this honestly feels a lot more genuine than the last one. hopefully everyone can move on now.

Most likely has something to do with the Russian player they just brought on

Watkins was carried off the court and seemed in agonizing pain.

USC is the No. 1 ranked team in the NCAAW tournament and Watkins is the best player for the Trojans.

Hidalgo became:

The first player in NCAA tournament history with 25pts and 10stls in a game

Joined Caitlin Clark as the only players in NCAA tournament history with a 30pt triple double

Second ever triple double with steals in NCAA tournament history.

Tied fellow Notre Dame alum Skylar Diggins for the most 20pt, 5ast, 5stl games in NCAA Tournament history

First player to have three career NCAA Tournament games with 8+ steals

Per Instagram. Go HUSKIES🙌 Natty bound!

Hannah Stuelke, a standout forward for the Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball team, was not selected in the 2026 WNBA Draft despite her impressive college career.

By Stephen Hawkins | AP

FORT WORTH, Texas — UConn coach Geno Auriemma is ripping the double-regional format being used in the women's NCAA Tournament , saying it doesn’t make sense for the teams still playing or in efforts to grow the game.

Auriemma brought up attendance, bad shooting percentages and teams having to come to the arena early and late on the same day when taking aim at the format that is in place for the fourth year, and set to continue for at least five more.

“Well, I think the first question you’d have to ask is why did they go from four to two. What was the rationale?” the 12-time national champion coach said Saturday. “If they can explain it legitimately and then prove that it works, then great. So what was the reason?”

NCAA officials didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

The defending national champion Huskies (37-0), the overall No. 1 seed, play Notre Dame (25-10) in the Fort Worth Regional 1 final Sunday.

The Huskies held their required media availability Saturday morning, after the Fighting Irish had already completed their session and before two Sweet 16 games in the Fort Worth Regional 3 were played at Dickies Arena. UConn and Notre Dame both had scheduled practice times there later in the evening.

“So we had to get our kids up, come over here. You already knew who we were playing last night, but we can’t get on the court, and neither can the other teams,” Auriemma said. “Does anybody who makes these decisions ever ask the coaches and the players, hey, does this work?”

Auriemma, the winningest men’s or women’s NCAA basketball coach with 1,287 victories, didn’t wait for a question to share his thoughts on the format, opening his session by listing the following numbers: 4 for 20, 4 for 22, 1 for 17, 5 for 17, 4 for 16, 7 for 26.

“That’s the 3-point shooting yesterday across the country. How many arenas are we going to sell out with that (expletive)?” he said. “Now, maybe it was just a bad day shooting by everybody. These are all teams that average probably 30, over 30, for the season. Know what time our shootaround was yesterday? Six in the morning, 6:20, I think, for half an hour.”

He also mentioned the total combined announced attendance of 18,821 at the two venues Friday, in Fort Worth and Sacramento, California .

Auriemma said there is a lack of input from coaches, and said nothing changes even though the NCAA sends representatives to schools every year after the tournament.

“Hopefully I’m speaking for the other coaches. Some coaches might think I’m full of it. And this is not about UConn. I hope everybody understands that,” he said. “This is not about us, because you know, we’ve managed to go to the Final Four and win national championships no matter where they’re played, when they’re played, what time they’re played, whatever.

“I think there is a level of frustration right now among the coaches that’s higher than any time I’ve ever seen it.”

This morning's presser:

I'm gonna read you some numbers so write them down: 4-20, 4-22, 1-17, 5-18, 4-16, 7-26. That's the three point shooting yesterday across the country. How many arenas are we gonna sell out with that bullshit? Now, maybe it was just a bad day shooting by everybody. These are all teams that average 30? over 30 for the season?

Know what time our shootaround was yesterday? Six o'clock in the morning. 6:20, I think. For half an hour. Now this morning, I just saw Notre Dame leaving, so they had media this morning. Their practice time is tonight at 5:30. What did you have to ask them this morning that you couldn't ask them last night? Or us? Know what time our practice time is? 6:30 tonight. So we had to get our kids up, come over here, you already knew who we were playing last night, but we can't get on the court. And neither can the other teams. Walz had media at 7:30 I think. Does anybody who makes these decisions ask the coaches and the players, "Hey does this work? Do you guys do this during the regular season? Is this normal?"

Total attendance at both places: 18,000. If we had four regions and we had a minimum of 5000 people, I went to Westchester State university, it's a great university, I think that comes out to 20,000. So what are we doing here? Do you know the last time they had a regional in the northeast? We were a #2 seed, NC State was #1 and we had to play in Bridgeport. So there will be no more regionals north of, I don't know, I guess there's one in Philly coming up. I just don't understand some of the decisions that are made about our game, when we're trying to grow the goddamn game.

I'm thrilled to be playing Notre Dame. Cuz they're damn good right now. So there you have it.

You want to know the reason for these shooting percentages? I think they bring in new baskets and new balls right out of the box. Got people dribbling the ball off their feet, people missing layups all over the place, you bounce the ball and it goes up to the ceiling. There's just no concept of how. basketball. is played.

Pretty surprising since they just made the run to the Sweet 16, winning 3 tournament games including the upset over Iowa.

On Monday, Auriemma addressed the media for the first time following the national semifinal. He admitted he regretted how his altercation with Staley escalated and how it snowballed into a national storyline.

"You do things spur of the moment sometimes, but they usually come from things that have been building up for quite some time," he said. "So, when I walked in the locker room afterwards with the coaches, it was, you know, (they're) just shaking their head going, you know, 'Five more seconds. You couldn't keep it in for five more seconds?' So, you know, you just feel like a dumbass for the way it played out. And, yeah, we're all human, and we all do dumb s—."

Both Staley and Auriemma issued statements in the days immediately after the Final Four. Auriemma released an initial apology the day after the loss before releasing another apology directly toward Staley the following Tuesday. Staley also released her own statement on that Tuesday, stating she and Auriemma had talked privately and asked the women's basketball world to move on from the incident.

Auriemma said Monday that he tried hard not to follow the media frenzy that followed in the days after his and Staley's incident, as sports outlets and talking heads everywhere had opinions on the matter.

"I think that maybe some of it was warranted, and some of it was people have been lying in the weeds waiting for that moment, you know?" Auriemma said. "So, yeah, it doesn't matter what you've done for the game; it's what you just did. And unfortunately, that's the world that we live in today, you know? And it usually is one-sided. ... I brought the criticism on myself. I didn't bring the bulls— that came after there on myself."

Since then, Auriemma has spent the first month of the offseason away from the spotlight. He was not at the WNBA Draft as he attended the memorial service for a former player's husband and flew to Germany to present Sue Bird at her FIBA Hall of Fame Induction.

https://www.ctinsider.com/sports/uconn-womens-basketball/article/geno-auriemma-dawn-staley-final-four-22239981.php

Kaiya Wynn has stepped away from the Lady Vols basketball program before the postseason, she announced Tuesday.

The senior guard did not play on senior day when the Lady Vols lost 87-77 to Vanderbilt at Food City Center on Sunday, which she called a “breaking point” in a statement on X on Tuesday.

Wynn explained that she was “most looking forward to senior night” after her final two seasons at UT were “less than ideal for many reasons.” She wrote that she hoped to be in the starting lineup in her final home game after never starting in her career.

“That obviously did not happen and to be asked to check into the game with 15 seconds left while losing was not how I wanted to spend my final moments in my arena after five years,” Wynn wrote. “Although that was not the sole reason, it was the breaking point for me.”

Wynn’s departure comes after the end of the regular season and two days before the Lady Vols begin postseason play. She said the decision was “not made lightly or instantly.”

The Lady Vols (16-12) open SEC Tournament play as the No. 6 seed on Thursday (8:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network) against the winner No. 11 Alabama (21-9) and No. 14 Missouri (16-15). They have lost six straight games and nine of their past 11.

Wynn played in 103 games in four seasons, but only played 52 minutes in nine games in the 2025-26 season.

“Extremely proud and blessed to be apart of such an historic program,” Wynn posted on X on Sunday. “Although I wish I could have played one last time in Thompson-Boling, I will never forget the amazing memories we made over the past 5 years.”

Wynn missed the 2024-25 season after tearing her Achilles tendon before the season.

The 6-foot guard averaged 2.6 points in 8.7 minutes per game in her career. Her best season was in 2023-24, when she averaged 4.4 points and 1.6 assists in 13.4 minutes per game.

Wynn signed with UT as the No. 62 prospect in the 2021 class. She was the top-ranked in-state prospect out of Ensworth in Nashville before playing her final high school season in Houston.

“I have the utmost love and respect for my teammates and this program and wish everyone nothing but the best,” Wynn wrote Tuesday. “Thank you Lady Vols Nation for the past 5 five years, you all made this kid from Tennessee so extremely happy.”

Not the article coming out on the day of the LSU game

💔

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Gabbie Marshall had to turn off socials due to amount of hate comments from the illegal screen call.