UNCASVILLE, Conn. — Everything in life comes to an end, eventually.

Perhaps no one knows that better than a mortician.

And a mortician also knows that we can’t always control when or how that ending occurs.

Sylvia Fowles, WNBA legend and funeral director, chose when her career ended. She decided that this was her perfect moment to exit the game, something she’s never wavered on. But how it ended — that was imperfect.

Her final contest included misses that caused her to scream in frustration, early fouls that sent her to the bench, and a comeback that came up short and eliminated the Lynx from playoff contention.

But an anticlimactic end doesn’t take away from the beauty of her career.

In a perfect world, someone as impactful as Fowles has been to the WNBA would go out with a playoff run, maybe even a title. The Lynx, however, had their worst season since 2010, going 14-22 and bringing the franchise’s league-leading 11-game playoff streak to an end.

The season was rocky, but Fowles was stoic, putting up consistent numbers — she averaged 14.4 points and 9.8 rebounds per game — while maintaining a consistent attitude to match.

“Syl is awfully special,” coach Cheryl Reeve said following the season-ending 90-83 loss at Connecticut on Sunday. “I might have been really resentful through most of the season if I was Sylvia Fowles. I might have been really pissy. Syl has a hell of a lot more love in her body than most of us.”

The 15-year WNBA veteran poured that love into her teammates, coaches, fans, and even opposing players this season. She spent countless hours knitting personalized hats for her Lynx teammates, selecting plants for her coaches and putting together gift baskets for the trainers and staff.

Prior to her final game against the Sun, she stole moments out of warm-ups to give her goodbyes to opposing players.

GOODNIGHT ✌️ pic.twitter.com/IO1Spz5Fj3

— Minnesota Lynx (@minnesotalynx) August 15, 2022

Jonquel Jones approached Fowles, and the two engaged in conversation, full of smiles and laughs. When they embraced, one hug wasn’t good enough, and Jones pulled her back in for a second.

Then, Fowles made her way to Bria Hartley, who after injuring her ACL earlier this season was sporting crutches and a hefty brace. Fowles put her hands on the injured knee, rubbing it gently as if to invoke healing powers.

Fowles’ final game provided a glimpse of the person she’s been throughout her career, an identity Reeve knows well. Since Fowles joined the Lynx seven years ago, she and Reeve have won two WNBA championships together in 2015 and 2017.

When the coach subbed her star player out at the end of the game, the two embraced on the sidelines. It lasted for 10 seconds, heavy with emotion, as though they were both trying to capture eight seasons of memories in one hug.

“There will never be another Sylvia Fowles,” Reeve said, wiping tears from her eyes. “And it’s not just the 4,000-plus rebounds, which is awfully impressive. But it’s the way she did it. It’s the love she has for people, for the organization, and the love for me. Life is going to suck without her, big time. She’ll still be in my life, no doubt about it, but we won’t get to share in the battles, or the side eye that she gives me, or the suck the teeth that she gives me. I’m going to miss that.”

It’s easy to get caught up in Fowles the person, but Sunday was also a reminder of the center’s unparalleled basketball legacy.

In her final game, she became the only player in WNBA history to record 4,000 regular-season rebounds. She also ended her career as the leading rebounder for both of the organizations she played for — the Lynx and the Sky. Fowles is a two-time WNBA champion, securing Finals MVP honors on both occasions, an eight-time All-Star, and the WNBA’s career leader in field goal percentage (59.7). At LSU, she became the program’s all-time leading rebounder (1,570), and also topped the record list for blocked shots (321) and free throws made (494).

And on Sunday, Fowles recorded her 193rd double-double, despite a disjointed game in which she sat on the bench for extended periods due to foul trouble.

While Fowles has become known for her gentle spirit and generosity, she expressed frustration following her final performance, showing the competitive fire that propelled her to greatness.

thanks for the memories, 34. 💙 pic.twitter.com/1GWdvz3bU8

— Minnesota Lynx (@minnesotalynx) August 14, 2022

Despite leading the league in double-doubles this season and finishing her final game with 12 rebounds, 10 points, two steals and a block, Fowles still thought she should have done more. She still wanted to be better for her team.

“I was a little annoyed with myself because I had a s—ty three quarters,” she said. “I felt like I did my teammates a disservice.”

That single sentence is a cocktail of emotions. The love, the competitiveness, the sadness, the legacy all wrapped into one.

“I think that is something I will do later,” Fowles said of processing those feelings. “Most of my emotion right now is just to be grateful.”

And though Fowles has kept out of the spotlight for most of her career, the 36-year-old was glad she stepped into it this season.

“I appreciate the love that I got from the fans this year,” she said. “Put things into a different perspective for me. I never got that over my first 14 years of playing, so to see that all come together in my last year, I’m very grateful for that as well.”

But no matter how much love Sylvia Fowles received from the league and its fans, it still doesn’t compare to the amount of love she’s given over the years.

Like Reeve said, “Syl has a hell of a lot more love in her body than most of us.”

Eden Laase is a Staff Writer at Just Women’s Sports. Follow her on Twitter @eden_laase.

After a planned seven-week break from the LPGA Tour, world No. 1 golfer Nelly Korda is back in action, with the US star beginning her 2024 title defense at the 2025 Ford Championship on Thursday afternoon.

While last year’s inaugural event saw Korda in the midst of a historic five-tournament winning streak, the 26-year-old has been more strategic with her participation this year, sitting out the tour’s recent Asia swing after kicking off her 2025 campaign with two Top 10 finishes.

"I mean, it’s always nice to take time off where you’re not injured and you're kind of trying to hopefully become better and catch up on maybe some lost time," she told Golfweek on Wednesday.

Incorporating rest is a strategy world No. 3 Lydia Ko is also employing this year, as the New Zealander travels to the Phoenix, Arizona, event after a three-week break of her own. Ko is also packing winning momentum in her golf bag this weekend, having snagged her 23rd career title at the 2025 HSBC Women's World Championship in Singapore on March 2nd.

Joining Korda and Ko on this weekend's Ford Championship links are all 10 of the LPGA's top-ranked golfers, who will be competing together for the first time this year at the event.

That means Australia's world No. 5 Hannah Green, the US star No. 6 Lilia Vu, and South Korea standout No. 8 Jin Young Ko will all be competing for a chunk of the $2.25 million purse.

Top LPGA golfers take aim at low-scoring history

With Phoenix's warm climate known for producing low golf scores, this weekend's at the 2025 Ford Championship athletes will also take a swing at history by chasing the near-impossible single-round score of 59.

"That's kind of like the trend of golf here in Arizona," said Korda about the area's ideal setting for the sport. "I mean, the weather is usually perfect. The grass is usually perfect as well. So that all sets up for low scoring ability, and then it's hot, so it flies really far. So the par 5s are pretty reachable."

Korda once came close to the elusive score during her 2021 Olympic gold medal-winning run in Tokyo, though a few extra late swings saw her finish the round at 62.

"I came pretty close at the Olympics, then I doubled my last one," she explained. "It was like starting to creep into my head and I was like, yeah, I don't even think about it, no."

If any of this weekend's LPGA stars do snag a sub-60 round, they'll become just the second LPGA player to ever do so, joining former pro Annika Sörenstam, whose historic 59 came in Phoenix in 2001.

How to watch Nelly Korda at the 2025 Ford Championship

Running through Sunday's fourth and final round, the 2025 Ford Championship tees off on Thursday, with streaming coverage beginning at 6 PM ET and broadcast coverage airing at 7 PM ET.

All rounds of the tournament will air on the Golf Channel.

Viewership stats from March Madness are in, with the first two rounds of the 2024/25 NCAA women’s basketball tournament ranking as ESPN’s second most-watched on record across all platforms.

Trailing only 2024’s Caitlin Clark-fueled historic postseason, 2025’s slate of 32 first-round games averaged a 43% increase over 2023's edition, with ABC enjoying its second-highest first-round viewership ever.

ABC's first-round average of 1 million fans came in part because 1.1 million tuned into No. 2-seed UConn's 103-34 thrashing of No. 15-seed Arkansas State last Saturday, securing the network it's third-highest single-game first-round viewership on record.

In a non-championship round that saw the highest average margin of victory in March Madness history — a differential well over 26 points — last weekend's first round also gave ESPN its second-best viewership stats since 2008.

March Madness second round scores even higher

As the competition's temperature rose in last weekend's second round, so too did viewership, with ESPN's platforms snagging a 60% overall boost over the same round in 2023, earning an average of nearly 1 million viewers across the 16 games.

Yet again, the Huskies led the charge, with UConn's 91-57 blowout win over No. 10-seed South Dakota State drawing an average of 1.7 million fans to ESPN on Monday night — an audience large enough to rank as the fifth most-viewed second-round game in history.

Joining UConn's victory in the NCAA tournament's Top 10 most-watched second-round games are No. 1-seed South Carolina's 64-53 Sunday win over No. 9-seed Indiana and No. 1-seed USC's 96-59 defeat of No. 9-seed Mississippi State on Monday.

The defending national champion Gamecocks' second March Madness matchup jumped into that elite echelon by averaging 1.4 million viewers on ABC, with the Trojans's heartbreaking yet heroic win garnering 1.3 million average fans on ESPN.

All in all, while last year’s historic peaks won’t be easy to replicate, this year’s numbers indicate consistent year-after-year growth across a wider variety of teams — signaling that this season’s strength lies in its breadth of star power, as both superstars and unique storylines compete in every bracket quadrant.

Boston’s incoming NWSL club has a new name, with the 2026 expansion side rebranding to Boston Legacy FC on Wednesday in a pivot from last October’s initial controversy-sparking "BOS Nation" rollout.

The NWSL approved Boston’s expansion bid to become its 15th team in September 2023, returning the league to New England after the 2018 folding of the Boston Breakers.

In a press release, the team said it arrived at Boston Legacy FC after "five months of fan listening, research, and consultation," which began by surveying 1,500 fans and brand professionals before whittling the initial list of 500 suggested names down to 14 contenders.

While some cuts were clear due to trademarks or other legal barriers, other names were discarded as they did not align with the club's core values, including "a commitment to fierce competition with the ambition to establish a generational legacy of winning" as well as "the humility to understand that you make history through the grit of day by hardworking day, mile by unrelenting mile."

Other guiding criteria the team adhered to throughout the process included avoiding "colonial, Revolutionary War, and nautical themes" and choosing a timeless name that would not require any explanation.

Ultimately, the team's mission centers around creating "a club where everyone should feel welcome, where we embrace the whole city, where we build something bigger than ourselves."

After the organization's extensive research and consulting process, Boston Legacy FC won out as the "clear winner in every single category by a statistically significant margin."

Rebrand is the first step in Boston's NWSL plan

In addition to Wednesday's name announcement, Boston's NWSL club plans to release more branding, including a team crest, in the coming months.

Calling the new name "just the beginning," Boston Legacy FC majority owner Jennifer Epstein said in a statement that "it's what we build together, through dedication, commitment, and grit, that will give [the club] life."

"I look forward to watching the Boston Legacy build a club for a new generation while honoring those who helped build the game," said USWNT icon, former Boston Breaker attacker, and team brand advisor Kristine Lilly. "It is an exciting time for women’s soccer and I look forward to cheering on the Boston Legacy."

The 2024/25 UEFA Women’s Champions League semifinals will be decided over the next two days, as the second leg of the home-and-away quarterfinals cuts Europe’s surviving eight teams down to four.

Each of the first-leg victors boasts a multi-goal advantage over their opponents, with three-time UWCL winners — and defending champs — Barcelona leading the way after taking a 4-1 victory from German side Wolfsburg.

Eight-time champions Lyon also have a Bundesliga club on the ropes thanks to a 2-0 first-leg win over Bayern Munich.

Perennial winners aside, the knockout round’s most anticipated storylines belong to the three remaining English clubs: Arsenal, Manchester City, and Chelsea.

While Chelsea FC is enjoying an eight-point lead on the WSL table, they're position in UWCL play is far more perilous. Earlier this month, former former Arsenal striker Vivianne Miedema boosted City over the Blues with a brace in the pair's first quarterfinal meeting.

Thursday will see the second all-WSL clash of the Champions League quarters, as the match also marks an unusual fourth consecutive meeting between the two teams, with Chelsea winning the League Cup final earlier this month as well as the pair's Sunday WSL meeting — both by 2-1 scorelines.

Like the Blues, Arsenal’s Champions League campaign is similarly down to the wire, as the Gunners attempt to climb out of a 2-0 hole against Real Madrid on Wednesday. This time, however, Arsenal will hold a home-pitch advantage, hosting Las Blancas at the iconic Emirates Stadium — a significant boost after a first-leg match marred by particularly slippery playing conditions.

How to watch the 2024/25 UEFA Champions League quarterfinals

The second and final leg of the UWCL quarterfinals kicks off on Wednesday, with Lyon hosting Bayern Munich at 1:45 PM ET before Real Madrid visits Arsenal at 4 PM ET.

Thursday will determine the last two semifinalists, as Barcelona takes on Wolfsburg at 1:45 PM ET before the all-WSL face-off between Chelsea and Manchester City begins at 4 PM ET.

All Champions League matches will stream live on DAZN.