ranch East, the tournament also increased its purse to $12 million on Tuesday — nearly tripling the $4.5 million prize pool from just four years ago and tying the US Women's Open for the LPGA Tour's highest payout in the process.

How to watch the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship

The third LPGA Grand Slam of 2025 continues through Sunday.

Friday's second round will air live on the Golf Channel, while coverage of Saturday and Sunday's final rounds will air across NBC and Peacock.