JuJu Watkins, Hailey Van Lith and Hannah Hidalgo set to star in ranked matchups this week

Posted by Admin December 5, 2024 Basketball

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It’s December and you know what that means: cozy fires, hot cocoa and lots and lots of ranked hoops matchups.

That’s the case this week in women’s college basketball, a the SEC/ACC challenge pits numerous national title contenders against each other. There’s also a major showcase on FOX Sports, with the first-ever Women’s Champions Classic in Brooklyn, home of the reigning WNBA champs.

Just one month into the season we’ve already had numerous upsets, with lower ranked teams beating ranked teams and unranked teams knocking off top 25 opponents. It’s a sign of growing parity within women’s hoops, a sport on the rise at both the collegiate and pro level. And this week, narrowing down our list of must-watch games was a challenge, more proof that the conference season and March Madness are going to be as chaotic as we’ve ever seen.

COACHES POLL: UCLA passes Connecticut for No. 1 spot

No. 3 Texas at No. 10 Notre Dame

Thursday, 7 p.m. ET on ESPN

First, Notre Dame thumped USC on the Trojans’ home floor, then the Irish melted down against TCU, then they got surprised by Utah. What we should expect against the Longhorns is anyone’s guess. But this is a matchup of the best two two-way guards in the country in Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo (23.9 ppg, 4.6 spg) and Texas star Rori Harmon (9.4 ppg, 6.6 apg). Notre Dame’s Olivia Miles (16.7 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 6.4 apg) facing off against Texas’ Madison Booker (16.0 ppg, 5.7 rpg) is another reason to tune in.

No. 6 USC at Oregon

Saturday, 4 p.m. ET on Big Ten Network

The reality of inflated conferences is we have to start league play way earlier than usual, hence USC and Oregon’s first Big Ten matchup of the season. JuJu Watkins (25.5 ppg, 6.3 rpg) and Kiki Iriafen (18.4 ppg, 8.8 rpg) will battle with an Oregon roster that already has one win over a ranked team. Ducks guard Deja Kelly (11.8 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 3.8 apg) is one of the top transfers in the country, but she’ll need help from her teammates if Oregon is going start conference play undefeated.

Tennessee vs. No. 20 Iowa

Saturday, 7 p.m. ET on FOX

The first game of the Champions Classic in Brooklyn’s Barclays Center features an Iowa team people think might be even better, and more balanced, than the back-to-back Final Four squads vs. a Lady Vol roster forcing opponents into an average of 28 (!!) turnovers per game. Tennessee has made an impression under first-year coach Kim Caldwell, and sits just outside the top 25 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll, garnering lots of votes. The best way for Talaysia Cooper (19.7 ppg, 3.0 spg) & Co. to break into the poll? Upset Lucy Olsen (17.3 ppg, 5.3 apg) and the Hawkeyes in prime time on national television.

No. 22 Louisville vs. No. 2 UConn

Saturday, 9 p.m. ET on FOX

The second game of the Champions Classic pits two of the top programs over the last decade against each other. It’s also a preview of the game’s future. UConn senior Paige Bueckers (20.4 ppg, 4.6 apg) is the presumptive No. 1 pick in the 2025 WNBA draft, while Louisville freshman Tajianna Roberts (12.0 ppg, 2.4 rpg) could be an All-American sooner rather than later based on how she’s played so far. But this game could very well come down to players whose names aren’t as well known but whose games deserve respect in the Huskies’ Sarah Strong (15.6 ppg, 7.6 rpg) and the Cardinals’ Olivia Cochran (9.6 ppg, 6.3 rpg).

No. 4 South Carolina at No. 13 TCU

Sunday, 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2

Perhaps the most impressive thing about both these teams just a few weeks into the season: They’re not afraid of a challenge. Just a couple weeks after South Carolina went on the road and got drilled by UCLA, they’re traveling to play upstart TCU, which hung on to beat NC State and came from behind to beat Notre Dame, both ranked teams. The Horned Frogs are undefeated largely because of one of the best duos in women’s hoops in forward Sedona Prince (19.4 ppg, 10.8 rpg) and guard Hailey Van Lith (19.4 ppg, 6.6 apg). The Gamecocks boast their own powerful one-two punch in forward Chloe Kitts (10.9 ppg, 8.0 rpg) and guard Te-Hina Paopao (12.0 ppg, 43.8% 3FG)