The WNBA playoffs are tantalizingly close. The Sky, Aces, Sun, Storm and Mystics have already secured their spots in the postseason, leaving six teams (all but the Fever) to compete for three bids over the final week and a half of the regular season.

In their pursuit of the playoffs, several players stood out above the rest in the month of July. Just Women’s Sports honors the top individual performances by naming the Team of the Month, including starters and reserves.

A’ja Wilson, F, Las Vegas Aces

Wilson is having an MVP-type season, averaging 19.4 points, 9.5 rebounds, two blocks, 1.9 assists and 1.3 steals per game. She’s making a positive impact in every part of the game, with her 17-point, 17-rebound, six-block performance in the Aces’ Commissioner’s Cup win serving as an indicator of how the forward steps up against top competition. In July, Wilson had eight 20-plus point games and four double-doubles to lead Las Vegas to a 9-3 record.

Sophie Cunningham, G, Phoenix Mercury

The Mercury are in the midst of a playoff push, and that means they need to get more out of players not named Skylar Diggins-Smith or Diana Taurasi. Cunningham is certainly doing her part. In July, the guard averaged 17 points — up from her season average of 12.2 — and had a career-high 36 points in a loss against the Lynx on July 12.

Elena Delle Donne, F, Washington Mystics

While Delle Donne was sidelined last season with a back injury, the Mystics missed the playoffs for the first time since 2016. Thanks to her return, that won’t happen again this season. Delle Donne is peaking at the right time, with some of her best performances coming in July. She averaged 22.3 points per game and recorded two double-doubles while leading the Mystics to a 6-3 record during the month.

Alyssa Thomas records her first career triple-double in the @ConnecticutSun's 94-84 victory over Minnesota. pic.twitter.com/HRdu7ZLSVM

— Just Women’s Sports (@justwsports) July 23, 2022

Alyssa Thomas, F, Connecticut Sun

Thomas made an appearance as a reserve last month thanks to her contributions in virtually every statistical category. After recording the first triple-double in Sun history on July 22 with 15 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds (and even before she picked up her second of the season on Tuesday night), Thomas is making the jump to July’s starting five. She also had three steals and a block in that July 22 game, a 94-84 win over the Lynx, proving just how versatile she is.

Breanna Stewart, F, Seattle Storm

Seattle played 10 games in July, and Stewart was the leading scorer in eight of them. Nearly every game Stewart played for the playoff-bound Storm could be considered a highlight for the month, but her best performance came in an 82-72 win over Atlanta on the July 24. Stewart recorded a double-double with 23 points and 10 rebounds, while also adding four assists, two steals and three blocks. She continues to do it all for Seattle.

Reserves

Kahleah Copper, G, Chicago Sky

Copper capped a July that included two double-doubles and four 20-plus point games with a 27-point performance in a 95-92 overtime win over the Sun on the last day of the month. She shot 63 percent from the field in that contest and added five rebounds and two assists.

Kelsey Plum, G, Las Vegas Aces

Plum continued her dominance in July, leading the Aces in scoring five times, while also shooting 45 percent from the 3-point line. Her All-Star MVP performance on July 10 accurately sums up Plum’s scoring acumen, as she finished with 30 points on 66.7 percent shooting.

FIFTH player in @WNBA history to reach this milestone.

congrats, @SylviaFowles 👏 pic.twitter.com/VEnVzI0YYE

— Minnesota Lynx (@minnesotalynx) July 31, 2022

Sylvia Fowles, C, Minnesota Lynx

It’s hard to imagine the WNBA without Fowles, especially when she’s playing at such a high level. In July, the center bound for retirement after this season had five 10-plus rebound games and four double-doubles.

Tiffany Hayes, G, Atlanta Dream

Hayes made her debut for the Dream this month after overseas commitments and a knee injury kept her sidelined. She’s averaging 16.2 points for the playoff-hopeful Dream. Her best game was a 31-point performance in a 92-76 win over the Aces on July 19.

Diana Taurasi, G, Phoenix Mercury

Taurasi has scored over 28 points five times this season, with three of those performances coming in July. She had 28 in a 94-78 win over the Storm, 29 in an 80-75 win over the Mystics, and 30 in a 90-80 win over the Sparks.

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

The road to the College Cup begins this weekend, as the 2025 NCAA Division I women's soccer tournament kicks off with a stacked first-round field on Friday.

The strength of the ACC again leads the charge with three of the 64-team bracket's four top seeds hailing from the conference.

Snagging the overall No. 1 seed is Stanford, with the Cardinal outlasting fellow NCAA top-seed Notre Dame in a penalty shootout to claim their first-ever ACC tournament title last weekend.

Joining the Cardinal and Fighting Irish in the remaining No. 1 spots are the ACC's Virginia Cavaliers and the SEC-leading Vanderbilt Commodores.

Meanwhile, the 2025 tournament's No. 2 seeds — Michigan State, TCU, Duke, and Georgetown — are gearing up to play spoiler, with other underdogs also lurking throughout the bracket.

Already eyeing future upsets are four-time national champions and No. 3-seed Florida State, No. 4-seed and Big Ten champion Washington, and undefeated mid-major dark horse Memphis, who enters the 2025 field as a No. 7 seed.

The ACC's on-pitch dominance also sees defending champion North Carolina in an unfamiliar position, entering the 2025 NCAA tournament unseeded after the 22-time title-winners finished seventh in the conference behind a 12-6 overall and 6-4 ACC season record.

How to watch the 2025 NCAA soccer tournament

The 2025 NCAA women's soccer tournament kicks off with 32 first-round matches across Friday and Saturday, all on ESPN+.

The action begins with unseeded Ohio State taking on No. 8-seed Georgia at 3 PM ET, live on ESPN+.

Two USWNT legends are seeing their legacies cemented, as the National Soccer Hall of Fame announced on Thursday that retired forwards Tobin Heath and Heather O'Reilly are first-ballot inductees as members of the Class of 2026.

Both Heath and O'Reilly retired as World Cup champions and Olympic medalists, winning their 2008 and 2012 Olympic golds as well as their 2015 World Cup title as teammates.

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The USWNT icons led all voting on the Hall of Fame's Player Ballot of 20 finalists, which only allots two to three athletes per annual class for induction.

O'Reilly snagged 47 of the 48-person selection committee's votes, with Heath earning 45 nods for inclusion.

Fellow former USWNT star Sam Mewis finished fifth on the ballot with 32 votes in her first year of eligibility, while longtime NWSL and USWNT player Amy Rodriguez came in seventh with 28 votes.

Longtime Seattle Reign defender Stephanie Cox — a 2008 Olympic gold medalist with the USWNT — also snagged votes, ranking 15th on the Class of 2026 Player Ballot.

Though they fell short of making the cut, a trio of former USWNT stars also earned votes on the 10-finalist Veteran Ballot, with longtime midfielder-turned-broadcaster Aly Wagner as well as legendary '99ers Tiffany Roberts and Lorrie Fair all snagging tallies.

The National Soccer Hall of Fame will induct Heath and O'Reilly as part of its six-person Class of 2026 in a ceremony at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas, on May 1st.

Orlando Pride captain and Brazil legend Marta is back in the spotlight, topping the 2025 shortlist for the second-annual FIFA Marta Award — the women's goal-of-the-year prize established in her honor in 2024.

The 39-year-old attacking midfielder took home the inaugural trophy at the Best FIFA Football Awards ceremony last December, earning the title for a stellar long-range shot that helped lift Brazil over Jamaica 4-0 in a June 2024 friendly.

Marta's 2025 nomination, however, comes from an iconic goal in club play, with the FIFA Award spotlighting the Orlando game-winner against Kansas City in the 2024 NWSL semifinals — a goal that saw the Pride star force four Current players to the ground with her footwork.

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Marta has steep competition for this year's trophy, however, with 10 other goal nominees including a viral scorpion kick by former Tigres UANL star Lizbeth Ovalle, Seattle Reign defender Jordyn Bugg's long-range missile against the North Carolina Courage, forward Ally Sentnor's first-ever USWNT goal at the 2025 SheBelieves Cup, and more.

How to vote for the 2025 FIFA Marta Award

Holding 50% of the vote, fans can view and rank their top three goals of 2025 until voting closes on December 3rd.

Voting for the second-ever Marta Award winner is now open at FIFA.com.

South Carolina and USC are bringing fireworks to the 2025/26 NCAA basketball court this weekend, as the No. 2 Gamecocks take on the No. 8 Trojans in "The Real SC" showdown on Saturday.

Both standout programs enter the matchup undefeated in early-season play, with the Trojans touting a Top-10 win after narrowly edging out No. 10 NC State 69-68 last weekend.

"You don't know exactly what you have until you're put in these situations, which is why we schedule them," USC head coach Lindsay Gottlieb said about the upcoming clash. "And I think it's a chance for us to redefine our identity a little bit."

South Carolina's depth will likely test the new-look Trojans, as USC aims to solidify their identity with star JuJu Watkins sidelined with injury for the season.

That said, freshman Jazzy Davidson is giving the Trojans new life, with the No. 1 high school recruit co-leading the team in scoring with 17.5 points per game.

South Carolina, however, has seen early dividends from familiar faces, as sophomore Joyce Edwards leads the Gamecocks in scoring at 18.3 points per game, with high-profile transfer Ta'Niya Latson close behind with a 16.3 point average.

How to watch USC vs. South Carolina in the "The Real SC" NCAA game

No. 8 USC will welcome No. 2 South Carolina to LA's Crypto.com Arena for the inaugural "Real SC" game on Saturday.

The clash will tip off at 9 PM ET, with live coverage airing on FOX.