Since the announcement that Nicki Collen would be leaving the Atlanta Dream for the head coaching job at Baylor, many have taken to Twitter to react to the news. 

Baylor men’s coach Scott Drew welcomed Collen to the family, saying that he was “looking forward to working alongside” her.

Welcome to the #BaylorFamily! Looking forward to working alongside you at the Ferrell Center @NickiCollen!! https://t.co/gxHY6HvrZg

— Scott Drew (@BUDREW) May 4, 2021

Kelsey Bibik, head of PR for the Dream, tweeted in her support, saying, “I guess I’m a Baylor fan now.”

I can’t thank @NickiCollen enough for taking a chance on me a few years ago and making my first job in pro sports a breeze. Atlanta won’t be the same without her, but I guess I’m a Baylor fan now 🐻 #SicEm https://t.co/SAWgvVVMBG

— Kelsey Bibik (@kelseybibik) May 4, 2021

Director of Basketball Operations for the Dream Brooklyn Cartwright called Waco “so lucky” and said that she couldn’t wait to watch Collen work down in Texas.

ATL is missin it’s favorite basketball coach but Waco is so lucky! Can’t wait to watch you work!! Baylor just got the best & I couldn’t be happier for you! Much love & kick ass!!!@NickiCollen #SicEm https://t.co/ZevOWHfisM

— Brooklyn Cartwright (@bkcartwright) May 4, 2021

Former Dream general manager and president Chris Sienko called her “one heck of a coach, and an even better person.” Sienko himself was ousted last month, six days after the WNBA draft.

Baylor fans, you have landed one heck of a coach, and an even better person - trust me, I know! @BaylorWBB @Big12Conference @NickiCollen https://t.co/dCVSCc0YPd

— chris sienko (@csienko11) May 3, 2021

Curt Miller, current head coach of the Connecticut Sun and Collen’s former boss, called her “one of the best basketball minds in the business.”

A huge congratulations to @NickiCollen! One of the best basketball minds in the business. A loss for the W but a win for the young women she will mentor. Waco thought they saw fashion, buckle up a new shoe 👠 game coming to town. #homerunhire #friendsforlife

— Curt Miller (@CurtMillerWBB) May 4, 2021

Dream organization members and players found out about the news prior to practice yesterday morning, according to interim head coach Mike Petersen. 

“Darius and I found out yesterday morning that Nicki was as involved as she was before practice,” Peterson said. “A lot of times these things pop in a hurry, we found out then and from that point forward a lot of Zooms… We spent basically all day yesterday meeting and talking and making sure we were doing the right thing for the players in this organization.”

Petersen reiterated, however, that the players were all very supportive of the move. 

“Everyone in the organization is just thrilled for Nicki and her family. Baylor is getting a great coach,” Peterson said in a press conference. “Our players are super happy for her.”

Of course, the move wasn’t met without some jokes by current WNBA players and beyond. 

Sydney Colson said a lot, without saying much at all.

Dang Nicki Collen was in the scrimmage yellin “🗣let’s go” to the team, but thinking “...to Baylor” in her head 😩 pic.twitter.com/aX4Poc8TQD

— Sydney Colson (@SydJColson) May 4, 2021

Dream players after the game: Ay coach
Nicki Collen: pic.twitter.com/83melBSqYY

— Sydney Colson (@SydJColson) May 4, 2021

Nicki Collen said pic.twitter.com/aBGCcNj39N

— Sydney Colson (@SydJColson) May 4, 2021

A Magic Johnson meme was brought back into existence.

Everyone picked Nicki Collen to win COY meanwhile Nicki: pic.twitter.com/LgYg42BHjr

— Jas (@JasTayler) May 3, 2021

And Bleacher Report’s Arielle Chambers tweeted what we’ve all been thinking: of all the powerhouses down in Texas, which cheer gym will her daughter be joining?

So with Coach Nicki Collen going to Texas, knowing that she's an all-star cheer mom, I wonder which gym her daughter will switch to 👀 Cheer Athletics 👀👀 Spirit of Texas 👀👀👀 What's Worlds lookin like for the Collen household???

— Arielle (Ari) Chambers (@ariivory) May 4, 2021

Collen will be formally announced as the next head coach of the Baylor Bears in a Wednesday press conference on ESPN+ at 3:30 p.m. ET.

With half of the Elite Eight now set, a few Big Ten underdogs still have a shot at disrupting the No. 1 seed stronghold at the 2025 NCAA volleyball tournament this weekend.

The No. 3-seed Purdue Boilermakers are through to the quarterfinals after defeating No. 2-seed SMU 3-1 on Thursday, while the No. 4-seed Indiana Hoosiers, No. 3 seed-Wisconsin Badgers, and the still-undefeated overall No. 1 seed Nebraska Cornhuskers all face stiff Sweet Sixteen competition on Friday afternoon.

Coming off a strong regular season, the Big Ten could still field half of the quarterfinal round — though that would require the first No. 1-seed upset of the 2025 national tournament in the form of an Indiana victory over top-seeded Texas.

Bolstered by their defensive leader, senior middle blocker Madi Sell, the Hoosiers booked just their second-ever Sweet Sixteen trip with last week's win over No. 5 Colorado, with Indiana now hoping their lucky run continues against the 2022 and 2023 champion Longhorns.

Meanwhile, the No. 1 Huskers will look to keep rolling against No. 4-seed Kansas while the No. 3 Badgers aim to snag another Big Ten spot in the Elite Eight by ousting No. 2-seed Stanford on Friday.

How to watch the 2025 NCAA volleyball tournament this weekend

The NCAA volleyball tournament's Sweet Sixteen action will wrap with four games on Friday, starting with No. 1 Texas vs. No. 4 Indiana at 12 PM ET.

The Elite Eight will then meet at the net on Saturday and Sunday to determine the last-standing teams heading to next week's Final Four in Kansas City.

All of this weekend's NCAA tournament games will air live across ESPN platforms.

Team USA is on a roll, officially taking the four-game 2025 Rivalry Series against Canada before the slate of friendlies is even over, with the US collecting three consecutive wins so far — and one shot left at making it a clean sweep.

The US downed their northern neighbors by a commanding 10-4 scoreline in Edmonton on Wednesday, marking Team USA's first-ever 10-goal victory against the reigning Olympic champs — all while upping the 2025 series' goal tally to 20-6.

While each team fine-tunes rosters ahead of the 2026 Olympics, one test remains for both international hockey titans before the Winter Games take the ice in February.

"The work doesn't stop. Our Olympic team is not named. There's still one more game to go," said USA captain Kendall Coyne Schofield, acknowledging that her squad is not taking their foot off the gas despite the recent lopsided results.

"We have one more game against them before the Olympics," echoed Canada captain Marie-Philip Poulin. "We're all aware of that."

How to watch Team USA vs. Canada in the 2025 Rivalry Series

The puck drops on the final match of the sixth annual hockey Rivalry Series between the USA and Canada in Edmonton, Alberta, on Saturday.

Live coverage of the clash will begin at 9 PM ET on the NHL Network.

The latest FIFA women's soccer rankings dropped on Thursday, with Spain widening their lead at No. 1 after winning a second consecutive UEFA Nations League title earlier this month.

The USWNT held steady at No. 2, ceding 7.48 points after losing an October friendly to No. 22 Portugal before going on to secure four straight wins over Portugal, No. 35 New Zealand, and No. 13 Italy to close out 2025.

Elsewhere in the FIFA Top 10, No. 3 Germany and No. 6 Brazil both saw boosts after successful fall runs, while Canada skidded to No. 10 amid a recent five-match winless streak, with Les Rouges's last victory coming against No. 43 Costa Rica last June.

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The biggest changes, however, occurred outside the top ranks, as No. 96 Nicaragua, No. 118 Burkina Faso, and No. 137 American Samoa all rose by 16 spots.

Notably, upcoming USWNT opponent Paraguay saw the largest drop in this month's Top 50, sliding five spots to No. 46.

Ultimately, as the USWNT battled to keep pace in a year of roster experimentation — and without a major competition on the team's 2025 docket — the many international competitions in Europe benefitted victors and challenged losers in this week's FIFA rankings update.

The No. 16 USC Trojans are gearing up for another top-ranked test, hosting the reigning national champion No. 1 UConn Huskies in the weekend's flashiest NCAA women's basketball matchup on Saturday.

Coming off their second ranked win of the season, USC topped No. 20 Washington 59-50 last Sunday, with 22 points and 12 rebounds from freshman Jazzy Davidson helping pull the Trojans to a 7-2 record.

"I saw a resolve in our team," said head coach Lindsay Gottlieb afterwards. "I knew we could get the next stop, I knew we could get the next play."

USC will face a particularly familiar foe against the Huskies — this time without sidelined star junior JuJu Watkins — after UConn knocked the Trojans out of the NCAA tournament two years in a row.

Notably, sophomore guard Kayleigh Heckel departed USC over the summer for the Huskies, with the former Trojan averaging 7.7 points per game entering Saturday's clash with her old team.

"I just try to take one game at a time, but I'm excited to go back," Heckel said ahead of her first trip back to LA since transferring. "I had a great freshman year there, and I learned a lot, and it was a great experience, a lot of fond memories. So I'm looking forward to it."

How to watch No. 1 UConn vs. No. 16 USC on Saturday

The Trojans will host the Huskies with tip-off set for 5:30 PM ET on Saturday.

Live coverage of the clash will air on FOX.