(B)All in a day’s work
From The GIST College Sports (hi@thegistsports.com)
Hi, friend!
The best way to celebrate making it halfway through the workweek? Scrolling on and reading about the latest in college sports. Party on.
— Colorado football head coach (HC) Deion Sanders, on his conversation with Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones about the NFL team’s vacant head coaching job. Watch this space.
Men’s basketball
🏀 Hardwood heroes
The GIST: March will be here before you know it, so before the regular season flies by, let's check in on the biggest and brightest stars of the men’s college basketball world, shall we?
😈 Cooper Flagg doing Cooper Flagg things: The superstar Duke freshman leads his team in points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks. Flagg had his best game of the season on Saturday, recording a conference freshman record 42 points in a win over Notre Dame.
- And the National Player of the Year favorite — widely anticipated to be the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft — only added to the hype last night, scoring 13 points, grabbing seven rebounds, and dishing out six assists in his No. 3 Blue Devils’ 89–54 win over Miami.
🐺 Two-time defending champs endure up-and-down campaign: No. 14 UConn has had a headline-grabbing season, including criticism for HC Dan Hurley’s sideline behavior. Despite some surprise losses and losing one of their top players to injury until at least the end of the month, the 13-4 Huskies still have one of the best offenses in the country. Could the three-peat still be in play?
🐯 Player of the Year favorite Johni Broome out with injury: After leading No. 1 Auburn to a 15-1 season start, Broome suffered an ankle injury in Saturday’s win over South Carolina. It’s TBD how much time he’ll miss. Wishing him a speedy recovery.
🥇 The SEC is the country's top conference: Prior to conference play tipping off, SEC teams owned an 88.9% winning percentage, by far the best record of any conference and the best in league history. Plus, the 16-team SEC currently has 11 squads projected to make the NCAA Tournament. How do you spell dominance? S.E.C.
Women’s basketball
🏀 (B)All in a day's work
The GIST: Women’s college basketball is hotter than ever, with new stars, new contenders, and the same amazing on-court product. Here’s what to know as we near the midway point of the season.
🐻 A new No. 1: UCLA has held the No. 1 spot in the AP Poll since upsetting defending champion No. 2 South Carolina on November 24th. The Bruins, who had never been ranked No. 1 prior to this season, are led by Player of the Year contender Lauren Betts. The junior star has propelled UCLA to a perfect 16-0 start. Dominance.
3️⃣ Three teams remain undefeated: Along with UCLA, No. 5 LSU and No. 9 Ohio State are the other two squads without a blemish on their record. It’s not unheard of to go undefeated in women’s college basketball with 10 perfect seasons on record, a feat South Carolina achieved last season. Could one of these teams make it 11?
🍀 Notre Dame’s dynamic guard duo: Fighting Irish sophomore Hannah Hidalgo and senior Olivia Miles are undoubtedly the country’s most exciting guard pairing. Hidalgo is averaging a whopping 25.7 points per game, while Miles averages 16.6 points and 7.3 assists per game. And together, they’re good for at least one eye-popping highlight every night. Truly can’t miss.
🟠 No. 15 Tennessee’s exciting new identity: Vols HC Kim Caldwell is completely revamping Tennessee’s style of play in her first season at the helm. Her storied squad has become known for intense defense and shooting a high volume of three-pointers. They even set an NCAA record for made threes in a game, hitting 30 on December 14th. Shooters shoot.
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🤸 SEC boasts top three teams in women’s gymnastics rankings
After excellent season starts, No. 1 Oklahoma, defending champs No. 2 LSU, and No. 3 Alabama top the latest women’s NCAA gymnastics rankings. What’s more, the SEC is dominating overall, with six teams in the top 10.
- The Big Ten is the only other conference with multiple top-10 teams: No. 6 Michigan State and No. 9 Ohio State.
🏈 College football coaches vote to change transfer portal window
More than 60 NCAA football coaches, including Clemson’s Dabo Swinney and Georgia’s Kirby Smart, voted yesterday to shrink the transfer portal opening to a single 10-day window in January, replacing the current 20-day window in December and 10-day window in April. This would quell the chaos of December and stop players from leaving before Bowl games are played.
- However, the vote doesn’t make any official changes and must be approved by the NCAA, where it could face pushback. Stay tuned.
🏒 Women’s Beanpot final is set for the 46th iteration of the Boston tournament
No. 14 Boston University women’s hockey earned a spot in next week’s Beanpot final after defeating Harvard 2–1 in overtime (OT) last night, thanks to graduate student Lindsay Bochna’s game-winning goal. The Terriers will play No. 15 Northeastern, who defeated No. 12 Boston College 4–2.
- The two will meet next Tuesday for the championship game, capping off the historic tourney that takes place every season between the four Boston schools.
- And this year should be extra epic, considering it’s a rematch of last year’s OT thriller, which Northeastern won 2–1. Which dog will come out on top?
Here’s what has The GIST team currently hyped:
🏀 What to check out
Angel Reese’s Vogue cover. From tunnel fits to Met Gala looks, the Chicago Sky star embodies style and sport.
🎥 What to watch
“The Fire Inside.” This doc tells the story of two-time Olympic boxing gold medalist Claressa Shields. A true knockout.
❄️ What to shop
UGG snow boots. Stay warm and dry as you travel in style and comfort all winter long.
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