Big week in women's basketball ahead with chance at wins record and pair of top 6 showdowns
UConn head coach Geno Auriemma directs his team during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against North Carolina in Greensboro, N.C., Friday, Nov. 15, 2024. Credit: AP/Ben McKeown
It's a huge few days in women's basketball with two top six showdowns in Los Angeles over the weekend and UConn hosting a giant party in honor of its Hall of Fame coach.
Top-ranked South Carolina faces fifth-ranked UCLA on Sunday, one day after third-ranked USC hosts No. 6 Notre Dame. Both games will be nationally televised and feature some of the top young talent in the country with JuJu Watkins playing for the Trojans and Hannah Hidalgo for the Irish.
The busy week gets started in Connecticut on Wednesday where Geno Auriemma will most likely break the career wins record that he currently shares with former Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer. Both have won 1,216 games.
The Huskies are bringing back more than 60 players from Auriemma's 40 years at the school for a ceremony before the No. 2 team plays Fairleigh Dickinson.
Rising Frogs
Mark Campbell inherited a TCU team that went 1-17 in the Big 12 the year before he came. Now he has the 19th-ranked Horned Frogs up to their best spot in the poll in 16 years.
The team got off to a 14-0 start last season before TCU was derailed by injuries that forced the coach to have tryouts in the middle of the season so he could field a team.
“Last year’s journey was unique, but I’m thankful for it. In a 10-day window, we lost our three best players,” he said. “We had open tryouts and that group finished the year strong and had the biggest turnaround in the Power Four. The toughness and grittiness in that group, their spirit was awesome. That group laid the foundation to build upon.”
Southern California guard JuJu Watkins sticks her tongue out after making a free-throw during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Santa Clara, Friday, Nov. 15, 2024, in Los Angeles. Credit: AP/Mark J. Terrill
TCU has won its first four games, including a victory over then-No. 13 NC State that got the program ranked and was its first over a ranked team in three seasons, snapping a 24-game losing streak against Top 25 opponents.
“The ranking is a big deal for our program and what we’re building,” he said. “It’s neat for the fan base and it’s neat for our program.”
The Horned Frogs were bolstered by the addition of six players from the transfer portal, including star guard Hailey Van Lith.
“She’s a playmaker because she can score and give you 30, but also give you 10 assists,” Campbell said. “Hailey is just an incredible warrior, has an incredible will to win. It's been really fun plugging her into our system and style of play and watch her blossom.”
Milestones
No. 10 Kansas State's star center Ayoka Lee has the second most points in school history with 2,245. She's behind Kendra Wecker's record of 2,333. ... Watkins scored her 1,000th career point last week in her 38th game — one off the record for fastest to ever accomplish that.