Takeaways from the first week of the NCAA women's basketball season
LSU, UConn have work to do. The freshman class is impressing. And more.
Welcome to View from the Top, a NCAA women’s basketball newsletter focused on the title contenders and championship picture.
View from the Top covers the top teams in the country with an eye towards March all season long. I’ll be sharing my thoughts on the top teams in the country, who the true title contenders are and more throughout the season. Thanks for following along!
The first week of the NCAA women’s basketball season has already come and went. There has been no shortage of excitement, with the preseason No. 1 and No. 2 teams both being upset in the first week. Here’s some of my main takeaways from the first week of games.
LSU needs time to blend the pieces
The Tiger’s loss on opening day should not be a cause for panic. There is still plenty of talent of the roster, but the numerous new pieces are going to take time to gel. Freshman and No. 2 recruit Mikayla Williams has been a bright spot so far for the Tigers, including a 42-point performance on Tuesday afternoon. Aneesah Morrow also seemed to find some rhythm in her new home in Tuesday’s third quarter. It might take some time to fully come together, but LSU is going to continue to improve and still be expected to be among the favorites come March.
The Pac-12 might be stronger than expected
The Pac-12 was expected to be strong in its final season in the preseason, but the conference’s first week suggests it may be even better than anticipated. UCLA is excelling with the addition of Lauren Betts. Utah continues to look strong despite a Tuesday night road loss to Baylor. Stanford seems to be proving it’s more than just the Cameron Brink show, with an impressive 32-point win over Indiana on Sunday.
The conference also had a hand in some of the first week’s biggest upsets. Colorado’s veteran squad was able to dismantle LSU on opening night. Southern California also pulled off the opening day upset of Ohio State, behind strong outings from Juju Watkins and Rayah Marshall. Watkins, the No. 1 recruit in this year’s class, has continued to shine, averaging 28.3 points per game through the Trojans’ first three games.
Interior defense continues to haunt Ohio State
Again, the Buckeyes’ opening day loss shouldn’t be a cause for panic, but old problems continued to haunt the Buckeyes in their loss to USC. As effective as the Ohio State press is at disrupting opponents, last season the Buckeye's’ interior defense was lacking when teams were able to get past the press. That also proved to be true against the Trojans, where Ohio State gave up 44 paint points in the loss.
Also worth noting, the Buckeyes struggled from deep in the opener, shooting 5-21 from three. When Ohio State can’t make shots and set up the press, they’re less effective. It’s too soon to say if the shooting is a real concern for this year’s squad, but it is possible the loss of Taylor Mikesell make be harder to overcome than anticipated.
UConn needs work defensively
The Huskies were also on the wrong end of first week upset, losing their road game at NC State on Sunday. While the previously unranked Wolfpack certainly looked better than expected, UConn’s defense and rebounding left plenty to be desired in the game. The Huskies 92-81 loss was only the third time since the 2009-10 season in which UConn has allowed more than 90 points. Saniya Rivers is one of just seven players to top 30 points against the Huskies in that same span.
Consistent with the other losses mentioned above, this one should not be a cause for panic for UConn fans. That said, the Huskies have some improvements to make and a tough schedule to test them against in the coming weeks with Maryland, UCLA and Texas looming.
South Carolina’s perimeter shooting is elevating the Gamecocks’ offense
Te-Hina Paopao has made a case for herself as the biggest impact transfer so far this season, as South Carolina took home wins over Notre Dame and Maryland in week one. While Paopao is not singlehandedly responsible for the evolution of the Gamecocks’ perimeter offense, she has been instrumental in the shift. Paopao is average three triples per game in the first two games of the season, shooting at a clip of 50 percent from deep. That has led the Gamecocks to an average of 8.5 threes per game to start the season, compared to just 4.4 per game last year.
If Paopao and South Carolina collectively can continue to excel from deep, it adds a dimension to the offense that wasn’t present last season. It will also force defenses to attend to the Gamecocks’ shooters, therefore freeing up more space in the lane for Cardoso to go to work down low.
The freshmen are showing out
This year’s freshman class is already making a mark on the season. In addition to the performances of Watkins (USC) and Williams (LSU) mentioned above, Hannah Hildago has really impressed. Hildago scored 31 points in Notre Dame’s opener against South Carolina, and recorded 12 steals in the Irish’s win over NJIT. Arkansas freshman Taliah Scott is also averaging 24 points through three games, NC State’s Zoe Brooks was impactful in the Wolfpack’s win over UConn, and South Carolina’s Milaysia Fulwiley made everyone’s first week highlight reel with her performance for the Gamecocks in Paris.