The NCAA is taking fans out to the (volley)ball game, as the Big Ten and SEC announced plans to close out its inaugural Big Ten/SEC Volleyball Challenge Week inside Chicago's historic MLB stadium, Wrigley Field, this September.
To cap the six-day event, which will feature all 18 Big Ten and 16 SEC schools, the conferences will stage an outdoor doubleheader on Sunday, September 6th.
A trio of national champions will compete on the Chicago Cubs' home diamond, with five-time title-winners Nebraska taking on Missouri before eight-time victors Penn State battles 2020 champ Kentucky.
While volleyball will make its Wrigley Field debut in the challenge, it's far from the iconic stadium's first foray into women's sports, with the MLB venue previously hosting a record-breaking NWSL match between the Chicago Stars and Bay FC in 2024 before welcoming Ohio State and Wisconsin women's hockey to the Big Ten's Frozen Confines in early 2025.
"Bringing the SEC and Big Ten together for a championship-caliber volleyball showcase, culminating at an iconic venue like Wrigley Field, reflects the extraordinary momentum of the sport," said SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey in the event's Monday announcement.
How to attend, watch Big Ten/SEC Volleyball at Wrigley Field
Tickets to the September 6th doubleheader will go on sale at 11 AM ET on Thursday, April 9th, on the Chicago Cubs' website.
For fans tuning in from home, Nebraska will face Missouri at 7 PM ET before Kentucky takes on Penn State at 9 PM ET.
Both volleyball games will air live on FOX.
Texas lifted its first-ever SEC women's basketball tournament trophy on Sunday, as the No. 4 Longhorns topped No. 3 South Carolina 78-61 to avenge last year's conference championship loss.
Texas laid a strong foundation for the upset victory with a 27-point first quarter, jumping out to an early 14-0 lead behind five forced turnovers plus tournament MVP Madison Booker's hot hand.
"I had some kids that were here on a mission," Longhorns head coach Vic Schaefer said postgame. "I just felt like my group was ready. They have really responded in the last three weeks and are in a different zone right now."
Sunday's win should secure Texas a top-seeded entry into the 2025/26 NCAA women's basketball tournament, while the Gamecocks must now await their fate in this weekend's Selection Sunday bracket reveal.
The 17-point loss marks South Carolina's worst tournament loss since 2011, snapping the program's three-year title-winning streak.
"Our team knows we didn't play our best basketball, not nearly what we're capable of doing," said head coach Dawn Staley.
That said, Staley isn't ruling out another NCAA trophy.
"I told them that the last time we lost in this situation, we won the national championship," the Gamecocks sideline leader noted, referencing South Carolina's 2022 NCAA tournament run. "It might be the very thing this team needs."
The SEC is stepping into the spotlight, as the NCAA's deepest women's basketball conference tips off Champ Week with ranked teams featuring in every round of their 2026 tournament.
No. 17 Kentucky enters as the No. 9 seed, while No. 11 seed Alabama fell off the AP Top 25 Poll for the first time since Week 9 on Monday.
"Kentucky has done a great job," South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley said following the top-seeded Gamecocks' narrow 60-56 win over the Wildcats on Sunday. "Take some of what has happened in this league, and what this league is doing, it is hard to measure."
The AP Poll currently features eight SEC teams, as No. 7 Oklahoma, No. 22 Georgia, and No. 24 Ole Miss gear up to enter the SEC tournament in Thursday's second-round action.
As for the Top 4 seeds, No. 3 South Carolina, No. 4 Texas, No. 5 Vanderbilt, and No. 6 LSU will enter the competition in Friday's quarterfinals, as teams battle for a shot at Sunday's SEC championship trophy.
"Thank God we're a tournament team," said Ole Miss head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin prior to the high-stakes conference competition. "Go ahead, put us where you want. Because were going to be ready to compete when we're full go. This is our storm."
How to watch the 2026 SEC women's basketball tournament
The 2026 SEC tournament will tip off with No. 17 Kentucky battling unranked Arkansas at 11 AM ET on Wednesday.
All first and second round games will air live on the SEC Network.
The SEC flex its muscles on Sunday, scoring two of the four No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Committee's second Top 16 rankings of the 2025/26 season — two weeks before Selection Sunday.
Texas edged out Vanderbilt for the last No. 1 spot — despite the Commodores earning a higher SEC tournament seed — joining UConn, UCLA, and South Carolina in the elite mix.
If the lineup holds, it would mark the third time in NCAA history that the No. 1 seeds represent the prior year's Final Four.
The NCAA tournament's Top 4 seeds get to host the first two rounds, raising the late-season stakes with home-court advantage on the line.
To that end, the Big Ten is leading the charge for hosting duties, as the conference landed seven teams in the Top 16, with Iowa and Michigan as projected No. 2 seeds and Maryland, Michigan State, Minnesota, and Ohio State claiming all four No. 4-seed spots.
"Like the first reveal, the discussions around these teams made it clear that there is not a lot of separation," said committee chair Amanda Braun. "With so much basketball still to be played, there remains a lot of potential for change."
How to watch the 2026 DI basketball tournament's bracket reveal
The 2026 NCAA women's basketball tournament's Selection Sunday show will air live on ESPN at 8 PM ET on March 15th.
The 2026 NCAA Basketball Committee Rankings
1. UConn
2. UCLA
3. South Carolina
4. Texas
5. Vanderbilt
6. Iowa
7. LSU
8. Michigan
9. Louisville
10. Duke
11. TCU
12. Oklahoma
13. Maryland
14. Michigan State
15. Minnesota
16. Ohio State
NCAA gymnastics is hitting its stride, with the SEC gearing up to flex its regular-season muscles via a stacked conference schedule.
Fresh off a narrow 0.2-point loss to No. 1 Oklahoma last week, No. 2 LSU will host No. 3 Alabama on Friday night — with the Tigers bolstered after earning a season-high road score of 197.925 against the defending national champion Sooners.
Leading LSU's charge this year is all-around contender Kailin Chio, with the star sophomore not only earning the team's only perfect score of the season so far, but doing it four times, logging 10s on vault, floor exercise, and twice on the balance beam in the last month.
"She's just operating at such an efficient, consistent, extremely high level, and seems to really rise to the occasion in moments where we need her," Tigers head coach Jay Clark said of the nation's second-leading all-arounder.
The Crimson Tide will also come to play on Friday night, with Alabama's best chance to surpass LSU coming on the uneven bars, where junior Chloe LaCoursiere and freshman Azaraya Ra-Akbar currently top the event as the Nos. 1 and 3 gymnasts, respectively, in the country.
With seven of the eight top college gymnastics teams hailing from the SEC, the conference is looking strong in its hunt for a third straight NCAA trophy, with LSU snapping a nine-year SEC title drought in 2024.
Then in 2025, SEC debutants Oklahoma added to the conference streak, securing a seventh program NCAA championship after winning their first six national trophies as a Big 12 team.
How to watch Alabama vs. LSU gymnastics on Friday
The SEC gymnastics titans will meet in Baton Rouge on Friday night, with live coverage beginning when the teams take the mat at 9:30 PM ET on the SEC Network.
Seeding for the upcoming 2026 SEC basketball tournament is approaching a photo finish, as ranked clashes dominate the powerhouse conference's home stretch.
Having already clinched a share of their fifth-straight SEC regular-season title, No. 3 South Carolina are just one win away from capturing the crown outright.
Meanwhile, No. 4 Texas and No. 5 Vanderbilt sit tied for second place in the conference standings with just two regular-season matchups remaining.
Though the conference tournament weighs heavy, both squads are also looking to pad their resumes ahead of March Madness's national showdown.
The Commodores will rely on Division I-leading scorer Mikayla Blakes when they face No. 24 Alabama on Thursday night, with the sophomore's 26.6 points per game lifting Vanderbilt to an 11-3 SEC record.
"It's a lot easier to go to top programs and just win," Blakes said last month, referencing her choice to join the Commodores over more traditional NCAA basketball titans. "I wanted to do the uncommon thing."
As for Texas, the Longhorns will look to keep pace against No. 23 Georgia, fueled by team-leading scorer Madison Booker's career-high 18.7-point average and guard Rory Harmon's 6.5 assists and 2.8 steals per game.
How to watch ranked SEC basketball games this week
Thursday's ranked SEC action puts the conference's second-place teams in the spotlight, with No. 5 Vanderbilt hosting No. 24 Alabama at 7:30 PM ET, live on SEC Network+, before No. 23 Georgia visits No. 5 Texas at 10 PM ET on SEC Network.
South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley celebrated a milestone over the weekend, earning her 500th career win leading the No. 3 Gamecocks as they took down the No. 7 LSU Tigers 79-72 in Baton Rouge on Saturday.
Gamecocks guard Tessa Johnson held court with 21 points, while the Tigers' struggles at the line saw star guard Flau'jae Johnson — who otherwise led LSU with 21 points of her own — miss two free throws in the final minute as South Carolina pulled away.
"At the end, we got lucky," Staley said postgame. "Flau'jae doesn't miss free throws — we actually got a bucket after that and it's those kind of plays that are determining the game."
The victory marked the Gamecocks' 18th straight win over LSU — with South Carolina holding strong as the only SEC team still unbeaten by LSU head coach Kim Mulkey.
"It was two of the best teams in our conference, in the country, just trying to get a win," Staley summarized.
South Carolina now boasts a multi-game lead in the SEC basketball standings, putting Staley's squad in the driver's seat as they aim for a fifth regular-season title with four matchups left.
How to watch South Carolina, LSU basketball this week
SEC basketball action returns on Thursday with No. 3 South Carolina facing No. 25 Alabama at 8:30 PM ET on SECN before No. 7 LSU tips off against No. 17 Ole Miss at 9 PM ET, airing live on ESPN.
SEC basketball takes center stage on Saturday, as No. 3 South Carolina takes on No. 6 LSU in what will likely be the pair's final Top 10 test of the 2025/26 NCAA regular-season.
The Gamecocks enter the matchup riding a five-game winning streak to a conference-leading 10-1 SEC record.
Even more, South Carolina boasts a dominant 32.5-point average margin of victory this season while holding opponents to just 55.7 points per game — and scoring an average of 88.1 points of their own.
As for the Tigers, LSU is 8-1 in its last nine games, averaging a Division I-leading 96.6 points per game thanks to backcourt consistency, with a trio of guards — Flau'jae Johnson, MiLaysia Fulwiley, and Mikaylah Williams — averaging over 13 points per game.
LSU junior star guard Fulwiley notably spent her first two seasons at South Carolina before transferring last April — going on to post career highs in points, field goal percentage, and rebounds in Baton Rouge this season.
"I don't think there was any animosity or hard feelings," said LSU head coach Kim Mulkey about Fulwiley's decision to leave the Gamecocks. "Internally, she's probably going to be a little bit excited [on Saturday], have butterflies, but she's really a valuable part of our team."
The SEC rivals last met in a 66-56 South Carolina victory in January 2025, back when Fulwiley played in Columbia.
How to watch South Carolina vs. LSU basketball this weekend
The No. 3 Gamecocks will visit the No. 6 Tigers on Saturday, with the clash tipping off live at 8:30 PM ET on ABC.
Texas faces its final Top 5 test of the 2025/26 NCAA basketball regular-season on Thursday night, when the No. 4 Longhorns visit No. 5 Vanderbilt in a blockbuster showdown atop the SEC standings.
Both squads enter the clash with 23-2 overall records and just two conference play losses, with Thursday's winner taking major strides in the regular-season title race.
Fresh off dropping 34 points in Monday's 102-86 win over No. 10 Oklahoma, star Commodores guard Mikayla Blakes enters the matchup on a hot streak, averaging 27 points over her last 10 games.
That said, Texas is riding a streak of its own, racking up five straight SEC wins including a dominant 77-64 bounce-back victory over No. 6 LSU last week.
Notably, Vanderbilt remains unbeaten at home this season, with the Commodores averaging 85.4 points per game while shooting 47.7% from the field at Nashville's Memorial Gymnasium.
To upend the home team, Texas will look to lean on guard Rori Harmon, with the fifth-year playmaker currently averaging 6.6 assists per game while breaking the program's 45-year-old all-time steals record last week.
"I think the SEC is a tough league, and I think it's kind of where I thrive," Harmon said. "I like the physicality."
How to watch Texas vs. Vanderbilt NCAA women's basketball game
The No. 5 Commodores will host the No. 4 Longhorns at 7:30 PM ET on Thursday, airing live on SEC Network+.
Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL) made a historic move this week, signing Tennessee senior pitcher Karlyn Pickens to the first-ever NIL deal with a pro league seen in the NCAA sport.
As part of her contract, Pickens will use social media and participate in other marketing opportunities to promote the newly expanded AUSL as the premier place for NCAA athletes to launch their professional softball careers.
"When I was growing up, I didn't really see [pro] softball… I didn't really think there was an option to go pro," said the Lady Vols star in Wednesday's AUSL announcement. "It's been just a few years, and now everyone's dream is to go to AUSL and continue their softball career."
After kicking off her NCAA tenure as the 2023 SEC Freshman of the Year, the two-time All-American and reigning Softball American Pitcher of the Year posted a 1.17 ERA across her 44 appearances last season, leading the Lady Vols from the circle all the way to the Women's College World Series semifinals in Oklahoma City.
Pickens also shattered records along the way, becoming the first collegiate ace to top Tennessee legend Monica Abbott's fastest NCAA pitch mark of 77mph from 2012 with a 78.2mph throw last March — before breaking her own record by hurling a blistering 79.4mph pitch at the Super Regionals last May.
Making NIL history this week is likely the 22-year-old's first step with the AUSL, which recently locked its six teams into home cities across the US last month — including assigning the Blaze to Pickens's home state of North Carolina.
"I never would've imagined that the pro softball league is what it is now, but it's also come to my home state," said Pickens.
How to watch new AUSL NIL athlete Karlyn Pickens
Pickens will kick off her senior season with No. 4-ranked Tennessee at this week's 2026 NFCA Leadoff Classic, where the Vols' slate includes clashes against No. 23 Liberty and No. 5 Oregon, among others.
Tennessee will begin the invitational against unranked BYU at 7 PM ET on Thursday, with live coverage of the tilt streaming on GameChanger.