The women’s college basketball season is winding down. The final Top 16 reveal by the NCAA committee is this Thursday, and conference tournaments start next week. Time flies, right? Wasn’t it just yesterday that we were making jokes about Jeff Walz’s slide and lamenting the absence of Sedona Prince?
We’ve done Heat Checks on women’s college basketball earlier this season, where we raved about Georgia Amoore and Angel Reese, and complained about midday games and the loss of Tamari Key.
And now, we’re returning with a VIBE CHECK, an unscientific and unserious ranking of all things in women’s college basketball.
Let’s dive in and assess who is thriving and who is having a bad time.
You Love To See It: Maryland meshing at the right time
Because they lost four starters from last year’s squad – including Angel Reese and Ashley Owusu – there were a whole lot of people who counted Maryland out at the start of the season. (I told bettors in October to grab Maryland at +6000 to win the NCAA Tournament.)
The Terps experienced some growing pains at the start of the season, which is to be expected when you reload a roster with transfers and rookies like Brenda Frese did. And now, the Terps are meshing and looking like a well-oiled machine in late February; the time that you want to start playing some of your best basketball.
Maryland has won five games in a row and recently embarrassed No. 6 Iowa on Tuesday night, winning 96-68 behind 24 points from Brinae Alexander and 19 points from Lavendar Briggs – two players who weren’t on the Terps’ roster last season. And Maryland’s defense held Player of the Year candidate Caitlin Clark to just five made baskets, her second-lowest total of the season.
The Terps are eighth in offensive rating (112.6) this season, second in points allowed per 100 possessions (98.8), 11th in total scoring and sixth in total steals. The Terps are getting it done on both ends of the floor. They have a legit star in Diamond Miller leading the way, but have also surrounded her with complimentary and capable role players in Abby Meyers, Shyanne Sellers, Faith Masonius, Briggs, Alexander and Elisa Pinzan.
Maryland looks like a team that should be contending for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, and Frese seems like a candidate for Coach of the Year with the way she made this roster fit so nicely together.
Shyanne Sellers doesn't have the highest assist average or rate in the country (both because of Maryland's system and because she's not a pure point guard), but wheeeeew is she able to hit passes that *very* few others can pic.twitter.com/K4UgaJyphC
— Em🌹🏳️🌈 (@em_adler) February 22, 2023
Straight Up Not Having A Good Time: Lisa Bluder
More than 9,000 fans showed up at the Xfinity Center in College Park, Maryland on Tuesday night to watch the Terps take down Iowa. Maryland fans were loud and Frese said they were “an X-factor” for the Terps in the win.
But there was at least one person who wasn’t impressed by the crowd: Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder.
Head Coach Lisa Bluder throws shade at the size of Maryland’s home crowd and Maryland responds back 👀#ncaaw pic.twitter.com/jSz0NPR4o8
— WNBA Got Game (@wnbagotgame) February 22, 2023
Tweets of her quote certainly made it sound like Bluder was a bit salty after the loss and had no interest in complimenting her opponent’s crowd. After all, the loss knocked the Hawkeyes out of contention for the Big Ten’s regular season crown, and it was Iowa’s most lopsided defeat since it fell in the 2019 Elite Eight to Baylor.
Here are Bluder’s comments in full. You be the judge.
I was nudged to hear Lisa Bluder's comments about Maryland's crowd last night and it doesn't seem like anything malicious in context. (I probably should have listened to it before reacting to a tweet. My b) pic.twitter.com/60rfX5scZH
— Gabe Ibrahim (@gabe_ibrahim) February 22, 2023
You Love To See It: A thriving rivalry in North Carolina’s Triangle
The ACC has been wild this season. Last Thursday night, we saw Notre Dame win in overtime against Louisville thanks to a timely shot from Olivia Miles, and we saw N.C. State get a much-needed upset overtime victory over rival North Carolina.
Currently, ESPN is projecting nine ACC teams to make the NCAA Tournament, the most of any conference.
Photos from @uncwbb vs. @PackWomensBball:#ACCwbb #ncaaW pic.twitter.com/5UNvQp0qXY
— Mitchell Northam (@primetimeMitch) February 18, 2023
This Thursday, the Wolfpack will try to get another resume-boosting upset victory when they travel to Cameron Indoor Stadium to face the Duke Blue Devils. A lot is riding on this game for Duke.
Kara Lawson’s side is tied for first place in the ACC with Notre Dame. At-stake for the Blue Devils in its final two games isn’t just the regular season ACC title – something they haven’t won in a decade – but also seeding for the conference tournament in Greensboro. Heading into Thursday’s contests, just two games separate first and fifth place in the standings.
Duke has one of the best defenses in the nation this year, ranking fourth in defensive rating (75.3), sixth in opponent field goal percentage (34.5) and third in points allowed per play (0.65). But the Blue Devils have struggled offensively at times – like last Thursday, when they made a season-low 16 baskets in a loss at Virginia Tech.
UNC has been up and down lately, but all signs point to leading rebounder and third-leading scorer Alyssa Ustby returning to the lineup on Thursday when Carolina hosts Virginia Tech. It’s a game the Tar Heels need to win if they still have aspirations of hosting first-round NCAA Tournament games.
And on Sunday? UNC travels up the road for Duke for what is shaping up to be a banger of a season finale.
It’s been a good year for women’s college basketball in North Carolina’s Triangle. This season marks just the second time since 2000 that all three ACC teams have ranked inside the AP Top 10 at some point in the same season. N.C. State sold out all of its ACC home games and UNC posted its first sellout since 2015.
The atmosphere for UNC vs. Duke should be special. And loud.
Straight Up Not Having A Good Time: UConn
Let’s be clear: UConn still has the potential to be one of the best teams in the country.
But man, the Huskies need help. They need to get healthy and they need consistency.
On Tuesday night, UConn lost at home to St. John’s, 69-64. It’s a result that likely knocked the Huskies out of having a No. 1 seed locked up. For St. John’s, it was their highest ranked win since 2012 and gave the program its first 20-win season since the 2016-17 campaign. The result one was a good one for the Big East as a whole, as it likely gave St. John’s what it needed for an at-large bid. But for UConn? This is not what the Huskies want.
To put UConn’s struggles into context, here’s a stat from Lila Bromberg, who covers the Huskies for the Hartford Courant – through Jan. 26, UConn averaged 81.8 points per game while shooting 52.5% from the floor; but in seven Big East games since, the Huskies are averaging 61.7 points per game on 41.8% shooting. The math: that’s 20.1 less points per game while shooting 10.7% worse.
Geno Auriemma said it best in his postgame press conference: “At this time of the year, nothing’s fixable. You are what you are. If it could be fixed, it would’ve been fixed already.”
Indeed, time is running out for the Huskies to adjust.
Stunner in Hartford: No. 4 UConn falls to St. John's, 69-64, marking the first time they've lost multiple conference games in the same season since 2012-13.
Also the first time since 2003-04 the Huskies dropped multiple games to **unranked** conference opponents@ESPNStatsInfo
— Alexa Philippou (@alexaphilippou) February 22, 2023
You Love To See It: Cameron Brink doing Cameron Brink things
Here’s a small sampling of what Cameron Brink has done at Stanford in the past week:
- She became the program’s all-time blocks leader and now – as a junior – has 280 for her career.
- In Stanford’s five-point win over UCLA on Monday, Brink shot 15-of-15 from the free throw line, breaking the program record for the most made in a game without missing.
- Against USC last Friday, she had as many blocks (six) as the Trojans had in made 2-pointers. According to ESPN Stats & Info, the only other player – men or women – to do that in the last 20 years was Brittney Griner in 2010.
Stanford is 26-3 this season and will likely be a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. And Brink’s play is a big reason why. She’s second in the nation in blocks per game with 3.5, fourth in defensive rebounds per 40 minutes (11.9) and ninth in defensive win shares (3.4).
And not only is Brink an elite rim-protector and rebounder, but she can score and run the floor too. She’s also averaging 14.8 points per game and shooting 82% from the free throw line.
A TOUGH and-1 from Cameron Brink 😤 pic.twitter.com/O2jAYLo3ms
— espnW (@espnW) February 21, 2023
Brink has been awesome this season. Even Steph Curry is coming to watch her play.
Where is Steph Curry on the Friday night of NBA All-Star weekend? No, he’s not partying it up in Salt Lake City while taking in the Rising Stars game, he’s courtside at Stanford University watching some Pac-12 women’s hoops. 🐐🐐🐐 for this. #pac12wbb #dubnation pic.twitter.com/goysb2z96e
— Kylen Mills (@KylenMills) February 18, 2023
Straight Up Not Having A Good Time: A select group of South Carolina fans
I’ll just leave this Tweet here. Check out the replies and quote-Tweets from South Carolina fans at your own discretion. Some NSFW language ahead.
It’s me. Hi. I’m the problem it’s me.
(I gave Indiana my first-place vote this week.) https://t.co/bJU8Kdbc5k
— Mitchell Northam (@primetimeMitch) February 20, 2023
Reminder: South Carolina is still No. 1 in the AP Top 25 Poll. Some of these folks are upset because the Gamecocks are no longer the unanimous No. 1, because I voted for Indiana – a team which, by pretty much any metric you want to look at, has played a tougher schedule than South Carolina and recently shellacked a pair of fellow ranked teams. Meanwhile, the Gamecocks struggled to beat Ole Miss, needing overtime to do so. Ole Miss is a team that got one whole AP Top 25 vote this past week. The person that gave Ole Miss that vote also had four Big Ten teams in their top 10, by the way.
The Big Ten is up this year, and the SEC – aside from South Carolina and LSU – is down. The SEC has three teams in the top 20 of the NET and the Big Ten has five. ESPN is projecting two Top 16 seeds for the SEC and four for the Big Ten. Indiana is 15th in strength of schedule according to Sports Reference, while South Carolina is 27th.
And yes, Indiana has one loss – by five points to Michigan State – but it came two months ago, on the road, and without Grace Berger who is the Hoosiers’ second-leading scorer and top passer, averaging 12.2 points and 5.8 assists per game.
Every voter has different calculations and things they consider. But we vote in the AP Top 25 Poll every week. So, for me, a bit of, “what have you done for me lately?” factors in. And lately, Indiana has looked better than South Carolina, in the opinion of this writer and voter.
