A month of the women’s college basketball season is in the books. Can you believe it? We’re just weeks away from the end of the non-conference schedule and plenty of happenings in the world of women’s college basketball have shaken up the sport.
Injuries, unfortunately, stole a lot of the headlines over what was another entertaining week of basketball.
In this week’s Heat Check, we pinpoint those injuries and discuss some of the other disappointing news within women’s college basketball while also highlighting the more positive performances and moments of the past week.
Here comes the heat. Check it out.
Standout Players
Cole: Kamilla Cardoso, South Carolina
I was a little pessimistic about South Carolina’s half-court offense in last week’s column, and for the most part, the pessimism hasn’t dwindled. But that uneasy feeling about the offense never made me reconsider this team as a title favorite, primarily due to their sheer size, length, athleticism and physical nature. The one player (of several) who fits that billing the most and has caught my attention recently is 6-foot-7 junior center Kamilla Cardoso.
Cardoso was a Gamecock last season but in a smaller role that wasn’t as impactful on a game-by-game basis. She’s still coming off the bench, and playing under 20 minutes, but the impact certainly feels greater. Cardoso is averaging 15.0 points, 11.0 rebounds and 3.3 blocks per game over the last three contests, and her efforts both protecting the rim and cleaning the offensive glass against UCLA last week may have been the key in South Carolina avoiding its first loss of the season.
KAMILLA CARDOSO SAID NOPE ❌😱 | @kamillascsilva
📺 @SECNetwork https://t.co/GHgztYksli pic.twitter.com/C6y3oknMn6
— South Carolina Women's Basketball (@GamecockWBB) November 30, 2022
She continues to impress, and her fit alongside Aliyah Boston is a defensive sight to behold. Cardoso’s SEC Player of the Week honors was well earned.
Mitch: Diamond Johnson, N.C. State
Iowa’s Caitlin Clark got a lot of coverage and a lot of love last week, and rightfully so. It’s no easy task to score 45 points in a single game. But that performance came in the Hawkeyes’ home loss to N.C. State, and as social media heaped praise on Clark for her performance, it seemed to ignore what the best player on the winning team did.
So, here’s a quick refresher: In that road win over then-No. 10 Iowa, Diamond Johnson scored a season-high 22 points while shooting an efficient 67% from the floor. She also dished out four assists and – at 5-foot-4 – had nine rebounds. Johnson led the way as N.C. State scored 94 points – the most it has scored against a ranked opponent since 1991. It was also the highest scoring total ever on the road for a Wes Moore-coached N.C. State team.
Johnson followed her effort at Iowa up by tallying eight points, five assists, two rebounds and two steals on Monday in Athens, Ga., which marked N.C State’s first-ever win over the UGA Bulldogs in 10 tries. So far this season, Johnson ranks 28th nationally in win shares (2.8) and is shooting an impressive 51% from 3-point land. She’s a big reason why the Wolfpack have one of the best scoring offenses in the country, putting up 0.95 points-per-play and 113.1 points per-100-possessions, both of which rank in the top 20 nationally.
Crowd Silencer. @_diamond3_ pic.twitter.com/JUcjOTJxOc
— Max Curran (@MCurran1105) December 2, 2022
Things We Love
Mitch: Parity, highlighted by the Blue Raiders
Did y’all see Middle Tennessee State absolutely run Louisville off the floor on Sunday? On the road in Murfreesboro, the Cards – who were picked to win the ACC this year – looked out of sorts and outmatched in a 67-49 loss to the Blue Raiders. For Louisville, the defeat booted it out of the AP Top 25 Poll for the first time since 2015. For MTSU, the win was another sign that the Blue Raiders – who went to the WNIT semifinals last season – should be taken seriously as a mid-major contender.
And for the rest of women’s college basketball, the result was just another sign of the rising parity within the sport – and another sign that AP Poll voters (like me) might’ve been a bit off with our preseason projections. Consider this: since the 1989-90 season, there had been only three teams that started the season ranked in the top 10, and were then unranked by Week 5. That’s already happened to three teams this season with Texas and Tennessee joining Louisville in an unfortunate group of programs we overrated. And this week was the first time since the inaugural poll in 1976 that the Cardinals, Longhorns and Vols were left outside of the top 25.
While those typical powers have floundered early on this season, teams we don’t hear from all that much are thriving. Gonzaga is ranked No. 22 this week after giving No. 2 Stanford a good fight, Virginia Tech is undefeated and has its highest ranking ever at No. 7, and the Big East is probably having its best season since realignment in 2014 with three ranked teams and Marquette hanging just outside the poll. And perhaps there’s no greater example of the parity in the sport than the week Notre Dame had last week: losing to lower-ranked Maryland and then trouncing a higher-ranked UConn team.
MTSU over Louisville shouldn’t be the last big upset we see this season. And if Louisville doesn’t improve, some opposing players might be inclined to follow Blue Raiders’ guard Savannah Wheeler – a Kentucky native who had 23 points and five assists against the Cards – who flexed and flashed the L’s down after the win.
POV: you just upset a nationally-ranked opponent #NCAAWBB x 🎥 @MT_WBB pic.twitter.com/GLj9CHDkr7
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) December 5, 2022
Cole: Surprises — Utah’s Offense
When it came to Pac-12 women’s basketball, Utah was NOT on my radar during the preseason. Like, not even a little bit. Stanford, Arizona, Oregon and UCLA were the four teams in that conference I figured I’d really be paying attention to this season, but I’ve got egg on my face now as I try to determine if the Utes are the second-best team in the conference — there’s and argument to be there.
But there’s no arguing about who’s got the best offense in the Pac-12. The Utes are averaging the most points (97.0) and assists (21.7) and have the best field-goal percentage (52.6) IN THE NATION. Junior forward Alissa Pili’s 19.9 points per game lead the team but are followed by five other players in the double digits as far as individual scoring averages ago. Utah’s assists and field-goal percentage wouldn’t be records if they held as is, but 97.0 points per game would break Providence’s record back in 1991 (96.7 ppg).
As the season rolls on, will Lynne Roberts’ Utes regress? Or is this going to be a historic season for them? Either way, what they’re currently up to is worthy of some recognition and praise. Salute to them.
Things We Hate
Cole: Injuries — Azzi Fudd, Ashley Owusu, Grace Berger
Speaking as a former Division 1 basketball player who had several knee surgeries, injuries are the absolute worst. 1) they’re painful to deal with physically, 2) they’re painful to deal with mentally and emotionally, and 3) injuries impact team success. So, speaking from experience, I have an even softer spot than most people for athletes who have to deal with this stuff.
It’s been a rough couple of weeks for college hoops. UConn guard Azzi Fudd suffered a knee injury against Notre Dame over the weekend, which will sideline her for three-to-six weeks. Indiana’s Grace Berger is still sidelined after suffering a knee injury at the end of November against Auburn. And Virginia Tech’s Ashley Owusu is undergoing surgery to repair a broken finger, per Mark Berman of The Roanoke Times. Even with all three schools remaining ranked inside of the AP Top 10, it’s understandable to expect those injury-related absences to potentially lead to some slippage, although maybe you shouldn’t (more on Indiana later).
But for now, we all wish these three young ladies a speedy and full recovery.
Mitch: Lousy, shoddy MTEs
I’m still mad about the Las Vegas Invitational.
In case you’re not familiar with this debacle of a Feast Week tournament, here’s a quick recap: The Las Vegas Invitational was billed as one of these MTEs (that’s short for “multi-team event”) in an exotic location. Teams in men’s and women’s college basketball play in these tournaments typically around Thanksgiving. It’s a good way for teams to bond over the holidays while facing good competition in a central location. Except, this MTE was an absolute disaster and an embarrassment for women’s college basketball. Games were played in a hotel ballroom, where chandeliers were hanging down and where spectator bleacher seating wasn’t provided. Also not provided were towels for players to use during the game – the tournament organizers asked players to bring the towels from their hotel rooms. There was also no scoreboard. And during one game, when Auburn’s Kharyssa Richardson took a hard fall on the makeshift court, it took more than 40 minutes for medical personnel to arrive.
At best, it was a woefully inadequate and lackluster environment for women’s college basketball. At worst, it was utterly offensive to the sport as a whole. Indiana coach Teri Moren – whose team played in the tournament – called it “a major miss” and added that it set the sport “a couple steps backward.” Tournament organizers offered a half-hearted apology to ESPN and deflected blame at the hotel.
This week, I asked Courtney Banghart about MTEs. She’s the head coach at North Carolina, and the vice president of the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association. Specifically, I wanted to know her thoughts on what the sport can do to ensure there are less MTE experiences like the Las Vegas Invitational, and more like Phil Knight Invitational – which Banghart’s team played in, and seems to be the gold-standard of these sort of events.
“Yea, we had it tough last year. We played in the Bahamas (in a high school school gym) and there wasn’t a stat crew, and our team doctor had to come because there wasn’t medical there either. They’re not legislated by the NCAA, so there’s not that kind of checkpoint, which forces us (as coaches) to do a lot of research on our own – which, to be honest, is really hard. It’s not really the time we have to look at all the fine print.
“The PK85 – I don’t know how much money they made, because they put so much out and they really made it a top-class event, for sure. We were really lucky to be included in that and we really enjoyed it.
“But these tournaments keep popping up, because it’s a great time to travel… Without a standard that’s guaranteed, you just have to be careful. I know that the tournament operators will learn from what’s recently been on display, but it’s not just that event. There’s been a couple others that also had some misses. So, hopefully, the light y’all are shedding on it will make it easier for us choosing events moving forward.”
Dayton, Purdue and Texas A&M have withdrawn from an event run by the organizers of the Las Vegas Invitational to be held Dec. 19-21.
Noteworthy Moments
Mitch: Georgia Amoore’s triple-double
Before last Thursday, no player in the history of Virginia Tech women’s basketball program ever had a triple-double. And then, Georgia Amoore rewrote the record book in the Hokies’ win over Nebraska, notching 24 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds in a dominant 85-54 victory. It might’ve been the best game ever for Amoore, a junior point guard from Australia. Her totals in points and assists were both career-highs, and double-digit rebounds is impressive for anyone listed at 5-foot-6.
After the win, Amoore was being a bit too humble for one of her teammates’ liking, so reigning ACC Player of the Year Elizabeth Kitley spoke up: “I’ll say it for her, because she won’t say it, but she works harder than anybody else. She completely had this in her the whole time. She does not get out of the gym. So, for her to have this game, she deserves it.”
Amoore is a big reason why the Hokies are undefeated. As Maryland transfer Ashley Owusu recovers from surgery, Amoore has kept the Hokies’ backcourt humming. She tallied 10 points, four rebounds and seven assists in a road win at Tennessee on Sunday, and then helped the Hokies top visiting Boston College in their ACC opener on Wednesday with eight points and five assists. Amoore is currently eighth nationally in total assists with 57 so far this season.
Compete list of 🦃 with a 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲-𝗱𝗼𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗲: @georgia_amoore
Our floor general put on a show last night in 🏰‼️ pic.twitter.com/DTzaamuHGR
— Virginia Tech Women's Basketball (@HokiesWBB) December 2, 2022
Cole: Indiana’s win over North Carolina
This section of the column is usually reserved for singular moments or sequences within games that make us say, “WOW, that was incredible.” But when each moment over the course of a 40-minute game leaves you speechless, you kind of just have to throw the whole thing in the column. So, that’s exactly what I’m doing.
On paper, Indiana and North Carolina was the marquee matchup of last Thursday’s college basketball slate. It was No. 6 vs. No. 5, undefeated vs. undefeated, contender vs. contender, etc. Anddddd the Hoosiers absolutely dominated the Tar Heels at Assembly Hall. It wasn’t close. Even without the scoring and playmaking of the aforementioned injured guard Grace Berger, IU’s offense looked unguardable. That’s now two ranked opponents that the Hoosiers have dismantled this season and, I can’t lie, I’m suddenly very high on this team.
iu just did this without grace berger pic.twitter.com/nk7wqElIy6
— whitney medworth (@its_whitney) December 2, 2022
What To Watch
Cole: Caitlin Clark
Pretty simple, right? Just watch Caitlin Clark. In the past week, she’s put up a 45-point banger, broken the Big Ten record for triple-doubles in a career and helped Iowa past 10th-ranked Iowa State. There isn’t anything specific coming up in the immediate future that should have you tuning into her and the Hawkeyes any more than you already have. Rather, this is just a reminder that she’s a rare talent and that we shouldn’t overlook the jaw-dropping things she does on the court or take her nightly contributions for granted.
Mitch: Saint Joseph’s vs. No. 25 Villanova – Saturday, Dec. 10 at 2 p.m.
This should be a great clash for Big 5 basketball in Philadelphia. On one side is Villanova, led by the spectacular Maddy Siegrist, who is second in the nation in scoring with 27 points per game. On the other end are the Hawks, who are undefeated this season with nine games under their belt.
Saint Joe’s isn’t ranked yet this season, but they have beaten a Power 5 opponent in Vanderbilt, two Ivy League teams and two fellow Big 5 teams in Drexel and Temple. The Hawks are winning this season with defense, allowing opponents to score just 55.2 points per game, which ranks 27th nationally. The Hawks also move the ball well, ranking 20th in assisted shot rate with a 65.2% mark on the season. Leading the way for Saint Joe’s is sophomore Tayla Brugler, who is averaging 15.1 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game. To beat Villanova, Brugler will have to play well and the Hawks will have to figure out how to slow down Siegrist.
