First thing’s first

The GIST: What do you get the greatest of all time? A live goat, apparently. UConn celebrated women’s basketball head coach Geno Auriemma’s 40 years of coaching and NCAA record 1,217th win on Wednesday, honoring the legend with an elaborate ceremony that included countless former players. Beyond well deserved.

The records: With Wednesday’s 85–41 victory over Fairleigh Dickinson, Auriemma passed former Stanford women’s basketball head coach Tara VanDerveer for the most wins in college basketball history. His 1,217 wins (and counting) span 23 Final Four appearances and 11 national titles, an NCAA record that beats out iconic UCLA men’s coach John Wooden. Truly one of one.

The team: Associate head coach Chris Dailey was also honored on Wednesday and has been alongside Auriemma for all of those Ws, serving as Geno’s assistant ever since they both interviewed for the head coaching job in 1985. A true dynamic duo.

• Adding even more excitement to the thrilling night, senior guard Azzi Fudd played for the first time in over a year after injuring her knee in 2023. She finished with four points as the Huskies work the No. 1 recruit in the class of 2021 back into action.

More women’s basketball to watch this weekend: Records were set in Storrs on Wednesday, but the basketball battles don’t stop there. Hannah Hidalgo and No. 6 Notre Dame head to LA to take on JuJu Watkins and No. 3 USC tomorrow at 4 p.m. ET, while No. 5 UCLA welcomes defending champion No. 1 South Carolina into town Sunday at 4 p.m. ET. Hoop, there it is.

The GIST: Final Four, here they come. The field hockey championship semis are set for today at 12 p.m. ET (No. 1 UNC vs. No. 4 Saint Joseph’s) and 3 p.m. ET (No. 2 Northwestern vs. UMass) with winners advancing to Sunday’s 1:30 p.m. ET championship game. Let’s meet the contenders:

North Carolina: The reigning champ Tar Heels need no introduction, having won two consecutive titles and five of the last six. They’ve breezed through the competition this postseason, shutting out their opponents in the second round and the quarter-finals. Oh yeah, and they haven’t lost a game since October 2023. How do you spell dominance? U.N.C.

Saint Joseph’s: St. Joe’s needed two nail-biter Ws to reach the Final Four, narrowly winning 1–0 in both the second round and quarters. Flying the highest for the Hawks? Grad students Lily Santi and Manu Ghigliotti, who have 14 and 12 goals, respectively, on the season, not to mention 12 assists apiece.

Northwestern: The Wildcats are no strangers to the big stage. They’ve played in four straight semifinals and took home the trophy in 2021. After losing to UNC in back-to-back title games, this squad will certainly be hungry to reclaim the ’ship. What team?!

UMass: No postseason tournament is complete without an underdog, and UMass is playing the role perfectly. The Minutewomen are making their first Final Four appearance since 1992, upsetting No. 3 UConn in the second round and intrastate rival Harvard in the quarter-finals to punch their ticket. A win today would be, ahem, massive.

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⚽ Women’s soccer: NCAA tournament second round — Today at various times — ESPN+

• Sixteen second-round games kick off today, as the road to next month’s College Cup continues. Hope you have plenty of screens.

🏀 Men’s basketball: No. 12 Duke vs. No. 17 Arizona — Tonight at 10:30 p.m. ET — ESPN2

• Arizona’s in need of a bounce-back win after being upset by then-unranked Wisconsin last Friday. Meanwhile, Duke’s rookies are shining bright: Freshman Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel lead the team in scoring.

🏈 Football: No. 5 Indiana vs. No. 2 Ohio State — Tomorrow at 12 p.m. ET — Fox Sports

• This is the game to watch in Week 13, with undefeated Indiana squaring off against stacked Ohio State. Senior quarterback Kurtis Rourke and the Hoosiers will be put to the test against the Buckeyes’ powerful defense. Can’t wait.

⚽ Men’s soccer: NCAA tournament second round — Sunday at various times — ESPN+

• There are plenty of thrilling second-round matches on deck, with teams including No. 1 Ohio State and reigning champion Clemson still in contention. Soccer fans, this weekend is for you.