WNBA free agency is the first domino of the WNBA season and, debatably, one of the most exciting.

For many teams, the main goal is just to retain their promising squad. Others make marginal moves they think could push them over the hump. A few may go for the Hail Mary that could break the league. Although different in many ways, they all share one thing in common: excitement. With the rise and fall of suspense, the social media frenzies and the hope that comes along with every deal, it’s an unmatched time of year for fans, players and organizations.

Every team has their game plan, so what cards could be up the Aces’ sleeves? Here’s a look at where the team stands entering free agency, followed by a consideration of the decisions and dilemmas facing the team:

Facts and figures*

Players under contract (contract status; 2025 salary)

• Kierstan Bell (protected rookie scale; $84,543)
• Chelsea Gray (protected veteran; $196,267)
• Megan Gustafson (unprotected; $96,820)
• Kiah Stokes (unprotected; $103,000)
• A’ja Wilson (protected veteran; $200,000)
• Jackie Young (protected veteran; $169,950)

Free agents (type; 2024 salary)

• Alysha Clark (unrestricted; $110,000)
• Sydney Colson (unrestricted; $76,535)
• Queen Egbo (reserved; $36,200)
• Tiffany Hayes (unrestricted; $88,000)
• Kelsey Plum (unrestricted; $200,000)

Total salary of free agents: $510,735

Total team salary: $850,580

Cap space: $656,520

Unsigned draftees (2025 salary)

• Elizabeth Kitley ($68,595)

2025 WNBA Draft picks (2025 salary)

• Round 2, No. 16 ($69,267)
• Round 2, No. 22 ($69,267)
• Round 3, No. 35 ($66,079)

What will happen with Kelsey Plum?

Kelsey Plum is, arguably, the biggest piece of the Aces’ free agency puzzle.

Plum has been a part of the Aces dynasty from the jump, and has proven to be one of the magnets of this team, both on and off the floor. Her on-court play, her familiarity with this organization and her chemistry with her teammates are things that are built, not bought. It would be difficult for both Plum and the Aces to split ways, but in WNBA free agency, anything is possible.

With the Aces placing their core player designation on Plum, it could either mark the continuation of greatness or the end of an era. Plum is now unable to sign elsewhere, meaning Vegas may either keep her or flip her for value, opposed to her signing with another team and leaving the Aces stranded.

This is a major turning point in this era of the organization.

What about Alysha Clark, Tiffany Hayes and Sydney Colson?

Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images

The Aces are also faced with the decisions of three other key team members: Alysha Clark, Tiffany Hayes and Sydney Colson. All moves the Aces make are going to run through the fate of Kelsey Plum and whether or not she stays or is traded, and if she is traded, what the return would look like.

If the Aces hold tight and run it back with Plum, it wouldn’t be expected for them to shake things up on the bench too much, especially with the numbers both Clark and Hayes provided last season, but you can’t rule them out of scavenging the market for other assets.

Hope for the best—but be prepared for change

Photo by Barry Gossage/NBAE via Getty Images

Change can be painful, but it’s also inevitable.

The Aces have been so lucky to have such a great cast for this long with such impeccable chemistry and incredible results, but some things don’t last forever. It would be nice to imagine this Aces core riding it out all the way to the sunset. But in sports, things like that generally don’t happen.

Kelsey Plum has gotten the “franchise” tag, a situation that could lead to a trade. A team retains their player before they can walk away in order to ultimately trade them before their contract expires. While that scenario isn’t at all promised, it’s also far from impossible. Alternatively, Las Vegas could easily just be opting in and trying to run it back with Plum for one last ride, or this could genuinely be the beginning of the end of an era.

*Thanks to Her Hoop Stats for all roster information and salary numbers.

Catch up on the best games, performances and more from another thrilling week of women’s college hoops:

The Gamecocks grind the Longhorns

Sunday marked the first of five-straight games against ranked SEC opponents for South Carolina. But, if Sunday’s result was any indication, the stretch will not be an impediment for the Gamecocks, but instead provide more evidence of their excellence.

In front of a sold-out crowd in Colonial Life Arena, the Gamecocks won their 67th-straight home game and record 51st-straight regular-season SEC game, obliterating visiting Texas, 67-50.

While the Longhorns can claim that it was just one of the those afternoons where everything went wrong, it appeared the Gamecocks benefitted from an intimidation factor that sent the visitors out of sorts.

The nation’s most efficient offense was rendered inept. With a team-wide 27.8 percent shooting mark from the field, it was Texas’ least efficient shooting performance since…the last time they played South Carolina, which occurred in the Elite Eight of the 2021 NCAA Tournament. It was an extremely frustrating afternoon for Madison Booker, with the usually sweet shooting sophomore forward struggling to get anything to fall. She finished 3-for-19 from the field with seven points, hounded by South Carolina senior guard Bree Hall for most of the afternoon.

South Carolina, in contrast, shot efficiently, with senior guard Te-Hina Paopao and junior forward Chloe Kitts leading the team with matching 11-point efforts. Senior forward Sania Feagin added eight points and nine boards, while junior guard Raven Johnson had eight points and 10 rebounds.

That doesn’t mean head coach Dawn Staley will be satisfied. A preponderance of turnovers prevented South Carolina from enjoying an even more dominant victory. Too often, the Gamecocks opted for overly ambitious passes, especially when trying to enter the ball to their bigs on the block. A more measured approach might be necessary when they meet Alabama (Jan. 16), Oklahoma (Jan. 19), LSU (Jan. 23) and Tennessee (Jan. 27).

The Gamecocks also allowed the Longhorns to corral 20 offensive boards. Texas proved unable to make them pay, but the Tigers and Lady Vols, in particular, are two upcoming opponents who could.

Pitt pulls off historic comeback

It was a week full of upsets—and near upsets—in the ACC.

Virginia Tech knocked Georgia Tech from the ranks of the undefeated on Thursday. Then, the Jackets dropped a second-straight game to Louisville on Sunday. North Carolina defeated Duke in double overtime on Thursday. On Sunday, the Blue Devils survived a scare at Virginia. Notre Dame, likewise, found themselves in a closer-than-expected contest against Clemson on Sunday. NC State lost in Northern California on Thursday, falling to Cal. On Sunday, the Pack responded by handing Stanford their first home loss.

However, the most memorable game occurred in Pittsburgh. Pitt entered their matchup against SMU 0-4 in ACC play. As they fell down by 32 points in the first half, they seemed destined to fall to 0-5 in conference action.

Instead, the Panthers engineered the epic comeback. After holding the Mustangs scoreless in the third quarter, the Panthers maintained their momentum through the fourth, thrilling the home crowd with what became a 72-59 win. The 32-point comeback ties the largest comeback in NCAA women’s basketball history.

Grad forward Khadija Faye captained Pitt with a 21-point and 12-rebound double-double. From off the bench, sophomore guard Mikayla Johnson scored a team-high 22 points.

Wooden midseason watchlist

Last week, the Wooden Award midseason top 25 list was announced, with many familiar names, including favorites Paige Bueckers, JuJu Watkins, Hannah Hidalgo and Lauren Betts, populating the list. The 25 players who remain in the running for one of the sport’s top honors are:

• Georgia Amoore (Kentucky)
• Raegan Beers (Oklahoma)
• Lauren Betts (UCLA)
• Madison Booker (Texas)
• Paige Bueckers (UConn)
• Audi Crooks (Iowa State)
• Yvonne Ejim (Gonzaga)
• Hannah Hidalgo (Notre Dame)
• Kiki Iriafen (USC)
• Aziaha James (NC State)
• Flau’jae Johnson (LSU)
• Ta’Niya Latson (Florida State)
• Ayoka Lee (Kansas State)
• Cotie McMahon (Ohio State)
• Olivia Miles (Notre Dame)
• Aneesah Morrow (LSU)
• Lucy Olsen (Iowa)
• Te-Hina Paopao (South Carolina)
• Khamil Pierre (Vanderbilt)
• Sedona Prince (TCU)
• JJ Quinerly (West Virginia)
• Sarah Strong (UConn)
• Harmoni Turner (Harvard)
• Hailey Van Lith (TCU)
• JuJu Watkins (USC)

Don’t miss these masterful performances

If you need a distraction from a world full of chaos, women’s college basketball players are providing it, as proven by the performances turned in from across the country over the past week:

• Norfolk State grad guard Diamond Johnson dropped 28 points in the 94-54 victory over Delaware State on Monday. She did it by scoring efficiently at all three levels, along with dishing six assists, grabbing five rebounds and snatching eight steals.

• On Wednesday, Maggie Doogan netted a career-high 37 points, with the junior forward’s effort helping Richmond edge George Mason, 88-86. Doogan was 10-for-11 from the line and made three 3s, while also distributing eight assists.

• Grad guard Morgan Maly pushed Creighton past Marquette, 71-68, on Wednesday with eight 3-pointers and 28 points.

• West Virginia took care of Texas Tech on Wednesday, 89-53, behind a nearly-perfect night from JJ Quinerly. The senior guard went 7-for-9 from the field and 7-for-7 from the line to finish with 21 points. She also tallied four assists and seven steals. For more on Quinerly, be sure to check out Eric Nemchock’s analysis of her WNBA potential.

• Mia Jacobs had quite a week for Fresno State. On Wednesday, the junior forward from Australia finished with 32 points and 10 rebounds, with the double-double powering her team past San Jose State, 77-64. On Saturday, she put up another 30-10 game, scoring 30 points and grabbing 10 rebounds as the Bulldogs bettered Boise State, 68-62. Along the way, she also scored her 1,000th-career point.

• Not that anyone needed it, but senior guard Azzi Fudd authored a reminder game on Thursday, shooting almost 65 percent from the field and scoring a season-high 23 points as UConn crushed Xavier, 81-27.

• Go crazy Grace Larkins! The senior guard has been putting on a show for South Dakota. On Thursday, she unleashed 34 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and tossed eight assists in the 77-60 victory over St. Thomas. On Saturday, it was 45 points, 12 boards and eight assists in the 71-66 win against Omaha. Her 45 points, which she achieved without a 3-pointer, is a new school record.

• Kennedy Todd-Williams was cooking in Ole Miss’ 87-59 win over Vanderbilt on Thursday. The grad guard went 5-for-7 from 3 and 6-for-6 from the line on her way to 25 points. She also tallied seven assists, six rebounds, two blocks and a steal.

• Although Georgia Tech lost their first game of the season on Thursday, falling 105-94 in double overtime to Virginia Tech, Kara Dunn gave the Jackets all she had. The junior guard finished with a 33-point and 10-rebound double-double while playing 47 minutes.

• Ivy League action heated up this weekend. And junior guard Grace Arnolie made sure Brown entered the winner’s column on Saturday, with a 35-point effort to beat Yale, 77-69. While going 13-for-14 from the line, she also contributed seven assists and two steals.

• It was a sweet, not sour, shooting day for Cal Baptist sophomore guard Khloe Lemon. She drained 11 3-pointers on Saturday. Her 11 triples ties the WAC record and sets a new school record. Lemon finished with 39 points as CBU defeated Utah Valley, 77-50.

• Freshman forward Maia Rosarion was the difference maker for Morehead State on Saturday. She made her presence felt with 20 points, 15 rebounds (eight offensive), five blocks and four steals in the 64-61 win over Southeast Missouri State.

• At 12-3 overall and 4-0 in the Patriot League, Navy is quietly putting together a solid season. And sophomore guard Zanai Barnett-Gay is a big reason why. On Saturday, she dropped a season-high 28 points, while also brining in seven rebounds, snagging six steals and dishing four assists, as the Mids came back against Loyola-Maryland for the 63-59 win.

• Senior guard Aniya Gourdine helped Southern get the job done against Florida A&M on Saturday. She stuffed the stat sheet for 18 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists and four steals in the 77-61 win.

• Grad guard Molly Kaiser poured in the points from all over the floor on Saturday, scoring 32 points for New Mexico in a win over UTEP, 65-49.

• JuJu Watkins not only lifted USC to a 95-73 win over Penn State on Sunday, but, in the process, did her best to try to the raise the spirits of LA. The sophomore superstar scored 35 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, while also notching five steals and three blocks. After the game, the LA native shared, “I took it as a good opportunity to have some fun. Vibes are kind of down here in LA, so our goal was to put on a show and entertain people for a couple hours.”

An infectious injury bug strikes the sport

Shortly after UConn’s Paige Bueckers suffered a knee injury scare that will continue to sideline her for another few games, South Carolina and Ashlyn Watkins received more ominous injury news, as the junior forward tore her ACL during the Gamecocks’ victory over Mississippi State on Sunday, Jan. 5.

While South Carolina has the depth necessary to sustain Watkins’ season-long absence, as they demonstrated in the season opener (which Watkins missed due to suspension) and in Sunday’s win over Texas, the Gamecocks ceiling is lower without, arguably, their most athletically-gifted player, whose impact on games often exceeds the 7.2 points and 6.4 rebounds per game that are registered in the box score.

Illinois, which has lurked around the edges of the top 25 for most of the season, offered a spirited response after learning that grad guard Makira Cook and sophomore guard Gretchen Dolan will both miss the remainder of the season, upsetting Iowa on Thursday evening.

Cook is dealing with an undisclosed health condition, while Dolan sustained a knee injury. Both players had suited up for the Illini in eight games this season. Cook, who has not played since Dec. 8, was averaging just under 12 points per game. Dolan, who has been sidelined since Dec. 28, was contributing 10.5 points per game.

A look ahead

This week offers yet another intriguing slate of conference matchups:

Thursday, Jan. 16

Georgia Tech vs. Notre Dame (6 p.m. ET, ACC Network)

South Carolina vs. Alabama (7 p.m. ET, SECN+)

Cal vs. Duke (8 p.m. ET, ACC Network)

Friday, Jan. 17

Utah vs. TCU (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN+)

Sunday, Jan. 19

Oklahoma vs. South Carolina (3 p.m. ET)

Tennessee vs. Vanderbilt (3 p.m. ET, SECN+)

Michigan State vs. Illinois (3 p.m. ET, B1G+)

Unrivaled continues to overwhelm with news in anticipation of the official tip off of the league’s inaugural season on Friday, Jan. 17:

Coco, Lola are Unrivaled

Coco Gauff is the latest big name to buy into Unrivaled, as the 2023 US Open champion was announced as a league investor last week.

And while we don’t know if she has an equity stake in the league, Lola Bunny also has joined the Unrivaled family, with the Space Jam star helping to introduce to the league to the wider world.

Unrivaled’s star-studded broadcast team, top-tier partnership

On Tuesday, Unrivaled revealed the broadcast team that will be calling and analyzing games, as well as interviewing players, for TNT Sports. Unsurprisingly, it might be the best crew in the business.

Brendan Glasheen will be the play-by-play announcer, with Lisa Leslie and Sarah Kustok serving as analysts. Ros Gold-Onwude, Taylor Rooks, Allie LaForce and Stephanie Ready are the sideline reporters, while Candace Parker, Renee Montgomery and Lauren Jbara will provide studio coverage.

While the TNT Sports crew has fans covered for traditional, on-court content, Samsung, announced as Unrivaled’s official technology and presenting partner, will help supply fans with more behind-the-scenes access. The tech company is expected to bring more than 600 hours of pregame, postgame and in-game content to fans. Samsung also will help players track their training efforts, providing all with a Galaxy Ring and Galaxy Watch.

Unrivaled’s implications for the W

While the Unrivaled environment may already be influencing forthcoming WNBA free agency machinations (with the presence of disgruntled Miami HEAT Jimmy Butler likely not easing the nerves of anxious general mangers in Dallas or elsewhere), it also could prove consequential during the negotiations for the next CBA between the WNBA and WNBPA.

In press conferences for their various clubs, players, such as Stef Dolson, Arike Ogunbowale and Brittney Griner, have expressed unvarnished appreciation for Unrivaled, both as an alternative to playing overseas during the offseason and, somewhat more subtly (and not without shade), as evidence for what the WNBA could be.

Unrivaled is operating with a “no excuses” maxim, with the league not asking players to wait for better resources and conditions, but going out there a getting all the access and amenities that players deserve. Without delay.

The best outcome, as Griner and Dearica Hamby allude to, is Unrivaled encouraging the WNBA to raise their game, dispensing with any quibbling about why this or that isn’t possible and, instead, finding a way to improve the W experience for all players.

That certainly will be players’ expectations. And if the WNBA is not ready to meet them, things could get interesting.

Angel strikes a pose for Vogue

Bayou Barbie. Chi Barbie. Vogue cover girl.

Chicago Sky and Rose BC star Angel Reese gets the well deserved Vogue glow up, speaking to the magazine about how she balances hoops, fashion and more.

Dream make staff additions, promotion

The staff for the Karl Smesko era of the Atlanta Dream is beginning to take shape.

The team announced that Brandi Poole and LaToya Sanders will be assistant coaches. Poole is one of the most experienced assistants in W, serving as assistant coach for the Dallas Wings during the 2023 and 2024 seasons after five seasons on the bench with the Connecticut Sun.

Sanders brings on-court, as well as sideline, experience to Atlanta. Following her seven-year WNBA career, which included winning a title in 2019 as a member of the Washington Mystics, Sanders joined the DC coaching staff in 2022. Last season, she was the team’s associate head coach.

On coming to Atlanta, Poole said:

Karl Smesko is a highly respected coach, and I look forward to learning from and working beside him. His basketball acumen and character are second to none. I am grateful to both him and Dan Padover for believing in my abilities to contribute positively to the future of the Atlanta Dream and compete for a WNBA Championship.

Sanders expressed similar enthusiasm, saying:

I’m excited to join the Atlanta Dream and work with such a talented team and staff. This is a tremendous opportunity to contribute to the continued growth and success of the organization.

The Dream also promoted Brooklyn Cartwright to assistant general manager. She has been with the organization since 2021, working as director of basketball operations.

Hodges heads to Connecticut

The Connecticut Sun also announced an assistant coach addition last week, with Roneeka Hodges joining the staff of new head coach Rachid Meziane. Hodges, who played 11 seasons in the WNBA, is fresh off a championship with the New York Liberty, where she worked as an assistant since 2022.

Sun general manager Morgan Tuck said of hiring Hodges:

We are thrilled to welcome Roneeka to our coaching staff. Her experience as both a coach and player at the highest level in our league and overseas brings a unique perspective and skill set to our organization. Combined with her passion for developing talent, her experience makes her an invaluable addition to our coaching staff. Roneeka brings a strong work ethic, a deep understanding of the game, and championship experience which will contribute greatly to maintaining a winning culture. We are confident that she will make a significant impact on our organization and players.

Meziane added:

Having an experienced former player like Roneeka on staff will be a great asset to the Sun. She brings passion for the game, a winning spirit, and an understanding of what it takes to be a great coach. I’m looking forward to working alongside her in Connecticut and continuing to grow together.

According to reporting from Gabby Alfveby and Jackie Powell at The Next, Hodges opted to leave New York because Connecticut offered her “an an expanded role that the Liberty couldn’t provide her, in which she’ll have more responsibilities.” The opportunity with the Sun “could include a higher salary or contributing more on the bench during practices and gameplay.”

A Fairly great scorer joins AU

We might have a favorite for 2025 Athletes Unlimited MVP.

Dyaisha Fair, the No. 16 overall selection in the 2025 WNBA Draft, will suit up for AU. Expect the third-leading scorer in NCAA Division I basketball history—who accumulated 3,403 points across three seasons at Buffalo and two at Syracuse—to get plenty of buckets on the court in Nashville.

The West Virginia Mountaineers (13-3; 3-2 Big 12) have been making noise since the hiring of former Stephen F. Austin head coach Mark Kellogg in 2023. The Mountaineers won their first 13 games in Kellogg’s debut season, fueled by a defense-first identity—an identity spearheaded by guard Ja’Naiya “JJ” Quinerly.

The reigning Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, Quinerly may be soft-spoken off the court, but on it, she’s one of the country’s fiercest competitors. She defines West Virginia’s physical presence on both ends of the floor, leading the team in scoring with frequent, crafty takes to the hoop while hounding opponents in the Mountaineers’ signature fullcourt press.

For all her recent accomplishments and honors, Quinerly hasn’t been mentioned quite as often as other star guards when it comes to the 2025 WNBA Draft. There’s still plenty of time between now and then, though, for the Mountaineers to play their way into the conversation, especially with last season’s top two teams in the Big 12, Oklahoma and Texas, now part of the SEC. Let’s take a look at what makes Quinerly a draft-worthy player.

Honors and statistics

As a freshman at West Virginia, Quinerly immediately flashed the defensive prowess that she’d quickly become known for, leading the team in steals per game (2.3) to go along with 8.8 points and 2.7 assists. She was elevated to the Mountaineers’ starting lineup halfway through the season and earned unanimous Big 12 All-Freshman Team honors.

Quinerly continued her ascent as a sophomore, averaging 14.5 points, 2.2 assists and 2.1 steals per game as a full-time starter. She was named to the Big 12 First Team and All-Defense Team, as well as the All-Tournament Team for the 2022 Cancun Challenge, which featured other Power Five programs such as NC State, Florida State, Purdue and Oklahoma State.

Quinerly’s breakout season came as a junior, when she upped her scoring to 19.8 points and shot a career-best 46.2 percent from the field. She also averaged a career-high 2.9 steals per game and was named the Big 12’s Defensive Player of the Year. Quinerly was a finalist for the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award, given annually to the nation’s top shooting guard, and was named an Honorable Mention All-American by the WBCA and Associated Press.

Quinerly’s craftiness, defense make her a dynamic lead guard

During longtime head coach Mike Carey’s tenure with West Virginia, the Mountaineers often excelled at forcing turnovers, as they tended to recruit athletic perimeter players and encouraged them to be aggressive on that end of the floor.

Quinerly may have been a Carey recruit, but she’s flourished under his successor, Kellogg. She’s gone from being a secondary ball handler and defensive specialist as an underclassman to the Mountaineer’s primary scorer, and it’s coincided with West Virginia’s best start to a season since 2021.

“We go as she goes,” Kellogg said of Quinerly after a 36-point West Virginia victory over Texas Tech. “She’s obviously the leader of this group.”

Though Quinerly profiles as a point guard at 5-foot-8, at West Virginia she operates as more of a scorer than she does as a distributor. According to Her Hoop Stats, Quinerly leads the Mountaineers in usage rate (31.7 percent), and while she’s more than adept as a ball handler—29.5 percent of her offensive possessions come in the pick and roll, per Synergy Sports—most of those plays are to get her attacking the basket with her shiftiness off the dribble than finding corner shooters or frontcourt rollers.

For the Mountaineers, this is a good thing. Quinerly is a crafty scorer who has a deep bag of crossovers and hesitation moves, insisting her way to the basket with an effective change of speed. 42.9 percent of her shot attempts as a senior have come at the rim, and nearly a quarter of her points have come at the free throw line—by far a career-high.

Highlights: Quinerly scores 31 points vs. UCF

The one thing that defines Quinerly’s game above all else, however, is her defense. It’s where she’s always excelled, and she’s fit perfectly into an ultra-aggressive West Virginia fullcourt press that’s currently forcing 14.8 steals per game (No. 2 in Division I). Quinerly is accounting for 3.2 of those steals, which she attributes to mental strengths that can’t always be taught.

“I think I have a keen sense to steal the ball, whether it’s in the air or someone dribbling in front of my face,” Quinerly explained in a preseason interview. “I definitely try to bait people into certain things.”

Quinerly also praised her teammates, citing the importance of the Mountaineers’ defense in fueling their offense and saying that the team’s press works because of how hard-working West Virginia is as a unit. She benefits from it too, individually: 23.9 percent of her offensive possessions come in transition, many of which don’t even cross the halfcourt line.

How will this serve Quinerly as a potential WNBA draftee? It’s rare that a WNBA team will run a fullcourt press, especially for the entirety of a game, but Quinerly’s defensive instincts should carry over regardless. Should WNBA coaches and general managers trust Quinerly’s floor game—she’ll likely operate more as a point guard at the next level—she could be one of the first guards to hear their name called on draft night.

Watch her play

West Virginia performed well in non-conference play, but the Mountaineers will have something to prove against fellow Big 12 teams. A Jan. 19 matchup against the Iowa State Cyclones, with whom West Virginia split two games last season, will be the team’s first nationally-televised game of the season (FOX) and a great opportunity to see two of the best players in the conference in Quinerly and Iowa State’s Audi Crooks.

Later, West Virginia will take on Ayoka Lee and the No. 12 Kansas State Wildcats (Feb. 17; FOX), who gave the Mountaineers problems in 2024 and are currently undefeated in conference play. They’ll then play the No. 11 TCU Horned Frogs on Feb. 23 (ESPN2). Both games will be crucial for West Virginia in determining seeding for the Big 12 Tournament, which will begin on March 5.

All statistics, team records and rankings for the 2024-25 NCAA season are current through Jan. 10, 2025.

Sunday, Jan. 12 could mark the start of the next, great SEC rivalry, when the No. 5 Texas Longhorns arrive in Columbia, SC to challenge the No. 2 South Carolina Gamecocks.

Or, it be a declaration of South Carolina dominance.

Since losing to the now-No. 1 UCLA Bruins, South Carolina has not been a team to be trifled with, taking care of opponents with the kind of authority characteristic of a Dawn Staley squad. The matchup against the Longhorns will test whether or not the Gamecocks have fully flipped a switch and are ready to romp through a rigorous SEC. Alternatively, Texas not only could show that there are cracks in South Carolina’s armor of excellence, but also establish themselves as a SEC power player.

The top-5 conference clash tips off at 1 p.m. ET and will be shown on ESPN, ESPN+ and Disney+. Here are the key considerations for both teams entering the game:

How will Watkins’ absence impact SC?

South Carolina’s ambitions for all-time greatness took a hit this week, when the program announced that junior forward Ashlyn Watkins would miss the remainder of the season with a torn ACL.

Watkins came off the bench in all 14 games she played this season, averaging 7.3 points, 5.5 rebounds and almost two blocks in just under 19 minutes per contest. Those modest numbers, however, elide Watkins’ status an impact player. Arguably South Carolina’s most athletically-gifted player, evidenced by the dunk she threw down against TCU, she is a ceiling raiser for Staley, capable of changing the game not only through a momentum-swinging play like a slam dunk, but also by controlling the glass, making defensive plays or manufacturing extra possessions.

Because of the Gamecocks’ depth of talent, their baseline might not be significantly altered without Watkins, but their upside is lower without her. Unless, another player emerges. The prime candidate? Freshman forward Joyce Edwards.

Imagined for stardom as soon as she signed with her homestate team, Edwards has thus far compiled a solid debut season, averaging 11.3 points, 5.1 boards and 1.4 steals in almost 20 minutes per game. Can she earn extra minutes and, in turn, provide more production in Watkins’ absence?

South Carolina’s first post-Watkins game, a 90-49 rout of Texas A&M on Thursday, offered little indication of how Staley will manage minutes in a more competitive contest. Sunday’s game, when a high-level effort will be required to defeat Texas, should be more revealing. And it could be the perfect moment for Edwards to reveal herself to be the Gamecocks’ new ceiling raiser. As would have been the case with Watkins, the Longhorns don’t have anyone with the combination of size and athleticism to effectively corral Edwards. A breakout game that assures any anxious FAMs about South Carolina’s readiness to run through the SEC is in order.

Will Booker be the best player on the floor?

Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images

Yet, Texas does possess a player who has the potential to disrupt South Carolina’s dominant designs. It’s sophomore forward Madison Booker.

After an outstanding freshman season, Booker has not necessarily taken her game to another level this season. Rather, after missing time early in the season with a hamstring injury, she’s been part of, rather than the fulcrum of, a balanced Longhorn team.

Her raw numbers—15.3 points, 5.9 rebounds, 3.0 assists—are below last season’s averages, but she is playing almost five minutes fewer per game while scoring more efficiently from the field, including from behind the arc. But, winning big games requires big games from big players. And to have a chance of prevailing in Columbia, head coach Vic Schaefer might need Booker to unleash some Maddie B magic, where she’s getting to her spots and sinking jumpers upon jumpers that are smooth as glass. She had some of that going against No. 18 Alabama on Thursday, scoring 21 points on 80 percent shooting as the Horns trounced the Tide.

Certainly, Texas cannot afford a foul-troubled afternoon from Booker, as was the case when the Longhorns barely escaped against Oklahoma and Booker was limited to 18 minutes and eight points.

Senior guard Rori Harmon also needs to perform as a secondary star for the Longhorns by controlling the point of attack on both ends of the floor. When the Gamecocks dial up their defense, Harmon has to be the steady hand, keeping her turnovers around her excellent 1.8 per game average. Alternatively, as a player who averages 2.6 steals per game, she can heat up the ball and cause trouble for South Carolina’s guards, allowing Texas to be the team that turns defense into offense. By beating the Gamecocks in the possession game, the Longhorns likely can win the full game.

Game information

No. 5 Texas Longhorns (16-1, 3-0) vs. No. 2 South Carolina Gamecocks (15-1, 3-0)

When: Sunday, Jan. 12 at 1 p.m. ET

Where: Colonial Life Arena in Columbia, SC

How to watch: ESPN/ESPN+/Disney+