LOS ANGELES — The buzzer was ringing and the party was on at Pauley Pavilion. Then-no. 5 UCLA The defending champion and No. 1 seed had just been knocked off. South Carolina 77-62, snapping GameCox’s 43-game winning streak. The Bruins approached Lugo at half court, jumping up and down in celebration. Junior Star Lauren Bates Karisma Osbourne and Camryn Brown hug courtside recent students. A group of students rushed to the court, joining in their antics.
It was the second dramatic upset in a 24-hour — and 15-mile — span. On Saturday, then—no. 6 Notre Dame Appended USC 74-61, leading the nation’s third-ranked team by 21 points. Dominated by the short-handed Irish, the host USC fans were headed for the exit midway through the fourth quarter.
Two days in November in Los Angeles, two games that were the most productive of the season to date.
Last season, the Gamecocks emerged as an early contender and held the No. 1 ranking in the Associated Press poll since mid-November. Heading into March, they were clear favorites to win it all, and after surviving a few scares, traveled to Cleveland to finish with a 38-0 season and win their third national title in seven tournaments.
But to worry this weekend? The race for the 2025 women’s college basketball title is wide open.
Badly missing graduate center Camila Cardoso, South Carolina hasn’t looked this dominant this season even before Sunday’s loss. Meanwhile, a super team seems to be building with USC. Jojo Watkinsits new and transfer portal acquisitions, but that version of the Trojan is not complete. UCLA and Notre Dame received preseason recognition, but now jump into that top tier, jumping to Nos. 1 and 3, respectively, in Monday’s AP Top 25 rankings.
On Sunday we checked. How the Bruins got their big win.. Now let’s analyze how this weekend’s games have changed the national conversation — and what we learned about each of the four teams.
UCLA is legit.
Five games into the season, UCLA has wasted little time establishing itself as a national title contender. Sunday’s win will likely go down as the biggest win of coach Corey Close’s tenure, marking the first time in history the program has beaten an AP No. 1 team (the Bruins entered Sunday 0-20).
Last year, the Bruins faced high expectations, spending nine weeks as the No. 2 team in the country. But things slowed down for them as Pac-12 play progressed, and they had a tough draw in the Albany 2 Regional of the NCAA Tournament, where they fell to the defending champions. LSU Tigers In Suite 16. It was UCLA’s second straight loss in the Sweet 16. The program’s last Elite Eight was held in 2018.
But on Sunday, it was hard to find weaknesses in the Bruins. This new-look UCLA — which started the freshman. Elena Arnesalo and transfer Tima GardnerI with another effect transfer Jania Barker Off the bench — has depth and versatility; size and shooting; Ability to categorize problems defensively and score in groups at the other end. The Bruins have a two-way star in Betts, who didn’t put up mind-blowing scoring numbers (11 points) but managed to control the game on both ends (14 boards, 4 assists, 4 blocks).
The Bruins led by 21 points at halftime, 23 in the fourth and South Carolina coach Don Staley deemed them “buzz saws” all the way. Sunday’s loss was the GameCox’s biggest loss since 2019 — two national titles ago.
Betts said UCLA’s goal is to win a national championship. Sunday proved to be a respectable limit for the Bruins team.
Hannah Hidalgo has entered the Player of the Year conversation.
Entering the season, most analysts and spectators considered the National Player of the Year a two-way battle between UConn’s. Paige Bueckersthe 2021 winner, and Watkins, last season’s Freshman of the Year.
But when Notre Dame and USC squared off on Saturday, Hidalgo was the best player on the floor. And that turned the debate into a three-player race.
The sophomore was a threat on both ends, recording his 10th career game with 24 points, 8 assists, 6 rebounds and 5 steals in his last 25 in Division I. Most seasons his competitive edge — not only in his play but also in his fiery celebrations after big moments — is evident as a Notre Dame. Fuels a team that, due to injuries, is currently working with a seven-player rotation.
to be Olivia Miles In the backcourt that means Hidalgo doesn’t have to do all the heavy lifting himself. This is a nightmare for opposing defenses to guard, and allows Hidalgo to use himself even more defensively.
The most memorable performances of Hidalgo’s college career so far have come on the road: at USC and last season at UConn, when he had 34 points, 10 boards and 6 assists to upset the Huskies. We’ll get another Bueckers-Hidalgo showdown, this one in South Bend on December 12th, and a Watkins-Bueckers duel in Hartford on December 21st. These games should serve as the next meaningful benchmarks for how players of the year will fare. Competition is shaping up.
USC was ‘exposed’
USC coach Lindsey Gottlieb didn’t shy away from admitting his team was “exposed” in the 13-point loss to the Irish. It wasn’t as one-sided as the UCLA-South Carolina game, in which the Trojans trailed by seven at the half and pulled within three in the third. But it was clear USC had a lot to clean up offensively if it wanted to get to Tampa in April.
With so many freshmen and freshmen on the floor, USC looked like a team still finding itself. The Trojans could use a two-way presence. Kennedy SmithWho is a starter and a top freshman recruit? Out indefinitely After undergoing an unknown surgical procedure. But their other stars struggled mightily: Watkins (5 points per half, 10-for-25 shooting) was under pressure at times and Kiki Erifen (15 points, 5-for-15) Couldn’t get into an offensive groove. Starting Guards Talia von Oelhofen And Kelly Temple Combined for 16 points (6-for-16), 1 assist and 10 turnovers.
Against Ole Miss in the season opener in Paris, the Trojans had similar offensive issues, turning the ball over 20 times and shooting worse than 10% from the 3-point arc – suggesting that Saturday The problems are not one-sided.
After the game, Gottlieb said his players need to play fast, aggressive and shifty, but also with discipline and the ability to read if they can’t run set sets. USC needs to find ways to establish more offensive flow and improve its spacing.
0:58
Off the back of No. 1 South Carolina’s upset loss to UCLA, No
Check out the streaks that were broken when No. 1 South Carolina fell to UCLA for its first loss in more than a year.
GameCox’s Weaknesses Exposed — And What About Flully?
UCLA was admittedly a nightmare for Gamecocks, and not every opponent will have the combination of length and shooting to give them problems. But South Carolina’s bigs couldn’t impose their will on the paint or glass, and the offense, limited to half court, struggled. The team’s offensive problems aren’t exactly new: Against power conference competition this season, South Carolina’s best assist-to-turnover margin is 12-10 (vs. Michigan), and Game Cox has averaged six 3s per game. But combined with the Bruins’ hot shooting night, it spelled doom for South Carolina.
There is room for growth across the board, but the question is whether Militia Fluli — arguably the highest-capped player on Staley’s roster — could become the disciplined, consistent contributor Staley needs. The SEC Tournament MVP went scoreless in the three minutes (all in the first half) he played on Sunday.