South Carolina ends perfect season with NCAA title
The women's basketball team won a victory over superstar Caitlin Clark's Iowa Hawkeyes
What happened
The University of South Carolina women's basketball team finished their perfect season with a come-from-behind victory over superstar Caitlin Clark's Iowa Hawkeyes on Sunday to win this year's NCAA championship, 87-75.
Who said what
South Carolina Coach Dawn Staley said after the Gamecocks' victory that her team had "etched their names in the history books." Iowa Coach Lisa Bluder celebrated her team's two-year streak of second-place finishes as an "amazing feat." For Clark, Sunday's game was the capstone to a "special year."
The commentary
Fueled in part by Clark's superstardom, women's basketball is arguably a "hotter cultural event right now than the men's game," Slate said. "She has changed both her game and how women's sports overall are viewed," USA Today said.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
What next?
Clark is off to New York City where she is widely expected to be next week's #1 WNBA draft pick.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Rafi Schwartz has worked as a politics writer at The Week since 2022, where he covers elections, Congress and the White House. He was previously a contributing writer with Mic focusing largely on politics, a senior writer with Splinter News, a staff writer for Fusion's news lab, and the managing editor of Heeb Magazine, a Jewish life and culture publication. Rafi's work has appeared in Rolling Stone, GOOD and The Forward, among others.
-
Today's political cartoons - December 22, 2024
Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - the long and short of it, trigger finger, and more
By The Week US Published
-
5 hilariously spirited cartoons about the spirit of Christmas
Cartoons Artists take on excuses, pardons, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Inside the house of Assad
The Explainer Bashar al-Assad and his father, Hafez, ruled Syria for more than half a century but how did one family achieve and maintain power?
By The Week UK Published
-
Indian teen is youngest world chess champion
Speed Read Gukesh Dommaraju, 18, unseated China's Ding Liren
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Women are getting their own baseball league again
In the Spotlight The league is on track to debut in 2026
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Europe roiled by attacks on Israeli soccer fans
Speed Read Israeli fans supporting the Maccabi Tel Aviv team clashed with pro-Palestinian protesters in 'antisemitic attacks,' Dutch authorities said
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
New York wins WNBA title, nearly nabs World Series
Speed Read The Yankees with face the Los Angeles Dodgers in the upcoming Fall Classic
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
LeBron, Bronny James make dad-son NBA debut
Speed Read Basketball star LeBron James and his son LeBron Jr. made history by playing together in the Lakers' preseason game
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Should American pro sports ditch their player drafts?
Talking Points Why the NWSL is embracing free agency for new players
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Biles takes all-around gold at Olympics
Speed Read Simone Biles won the women's Olympic all-around gymnastics competition in the Paris Games
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
South Sudan's basketball stars
Under the Radar Men's national team qualified for Olympics against the odds and are now inspiring a new generation of players
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published