No. 2 South Carolina shut down No. 5 Vanderbilt in Sunday's top-tier NCAA basketball clash, ending the Commodores' undefeated 2025/26 season by handing the Nashville visitors a 103-74 defeat.
Senior guard Ta'Niya Latson led South Carolina with 21 points, as five Gamecocks finished in the double-digits to offset Vanderbilt star sophomore Mikayla Blakes's 23-point night.
"I'm really impressed that we played connected basketball on both ends," South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley said following the bounce-back win. "I'm happy we responded to our [Thursday] loss."
The results could significantly impact the SEC standings, where No. 17 Tennessee currently sits in the lead — though six ranked conference opponents, including South Carolina, stand between the Vols and their regular-season finale vs. Vanderbilt.
"We didn't operate the way I know my team can operate," said Vanderbilt head coach Shea Ralph. "It doesn't get any easier.... This is the SEC."
"There just wasn't an answer today," Ralph continued. "There's a lot we can take from it, but it also doesn't negate the fact that we've been really good up to this point."
How to watch Vanderbilt, South Carolina in action this week
Both teams return to the NCAA court on Thursday, when the No. 5 Commodores will seek redemption against No. 18 Ole Miss at 7:30 PM ET before the No. 2 Gamecocks battle unranked Auburn at 9 PM ET.
Both matchups will air live on the SEC Network.
No. 3 South Carolina basketball suffered a blow this week, as top transfer Ta'Niya Latson exited the Gamecocks' 96-55 win over Providence with a lower leg injury on Sunday.
"She's smiling," South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley said of Latson immediately following the game, offering an optimistic injury update. "She got treatment all through the second half."
The star senior guard, who turned 22 years old last Friday, joined South Carolina after leading Division I in scoring with Florida State last season.
This year, Latson's 16.9 points per game trails only sophomore forward Joyce Edwards's 21.4-point average on the Gamecocks' scoresheet.
While the full extent to Latson's injury and her potential time off the court is still unknown, any absence exacerbates the team's injury woes, as South Carolina lost standout forward Chloe Kitts to a season-ending injury before the 2025/26 campaign tipped off — with the Gamecocks battling additional availability limits throughout their roster all month.
That said, with the recent returns of forward Madina Okot and guard Agot Makeer from concussion protocol, the Gamecock bench is significantly less sparse, with both returnees impacting Sunday's South Carolina victory with a double-double.
Even more, Staley's squad will see additional roster relief when 18-year-old French center Alicia Tournebize joins the team midseason.
How to watch South Carolina basketball this week
The No. 3 Gamecocks will open the new year by tipping off their SEC slate on Thursday, when South Carolina hosts unranked Alabama at 2 PM ET.
The clash with the Crimson Tide will air live on SEC+.
The SEC displayed its basketball dominance on Thursday's courts, as the conference won all four of the 2025 ACC/SEC Challenge Day 2 matchups to feature at least one Top-25 team.
No. 2 Texas handled No. 11 North Carolina 79-64 while No. 3 South Carolina and No. 13 Ole Miss survived nail-biters against No. 22 Louisville and No. 18 Notre Dame, respectively.
"I thought [our players] got out and made big plays for themselves in the fourth and building the five-point lead," said South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley. "It was a turning point for us, whether we were going to succumb to losing the game or fight to get back in it."
No one had a better night than No. 5 LSU, however, as the Tigers faced their season's first Power Four opponent to a 93-77 result over unranked Duke, erasing a 14-point deficit behind six double-digit LSU scorers — led by 18 points from star guard Flau'jae Johnson.
"We scored 93 tonight, and look how poor we played in the first quarter. We were behind. Scoring the ball is not going to be a problem," said Tigers head coach Kim Mulkey. "Our problem is we have to just continue to get better on the defensive end and take care of the ball."
Across the 16 total 2025 ACC/SEC Challenge games, the SEC took 13 victories, with only unranked Syracuse, Virginia Tech, and SMU earning ACC wins — over Auburn, Florida, and Arkansas, respectively — this week.
How to watch Top-25 NCAA basketball this weekend
This weekend's NCAA docket sees the nonconference schedule cool down, with No. 16 USC hosting No. 21 Washington in the only ranked battle.
The Trojans and Huskies will tip off in LA at 8 PM ET on Sunday, with live coverage airing on the Big Ten Network.
Forbes tapped the most powerful women in sports this week, ranking the Top 25 players, executives, and others pushing the needle in the ever-growing sports — and women's sports — sector.
Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark is the highest-ranked athlete at No. 4, joined by Unrivaled co-founders Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart at No. 9, as well as tennis stars Serena Williams (No. 11) and Coco Gauff (No. 13), reigning WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson at No. 15, gymnastics titan Simone Biles at No. 18, and world No. 2 golfer Nelly Korda at No. 21.
Also making the 2025 Forbes Most Powerful Women in Sports roster are tennis legend Billie Jean King (No. 23), NCAA basketball coaching icon Dawn Staley (No. 20), and Las Vegas Aces sideline leader Becky Hammon (No. 22).
Women's sports multi-team owner Michele Kang came in at No. 5, with NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman (No. 7), New York Liberty owner Clara Wu Tsai (No. 10), US Soccer president Cindy Parlow Cone (No. 14), and more representing the off-field lineup.
According to the publication, the new annual list honors leaders "who are transforming one of the world's most influential industries, shaping strategy, driving innovation, and expanding the role of women across the sports economy."
Investments, influence, and growth drivers were all taken into consideration, with Forbes also dividing selectees into five categories: owners/investors, business executives, front office leaders, athletes, and amplifiers.
The AP Women's College Basketball Poll turns 50 next year, and the publication began celebrating its rankings run a few months early by asking 13 former players and AP sportswriters to fill an All-Time team roster with the NCAA's best.
First Team honors went to USC legend Cheryl Miller, UConn greats Breanna Stewart and Diana Taurasi, all-time leading NCAA scorer and Iowa alum Caitlin Clark, and position-defining Tennessee forward Candace Parker.
Standout Huskies Sue Bird and Maya Moore also snagged AP All-Time nods, earning Second Team spots alongside Virginia star guard Dawn Staley, Tennessee forward and three-time national champion Chamique Holdsclaw, and three-time AIAW champion and MVP Lusia Harris from Delta State.
Even the AP list's reserves are full of legends, with basketball pioneers like Kansas star Lynette Woodard and UCLA's Ann Meyers Drysdale joining Lisa Leslie (USC) and Sheryl Swoopes (Texas Tech) as well as current WNBA superstars A'ja Wilson (South Carolina) and Brittney Griner (Baylor) on the All-Time bench.
"Being named an AP All-American is one of the most storied honors in college sports," Clark said in response to her AP All-Time First Team nod. "It's fun to think about what it would have been like if we all played together."
"What an accomplishment and what an honor," said fellow First Team honoree Taurasi. "There's so many great women who paved the way."
South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley will be taking her talents to CBS Sports, with the network announcing Wednesday that the basketball legend will headline a new WNBA pregame show premiering this weekend.
Hosted by sports reporter Sarah Kustok, WNBA Tip Off will feature both the decorated South Carolina boss and fellow former WNBA star Renee Montgomery as analysts.
In addition to her lengthy playing and coaching resume, Staley will bring specific insight into particular athletes during these broadcasts, with nine of the icon's former players — from reigning three-time MVP A'ja Wilson to 2023 Rookie of the Year Aliyah Boston — competing in the WNBA this season.
Staley's involvement also spotlights CBS's commitment to live WNBA broadcasts, with the network scheduling WNBA Tip Off slots for four of the network's eight regular-season league games.
WNBA Tip Off will debut at 7:30 PM ET this Saturday, serving as the lead-in to the Sky's primetime matchup against regional rival Indiana Fever — the first WNBA game ever set inside Chicago's United Center and the first-ever primetime WNBA regular-season game on broadcast television.
The other three games featuring Staley and her new CBS pre-game crew will be the July 12th clash between 2025 expansion side Golden State Valkyries and the Las Vegas Aces, a second Fever vs. Sky matchup on August 9th, and a 2024 WNBA Finals rematch between the reigning champion New York Liberty and runners-up Minnesota Lynx on August 16th.
Three-time WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson officially joined the signature shoe ranks on Tuesday, when the first edition of the Las Vegas Aces star's Nike sneaker hit shelves — only to sell out within minutes.
Wilson is now the 14th WNBA athlete across all brands to receive her own signature shoe, joining current players like Sabrina Ionescu and retired legends including Sheryl Swoopes, Lisa Leslie, and Candace Parker.
With more colors already in the works, the 28-year-old's debut "A'One" shoe arrived in a bright "Pink A'ura" colorway — a hue also heavily used across Wilson's Nike apparel collection, which dropped at the same time as the sneakers.
The eight-piece collection includes foam slides, T-shirts, shorts, cropped tops, and a single-legged "A'Symmetric" compression tight — a nod to Wilson's on-court uniform.
"My first A'One Collection reflects both my vision for the future of the game and the inspirations that fuel my performance and style every day," said Wilson in the February announcement detailing her Nike collaboration.
Wilson honors family in A'One Nike ads
Both the design details in the A'One shoes and Nike's series of commercials celebrating the collection boast nods to those inspirations.
The sneakers include symbols representing Wilson's parents, plus a quote from her grandmother: "As a matter of fact, the best is yet to come."
Photos of Wilson's paternal grandparents, which hang in her childhood church, make an appearance in director Jenn Nkiru's Nike ad, which also featured cameos from her parents and former college coach, South Carolina boss Dawn Staley.
The WNBA icon herself took a star turn in a second Nike ad, collaborating with Malia Obama in a vignette directed by the 26-year-old former US First Daughter.
How to buy A'ja Wilson's signature Nike A'One shoe
While Nike has temporarily removed Wilson's "Pink A'ura" A'One sneaker from the sportswear giant's online store, more inventory will be released in the coming days.
In the meantime, Wilson's apparel collection is now available directly from Nike, with purchase options both online and at select retail locations.
Her sneaker's second colorway, entitled "Blue Fury," will drop in the same locations on May 15th.
The city of Columbia, South Carolina, honored South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley with her very own statue this week, reflecting the three-time national champion leader's legacy as a change-maker in women's college basketball.
The 14-foot bronze likeness, which sits just next to the university's alumni center, reflects Staley's championship prowess, with the statue showing the coach on a ladder holding a cut-down basketball net.
"This statue is a tribute, but it really doesn't encompass what she's delivered for us as a community, what she's done for women’s sports, what she's done for young people, especially young women,” Columbia mayor Daniel Rickenmann told reporters before Wednesday's ceremony.
A legendary coaching resume
After her decorated pro career, the six-time WNBA All-Star and three-time Olympic gold medalist took over the South Carolina coaching job in 2008, building the program into the behemoth it is today.
To date, Staley has led the Gamecocks to nine SEC regular-season titles and nine conference tournament crowns as well as seven Final Fours — including appearances in the last five NCAA tournament semifinals.
The four-time National Coach of the Year is far from done, though.
Staley, who turns 55 years old on Sunday, inked a contract in January to remain with South Carolina through the 2029/30 NCAA season.
That blockbuster deal — worth over $25 million — makes her the highest paid women's college basketball coach in history.
Staley agreed to statue to increase representation
Staley's statue now joins one of former star player and now reigning three-time WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson, who saw her own likeness installed outside Colonial Life Arena in 2021.
Though initially opposed to becoming a bronze sculpture, Staley later acquiesced to the honor in order to boost the currently low numbers of US statues depicting women, particularly Black women.
"I agreed to the statue not for me, but for the girl who will walk by one day and wonder who I was," Staley said at the Wednesday unveiling. "Maybe she'll look me up. She'll see that I did some things in basketball, of course — but I hope she sees much more."
"I hope she sees that I was a champion for equity and equality. That in my own way, I pushed for change... not as someone perfect or extraordinary, but as a regular girl who used her gifts to open doors so other girls wouldn't have to knock as hard."
Fans who packed Iowa's Carver-Hawkeye Arena for WNBA superstar Caitlin Clark's jersey retirement snagged an additional treat on Sunday, as unranked Iowa upset No. 4 USC 76-69 to record their first Top 10 win in the post-Clark era.
Transfer guard Lucy Olsen led the Hawkeyes with 28 points, eclipsing USC sophomore superstar JuJu Watkins's 27 points. Overall, Iowa's defense held the Trojans to a low 35.4% from the field to clinch the upset win.
Despite suffering their second loss of the season, the full USC contingent remained on the court to witness Clark's No. 22 jersey rise into the rafters.
"I'm really impressed with the atmosphere here," USC head coach Lindsay Gottlieb said after the game. "We had decided prior to the outcome of the game that we were going to stay out there to honor her and women's basketball."
"We get to write our own story but are part of a synergy around women’s basketball that has in many ways, emanated from here," Gottlieb continued. "Congratulations to her. There's nothing I could say that hasn't been said. But the respect she's shown us, the humanity she's shown us, I'm definitely a fan."
South Carolina hangs up Wilson's No. 22 jersey
Another legendary No. 22 earned a Sunday celebration in South Carolina. Before taking down Auburn 83-66, the No. 2 Gamecocks retired three-time WNBA champion A'ja Wilson's jersey.
The athletic department's policy doesn't retire numbers even if a jersey is enters the rafters. However, coach Dawn Staley has clarified that no other Gamecock on the women's basketball team will ever wear No. 22.
Wilson arguably put South Carolina's program on the national map. Before becoming a three-time WNBA MVP, she was South Carolina's first-ever four-time All-American. She helped the Gamecocks to a program-first national championship in 2017, just two seasons after making their first Final Four. The 2018 National Player of the Year is still the team's all-time leader for both points (2,389) and blocks (363).
South Carolina has a five-year waiting period before former athletes can see their jersey retired. Frustrated with that policy, Staley helped push the building of Wilson's statue, which earned a spot on campus in 2021.
"I'm happy we are able to give her her flowers at such a young age where she'll be able to smell them for a very long time," Staley commented on Sunday.
That said, even Staley acknowledged that Wilson has a lot more to give to the sport.
"Everything that she's wanted to do and accomplish she has done, and she's only 28 years old. She's not even in her prime yet," she noted.
Sunday's ceremony seemed to add fuel to Wilson's drive, with the icon telling the crowd in Columbia, "As I look in the rafters and see my jersey, I am reminded how important it is to chase your dreams without fear."
One of the NCAA's fiercest rivalries hits the hardwood on Friday, when undefeated No. 5 LSU travels to No. 2 South Carolina for yet another high-stakes SEC basketball battle.
Anticipation for the matchup has been building since Wednesday, when the NCAA postponed the game. Originally set for Thursday, winter weather disruptions in Louisiana delayed LSU's ability to safely travel to Columbia.
"It's a rivalry, it really is," newly re-signed South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley said earlier this week. "It's not only a rivalry between the programs on the floor, but it's a rivalry with the fanbases."
A championship-fueled SEC basketball clash
With the last three national championships under their belts, LSU (2023) and South Carolina (2022, 2024) have seen WNBA superstars like Angel Reese and Aliyah Boston pass through their ranks.
This season's lot is just as talented, with LSU's Aneesah Morrow and Flau'jae Johnson preparing to lead the Tigers against the a dominant Gamecock defense anchored by team rebounds leader Chloe Kitts.
Coach Kim Mulkey's roster will have their work cut out for them in Columbia, where South Carolina is on a 68-game home winning streak. Even more, the Gamecocks haven't lost to the Tigers since January 2012, winning 16 consecutive meetings between the pair.
That said, while last year's South Carolina team ran the table on their way to a national title, LSU is one of just two Division I teams to still hold a perfect season. The Tigers' 20-0 record is the second-best start in program history, just below their 2022/23 team who strung together 23 wins before South Carolina handed them a first season loss.
If Staley's squad can do it again on Friday, they'll earn an eighth victory over currently ranked teams — and third over a Top 10 roster — so far this season. Their lone loss came at the hands of No. 1 UCLA, the only other program still holding an undefeated record.
On the other hand, LSU has just two victories over ranked teams so far, with Friday's matchup marking their first Top 10 test of the season.
How to watch LSU vs. South Carolina college basketball
LSU tips off against South Carolina at 5 PM ET on Friday, airing live on ESPN.