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Don’t Look Now, but UCONN Looks Ready to Contend Once Again

@UCONNWBB

Stopped me if you’ve heard this one before, but UConn is once again poised to win multiple national championships. It may not start this next year — the landscape is far too precarious for any confident predictions — but championships are coming.

The squad is young and new, with just four returning players and no seniors. Evina Westbrook, who sat out last year after transferring from Tennessee, will lead six freshmen seeing the court for the first time.

The last time UConn had as many first-year players on its roster was 1988, when it won its first (of 18) Big East titles. This year will mark the return of UConn to the conference it made famous and is ready to dominate once again.

Then, as now, the young players are a source of optimism. Still, UConn will need its older players to step up. Juniors Christyn Williams and Olivia Nelson-Ododa will anchor any success UConn finds.

“We have been taking up that leadership role,” Williams said. “It’s a lot more responsibility, it’s been different. The younger players have a willingness to learn, and are competitive. They’ve made it easier for us.”

Williams is one of four top-ranked high school recruits to have signed with UConn in the past five classes. The others are Paige Bueckers, who is widely expected to have a standout freshman season, and Azzi Fudd, who will join UConn next year.

“There is a direct correlation between if you sign those guys, at Connecticut anyway, there’s a pretty good chance you’re going to be an amazing team for a couple of years,” Auriemma said. “Yes, that is a great possibility. Our track record proves that.”

Before last season was cut short, UConn was a lock to enter the tournament as a No. 1 seed. Since then, Megan Walker left early for the WNBA and Crystal Dangerfield graduated before going on to win WNBA Rookie of the Year with the Minnesota Lynx. Seniors Molly Bent, Evelyn Adebayo, Kyla Irwin and Batouly Camara also graduated.

Along with Bueckers, the freshman class also features guard Autumn Chassion, forward Aaliyah Edwards, guard Nika Muhl, forward Mir McLean and forward Piath Gabriel. This group is widely expected to put the Huskies over the edge. Already, Geno Auriemma has been impressed with Edwards, the second highest rated player in the class, and Muhl, whose experience is bolstered by time in the Adriatic League in Croatia, where she led the league with 6.2 assists per game in 2019.

”There are times that Aaliyah and Nika look like they’ve been playing college basketball for awhile. They fit right in,” Auriemma said. ”They slide right in. So Paige, Nika, and Aaliyah mix really well with our returning players. Mir, once in a while, Piath less, Autumn less. But everyone has gotten better.”

Aaliyah Edwards plays a physical game and has been likened to Napheesa Collier by Christyn Williams. Piath Gabriel, at 6-foot-5 freshman, was not a top-end prospect, but UConn’s coaches clearly saw something. And Mir McLean is athletic and versatile, but will probably be a spark off of the bench this season.

The notoriously difficult coach has a team voted the 3rd-best in the preseason. Williams will still be running the show after posting 14.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game in her sophomore season, but should have more to offer if given the opportunity. The next of the four returners is Nelson-Ododa, a 6-foot-5 center who played a lot of minutes last season, even if they were not always the most predictive. Still, she was able to record 100 blocks last year, the eight-most in school history.

Aubrey Griffin had 5.4 rebounds per game but struggled with consistency. Anna Makurat will be tasked with spacing the floor as a catch-and-shoot 3-point shooter, where she averaged 7.9 points and 3.3 assists per game last year.

Then there is Westbrook, who also has some stroke from distance — she shot 38% from deep in the 2018-19 season. Still, she is recovering from knee surgery and has never played for UConn, so expectations for the redshirt junior should be kept in flux.

Of course, the team’s ceiling may depend on Bueckers. She was tabbed as the preseason Big East Freshman of the Year, but as she will be the first to say, it’s far too early to celebrate.

“I haven’t even done anything yet, I haven’t even stepped foot on a college court,” Bueckers said. “I have a lot to prove. I have a lot to work on.”

The good news is, she has some time—but not as much as you’d think.

While the 2020-2021 season may be a bit too hectic for even the sport’s most talented freshman to conquer, starting next year, with Azzi Fudd joining a more experienced Huskies squad, the expectation will be championships, plural.

That’s welcome news for Husky fans. For everyone else, well, we can try to enjoy at least this season.

Women’s Basketball Greats Moore, Bird Top 2025 Hall of Fame Nominations

2025 Naismith Hall of Fame nominees Maya Moore and Sue Bird stand on the court during a 2012 WNBA Playoff game.
Maya Moore and Sue Bird are in the running to enter the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. (David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images)

Several women’s basketball greats earned nominations to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on Friday, with Maya Moore, Sue Bird, and Sylvia Fowles among the Class of 2025’s 17 finalists for first-ballot induction.

After leading UConn to back-to-back undefeated NCAA seasons en route to the 2009 and 2010 national titles, Moore won four WNBA championships across seven seasons with the Minnesota Lynx. The 2014 WNBA MVP and six-time league All-Star also earned a pair of Olympic gold medals in 2012 and 2016 before exiting the game to pursue criminal justice reform in 2018.

Fellow Husky alum Bird also won two NCAA titles at UConn before picking up five Olympic gold medals with Team USA and four WNBA championships in her 21-season career with the Seattle Storm. Despite retiring in 2022, Bird remains the WNBA's career assists leader with 3,234 dimes, and her 13 All-Star nods still sets the league record.

Before joining Moore in leading the Lynx to WNBA championships in 2015 and 2017 — and earning Finals MVP awards during both runs — Fowles helped her alma mater LSU to four straight Final Four appearances. Her 14-year pro career included four Olympic golds, eight All-Star nods, four Defensive Player of the Year awards, plus the 2017 WNBA MVP trophy. When Fowles exited the sport in 2022, she did so as the WNBA's career rebounds leader, with a total of 4,006 boards.

Also on the 2025 Naismith ballot is Stanford standout and 1996 Olympic gold medalist Jennifer Azzi, who spent five years in the WNBA before retiring from play in 2004. Azzi now serves as the chief business development officer for the Las Vegas Aces.

Naismith committee to decide Hall of Fame class

A 24-member Honors Committee will assess all 17 finalists. Those who garner at least 18 committee votes will earn admittance into the Hall of Fame.

The Class of 2025 will be announced in during the NCAA men’s Final Four in San Antonio, Texas, on Saturday, April 5th, with an official enshrinement ceremony to follow at a later date.

Report: Cleveland Wins WNBA Expansion Team Bid

The Cleveland Rockers walk across the court during a 2001 WNBA game.
Cleveland has reportedly won the bid for the 16th WNBA team. (Lisa Blumenfeld/ALLSPORT)

The WNBA appears poised to accept a bid from Cleveland to become the league's 16th franchise, with Sports Business Journal (SBJ) putting the Midwestern city’s chances of earning an expansion team "as high as 90%."

Led by Dan Gilbert, the majority owner of the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers, the investor group will reportedly revive the name and branding of the Cleveland Rockers ahead of the team’s 2028 debut. The Rockers were one of the WNBA's inaugural teams, competing from the league's 1997 debut season until the team's 2003 folding.

SBJ also cited an estimated expansion fee of $250 million, setting a new league record by fully doubling the $125 million fee shelled out by Portland, the WNBA's incoming 15th franchise.

That massive check combined with access to top-notch facilities likely elevated Cleveland’s bid, which includes plans for the incoming Rockers to operate out of the Cavs' current training facility after the NBA team moves to a new center in 2027.

Big expansion team bids spark additional WNBA growth

SBJ's report also indicated that the WNBA has begun considering growth beyond their previously stated three-year, 16-team strategy, with an eye toward stretching to 18 squads in the short-term and 20 franchises by 2030.

Like Cleveland's bid, immediate access to NBA infrastructure has reportedly placed two markets at the front of the line for an expansion nod: a revival of the four-time WNBA champion Houston Comets and a net-new Philadelphia team. That said, three other former WNBA franchises — the Detroit Shock, the Miami Sol, and the Charlotte Sting — are rumored to be in the mix as well.

However, those ex-WNBA cities face stiff competition with bids from new markets like Austin, Nashville, Kansas City, Jacksonville, St. Louis, Milwaukee, and Denver entering the race in recent months.

Seizing the moment after a banner 2024 season, the WNBA is appearing to fast-track expansion rather than put prospective owners with deep pockets on hold — and turning some heads in the process as fears about growing too big, too quickly start to crop up.

UConn Rattles AP Poll Rankings with Top 5 Upset Over South Carolina

UConn basketball guard Azzi Fudd dribbles up the court against South Carolina.
Azzi Fudd posted 28 points to help UConn defeat South Carolina on Sunday. (Jeff Blake/Imagn Images)

No. 4 UConn bagged their first signature win of the season on Sunday, taking down then-No. 4 South Carolina 87-58 to snap the Gamecocks’ 71-game home winning streak. Dating back to 2020, South Carolina's string of home victories was the fourth longest in Division I women's basketball history.

"They had their way with us," South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley said after the game. "There's no trying to find a silver lining to it. We got beat. We got beat bad."

Leading the beatdown was Husky guard Azzi Fudd, who notched a game-high 28 points while teammates Paige Bueckers and Sarah Strong each snagged double-doubles en route to UConn's massive victory.

Despite dominating the Big East this season, UConn has struggled against non-conference foes, picking up losses against Notre Dame, USC, and, for the first time since 2007, Tennessee.

"We needed to prove that to ourselves, that we could never let up for 40 minutes," Fudd said on Sunday.

"More than anything else, it was evident today that we played to win," echoed UConn head coach Geno Auriemma.

Texas forward Madison Booker drives past LSU's Flau'Jae Johnson in Sunday's NCAA basketball tilt.
With Sunday's win over LSU, Texas is on track to contend for the SEC regular-season title. (Adam Davis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Top 10 upsets set the stage for March Madness

UConn wasn’t the only team showing out against Top 10 teams on Sunday, as then-No. 3 Texas took down former No. 5 LSU 65-58 in just the second SEC loss of the Tigers' season.

Now riding on three straight Top 8 wins, including humbling the reigning champion Gamecocks on February 9th, Texas currently sits atop the SEC standings. With less than two weeks of 2024/25 play left, the Longhorns have a real shot at the conference's regular-season trophy, as well as the key postseason seeding that title bestows.

Overall, the weekend’s slate tossed any presumptions about March Madness out the window, with top-ranked contenders stepping up to bust brackets before they’ve even been created. The only thing to expect? The unexpected.

Notre Dame's Hannah Hidalgo raises her arm in celebration during Monday's win over Duke.
Notre Dame is ranked No. 1 in the AP basketball poll for the first time since 2019. (Michael Miller/ISI Photos/Getty Images)

Elite action paves Notre Dame's rise to No. 1

Last week’s NCAA onslaught brought bedlam to Monday's AP Top 25, with Notre Dame enjoying the view from the top after earning their first No. 1 ranking since 2019.

Sunday's top matchups sent South Carolina and LSU down two spots each to Nos. 6 and 7, respectively, while UConn earned an equitable rise to No. 5 with their defeat of the Gamecocks. Meanwhile, by taming the Tigers, Texas scaled up one spot to sit just behind Notre Dame at No. 2.

As for then-undefeated No. 1 UCLA, the Bruins fell two spots to No. 3 after their Thursday loss to crosstown rival USC, who leapt from No. 6 to No. 4 with the win.

Notre Dame is flying high for now, but with an unranked loss amid their ranked wins, their grip on the top slot is far from ironclad.

The Irish did manage to cement their No. 1 status with a 64-49 dismantling of No. 11 Duke just hours after Monday’s poll update, flexing their national prowess with a big ACC win.

However, UCLA and Texas each received multiple first-place votes this week, proving the AP's No. 1 ranking is far from unanimous as teams stare down their last few regular-season games.

With March fast approaching, conference tournament seeding could boil down to Top 10 wins — and teams will need every bit of leverage they can manage as the NCAA tournament looms.

UCLA guard Kiki Rice shoots over Michigan State's Grace Van Slooten on Sunday.
UCLA bounced back from their first season loss with a narrow win over Michigan State on Sunday. (Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)

AP College Basketball Top 25: Week 16

1. Notre Dame (23-2, ACC)
2. Texas (26-2, SEC)
3. UCLA (24-1, Big Ten)
4. USC (23-2, Big Ten)
5. UConn (24-3, Big East)
6. South Carolina (23-3, SEC)
7. LSU (25-2, SEC)
8. Ohio State (22-3, Big Ten)
9. North Carolina (23-4, ACC)
10. TCU (24-3, Big 12)
11. Duke (20-6, ACC)
12. Kansas State (24-4, Big 12)
13. NC State (20-5, ACC)
14. Kentucky (20-4, SEC)
15. Tennessee (19-6, SEC)
16. Oklahoma (19-6, SEC)
17. West Virginia (21-5, Big 12)
18. Alabama (21-5, SEC)
19. Baylor (22-5, Big 12)
20. Georgia Tech (21-5, ACC)
21. Maryland (20-6, Big Ten)
22. Michigan State (19-6, Big Ten)
23. Creighton (21-4, Big East)
24. Oklahoma State (20-5, Big 12)
25. Illinois (21-5, Big Ten)

Gotham FC Signs Record-Breaking Sponsorship Deal with Dove

Emily Sonnett shows off the new Dove sponsorship above her last name on her Gotham jersey.
Dove's partnership with Gotham is the brand's first major investment in a women's sports team. (Gotham FC)

Gotham and Dove are teaming up, with the 2023 NWSL champs signing a record-setting multi-year kit partnership with the beauty brand on Thursday.

As Dove's first major investment in a women's sports team, the move also ranks as the highest-ever back-of-jersey sponsorship deal in NWSL history.

While Gotham did not provide specific numbers, the contract surpasses Bay FC's then-record $500,000 deal with private equity giant Sixth Street.

Dove joins Gotham in fight to keep girls in sports

The partnership is a part of Gotham's "Keep Her in the Game" initiative, a community effort launched last August to help adolescent girls stay in sports. Dove will serve as the program's presenting sponsor.

"Dove is the ultimate leader in female strength and empowerment, and we could not be prouder to partner with the brand in a number of impactful ways," Gotham FC chief business officer Ryan Dillon said in the team's release. "We are excited to team up with Dove to create key pathways for young female athletes to stay in sports, develop confidence, and become strong future leaders."

"The partnership is taking effect at a crucial time when supporting girls in sports has never been more important."

With girls twice as likely as boys to abandon sports by age 14, "Keep Her in the Game" aims to bolster young athletes' resilience and amplify the joy and connection that happens on and off the playing field.

After impacting 30 local New Jersey and New York youth clubs and more than 500 players in 2024, the initiative is aiming to double its reach in 2025. It will also pass the proverbial mic to the young athletes themselves by creating a Youth Leadership Council.

"The data is clear: Sports build confidence, leadership skills and resilience in young women, benefiting them for years to come," stated Laura DiMiceli, the head of personal care sports marketing for Dove's parent company, Unilever North America. "Dove is committed to supporting 'Keep Her in the Game' as part of our overall mission to help young girls pursue sports and keep playing the games they love."

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