Storm the Court: College Hoops is Still in Good Hands
UConn and South Carolina are the current men's and women's dynasties, respectively; those aren't the only interesting storylines in college basketball
It is rare, given the nature of a 68-team, single-elimination tournament, that the two best teams face off for all the college hoops marbles. Funny, then, that we got exactly that in both tournament’s this season. With the women’s finale on Sunday pitting South Carolina and Iowa against each other, and the men’s capper on Monday seeing UConn and Purdue squaring off. Four No. 1 seeds, a quartet whose combined records, when all was said and done, was a staggering 143-13 this season.
Ultimately, it was South Carolina and UConn that, rightfully, came out on top. The latest dynasties of their respective sports, the Gamecocks and Huskies capped off seasons for the ages.
South Carolina, at 38-0, became the 10th team to finish undefeated on the women’s side, avenging its defeat to the Hawkeyes in last April’s Final Four.
UConn, which became only the third men’s program to go back-to-back since John Wooden’s UCLA dynasty ended in 1975, notched the most wins (37) by a national champion since Kentucky (38) in 2011-12.
Dawn Staley and Dan Hurley, at 53 and 51, respectively, are at the top of college basketball. And they’ve done it their way.
“You carry the burden of every single one of your players, all the coaches and staff members that put so much into our team,” Staley told reporters Sunday. “And it's a heavy load to be undefeated, to finish the job.”
“It's the best two-year run, I think, in a very, very long time just because of everything we lost from last year's team,” Hurley told reporters Monday, referencing that UConn lost five of its top eight scorers after last season's title march.
“To lose that much and, again, to do what we did again, it's got to be as impressive a two-year run as a program's had since prior to whoever did it before Duke.”
**
It’s hard not to notice the parallels between the two games that just took place in Cleveland and Glendale. All-time teams, led by all-time coaches, taking down two of the most unique and incredible stars that college hoops has seen in a long time.
Iowa’s Caitlin Clark and Purdue’s Zach Edey, both consecutive National Players of the Year, had eyes on leading their respective programs to a first national title. And both were brilliant, as Clark (30 points, eight rebounds, five assists) and Edey (37 points, 10 rebounds, two blocks) left it all out there.
Ultimately, though, the Hawkeyes and Boilermakers came up short. It’s off to the pros for Clark and Edey, with both ending their careers with all the accolades you could aspire for besides a national title.
But don’t let that diminish their legacies. These are two all-time greats who, while disappointed in how it ended, are more than satisfied with all they gave over the last four years.
“I'm sad we lost this game, but I'm also so proud of myself, I'm so proud of my teammates, I'm so proud of this program. There's a lot to be proud of,” Clark, her voice hoarse, told reporters Sunday.
“You can never say that I didn't give it my 100% every single time I stepped on the floor, every single time I went and practiced. That's what I'll always hang my hat on,” a stone-faced Edey told reporters Monday. “I came in, and I never didn't give it 100%.”
Clark, of course, was the more magnetic talent of the two, given her unbelievable range and flair for the dramatic. Sunday’s title game netted an average of 18.9 million viewers, with fans tuning in specifically to see whether the player with the most points in NCAA Division I history (male or female) could, along with her team, take down the machine that Staley has built in Columbia.
Even Staley acknowledged the role Clark has had in growing the women’s game, twice shouting out the Iowa star — first during the on-court trophy presentation, and then during her press conference. Clark is far from the first women’s college hoops star — the list, from Cheryl Miller to Candace Parker to Maya Moore to Brittney Griner to Breanna Stewart, is a lengthy one — but she has certainly done her part in taking the sport into what promises to be a new epoch.
Yet Edey, as the first repeat men’s National Player of the Year since Ralph Sampson, carved out his own niche in college hoops lore. In an era partially defined by a re-emergence of old-school bigs — Oscar Tschiebwe, Armando Bacot and Kofi Cockburn, to name a few — Edey was the best of them all. One jump-hook at a time.
**
College sports have been complicated by the transfer portal and Name, Image and Likeness (NIL). The game has changed, but change is constant. The men’s tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985; the women’s did so in 1994. The late 1980s brought the three-point shot. The 2010s brought an enhanced emphasis on analytics, which changed how people evaluate teams.
However, change isn’t a doom and gloom scenario. Things will end up being just fine with the right adjustments and tweaks.
Fan interest isn’t waning in response to those changes — the opposite, in fact. The women’s title game brought in more average viewers than all but three college football games last year: Michigan-Ohio State, the Rose Bowl and the national title game. On a more modest note, the men’s title game, which averaged 14.9 million viewers on TBS, brought in 4% more viewers than last season’s battle between UConn and San Diego State (on CBS).
That should only continue. After all, there is no shortage of interesting characters across the sport.
Do you like iconic coaches at the height of their powers? Well, look no further than Staley and Hurley. The former has one of the more unimpeachable résumés in basketball history: two NPOY honors, three Olympic gold medals and six WNBA All-Star nods as a player, three national championships, six Final Fours and a gold medal as a coach at South Carolina after completely rebuilding Temple’s historically irrelevant program.
A season after a decorated Gamecock senior class (headlined by Aliyah Boston) left town with a remarkable 129-9 record — including the 2022 national title — Staley took a younger, deeper group and went all the way, her North Philly grit and obsessive attention to detail shining through.
“We find the right pieces to help us. We really do things the right way,” Staley said Sunday, net draped around her neck. “We're very disciplined in how we approach basketball.”
Then there’s Hurley. A man who makes every facial expression possible during a game. A self-described “a–hole”. In six seasons in Storrs, the former Wagner and Rhode Island coach has rebuilt the Huskies from the depths of an NCAA investigation —which brought Kevin Ollie’s tenure to an unceremonious end — and taken them to the top of the sport. Twice.
“Obviously, what could you say? We won, by a lot again,” Hurley woofed, donning his trademark sly grin. The kid from Jersey City has come a long way, molding a program in his image.
There are other living legends. Geno Auriemma is still going, and if healthy, his Huskies — led by Paige Bueckers — will be loaded next season. Under Bill Self and Tom Izzo, Kansas and Michigan State, respectively, will always be a threat to make a deep run. Can Kim Mulkey and LSU get back to the Final Four after their Elite Eight loss to Clark and Iowa?
Then, there’s the next group up.
On the men’s side: Hubert Davis, in three seasons at North Carolina, has a national title game appearance (by virtue of that Final Four win against Krzyzewski and Duke) and an ACC regular season title. Jon Scheyer has been at the helm of the Blue Devils for two years, with an ACC Tournament title and Elite Eight appearance so far. Scott Drew, who elected to stay at Baylor despite overtures by Louisville and Kentucky, will just keep churning out top-four seeds. Nate Oats led Alabama (Alabama!) to the Final Four this season.
On the women’s side: Lindsay Gottlieb just led USC to its most wins (29) since 1983-84. Kenny Brooks took Virginia Tech to the Final Four last April; now, can he bring Kentucky back to prominence? Kara Lawson is rolling on the recruiting trail at Duke, and led the Blue Devils to the Sweet 16 this year.
Mike Krzyzewski, Roy Williams, Tara VanDerveer (as of Tuesday), Muffet McGraw and others have departed, but that only gives others the chance to step into the void.
Then, there are the ones on the court. Clark, Edey, Angel Reese and Dalton Knecht, to name a few, will be hard to replace, but don’t worry, the next crew is ready to try. USC’s JuJu Watkins is a scoring machine. Incoming Duke freshman Cooper Flagg may be the best high school player since LeBron James. Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo, at 5-foot-6, can do it all. With Jamal Shead off to the NBA, LJ Cryer can become an even bigger star at Houston.
“I just want our game to grow. I don't care if it's us. I don't care if it's Caitlin. I don't care if it's JuJu or Hannah,” Staley said. “I just want our game to grow, no matter who it is.”
It’s going to grow, all right. After this season, how could it not?