Blogs

South Carolina’s Aliyah Boston did not end the 2022–23 women’s college basketball season the way she planned to as Iowa knocked off the reigning national champs, 77-73, in the Final Four matchup on Friday at the American Airlines Center.

The Gamecocks star dealt with foul trouble early in Friday’s game that curbed her minutes on the court and ultimately limited her production, as she finished with eight points, 10 rebounds, three assists and three fouls.

With the season now over, Boston must decide whether she will return to Columbia, S.C., for another year or take her talents to the WNBA. But, according to Gamecocks coach Dawn Staley, it is time for Boston to spread her wings and talent in the pros.

“I’m going to tell her to go,” Staley said in the news conference after the Gamecocks loss. “There are defenses that are played against her that won’t allow her to play her game, and then it’s hard to officiate that. … She’s great. She’s ready. She’s ready to see single coverage. She’s ready to make the next step to the league.”

Baccellieri: With Caitlin Clark, Iowa Knew It Could Slay the Beast

Boston joined South Carolina as part of the Gamecocks 2019 recruiting class featuring five players—who call themselves “The Freshies” of SC—along with Brea Beal, Olivia Thompson, Zia Cooke and Laeticia Amihere. Boston has the additional year of eligibility because of the COVID-19 pandemic ending the ’20 season prematurely.

However, Boston has not made her pivotal decision and it is one that she believes will take some time.

“This decision is a big decision,” Boston said. “I was going to have to really write down the pros and cons of everything. Whether we won or not [Final Four game], it would still have to be something that I would have to consider.”

The 21-year-old was recently named the 2023 Naismith Defensive Player of the Year, her second consecutive year taking home the honor.

South Carolina’s Aliyah Boston did not end the 2022–23 women’s college basketball season the way she planned to as Iowa knocked off the reigning national champs, 77-73, in the Final Four matchup on Friday at the American Airlines Center.

The Gamecocks star dealt with foul trouble early in Friday’s game that curbed her minutes on the court and ultimately limited her production, as she finished with eight points, 10 rebounds, three assists and three fouls.

With the season now over, Boston must decide whether she will return to Columbia, S.C., for another year or take her talents to the WNBA. But, according to Gamecocks coach Dawn Staley, it is time for Boston to spread her wings and talent in the pros.

“I’m going to tell her to go,” Staley said in the news conference after the Gamecocks loss. “There are defenses that are played against her that won’t allow her to play her game, and then it’s hard to officiate that. … She’s great. She’s ready. She’s ready to see single coverage. She’s ready to make the next step to the league.”

Baccellieri: With Caitlin Clark, Iowa Knew It Could Slay the Beast

Boston joined South Carolina as part of the Gamecocks 2019 recruiting class featuring five players—who call themselves “The Freshies” of SC—along with Brea Beal, Olivia Thompson, Zia Cooke and Laeticia Amihere. Boston has the additional year of eligibility because of the COVID-19 pandemic ending the ’20 season prematurely.

However, Boston has not made her pivotal decision and it is one that she believes will take some time.

“This decision is a big decision,” Boston said. “I was going to have to really write down the pros and cons of everything. Whether we won or not [Final Four game], it would still have to be something that I would have to consider.”

The 21-year-old was recently named the 2023 Naismith Defensive Player of the Year, her second consecutive year taking home the honor.

Which college stars have declared their intentions to go through the NBA draft process? Keep up with the big names here.

At 38-39, the Raptors are currently hanging on to a spot in the play-in tournament with five games left in the season. Toronto is tied with the Hawks for the No. 8 seed in the East and just a game back of the Heat for the No. 7 seed.

However, while the Raptors season will likely extend by at least one game following the regular season, Nick Nurse is already thinking towards the future. Toronto’s coach told the media he will need to mull what he wants to do next year once the season ends.

“First of all, I think when this season gets done, we’ll evaluate everything, and even personally, I’m going to take a few weeks to see where I’m at, you know?” Nurse said, via ESPN’s Tim Bontemps. “Like you said, where my head’s at. And just see how the relationship with the organization is and everything.”

Nurse has been a part of the Raptors organization for the last decade, first as an assistant then as head coach. He led Toronto to its first ever NBA championship in 2019 and has been arguably the best coach in team history as a result.

However, the last few years have been a grind. The Raptors missed the playoffs in 2021 and lost in the first round to the Sixers last season. Still, Nurse said he hasn’t thought about moving on from Toronto, just that it’s a good time for him to think about his future.

“I’m concentrated on this job, for sure, and this game, essentially,” he said. “But I think 10 years is a good time to sit back and reflect a little bit. So I think we’re going to do that all when the season ends.”

Nurse’s contract reportedly expires after next season, so one way or another he and the team need to decide on what to do beyond 2024.

Bills legend and Pro Football Hall of Famer Jim Kelly believes that Buffalo needs to get more talent in the running back room to help star quarterback Josh Allen.

“Josh can’t do everything by himself, and I hope they find a way to get a star running back,” Kelly told News 10 NBC Rochester.

The Bills have great belief in young running back James Cook, and added former Patriots running back Damien Harris in free agency to help ease the loss of running back Devin Singletary, who left in free agency to join the Texans.

“I always thought Singletary was pretty good. I just didn’t think we used him enough,” Kelly said.

Singletary was the team’s leading rusher in all four seasons with the Bills, so replacing him won’t be easy. However, if Cook lives up to the player that Buffalo personnel believes he could be, mixed in with an effective Harris, the running game should be just fine for the Bills.

However, if Buffalo wants to add more star power to the room, the team could pursue a back like Ezekiel Elliott, who was released by the Cowboys after his worst statistical season with the team last season. However, Elliott would likely be seeking significant money, and he appears to be past his prime that saw him become one of the league’s top running backs for a long stretch over the last decade.

Perhaps the answers are already in the room for the Bills, but Kelly believes that more can be done at running back for Allen to benefit the team’s offense both now and in the future.

Iowa guard Caitlin Clark has dazzled basketball fans this March with a bevy of high-scoring feats, including a 41-point triple-double against Louisville in the Elite Eight followed by another 41-point outing against South Carolina in the Final Four.

Her feats become even more impressive, however, when weighed against the gridiron accomplishments of the Hawkeyes—perennially one of the lowest-scoring teams in the country.

A crazy statistic shared on Twitter by Mallory Hartley of Dave Campbell’s Texas Football Friday night underlined the reality both of Clark’s dominance and Iowa’s autumnal impotence. As she pointed out, Clark “has now scored more points in postseason play (235) than Iowa football scored all season (230).”

• Get your seats to the National Championship Game at SI Tickets

Caitlin Clark has scored more points in postseason play (235) than Iowa Football scored all season (230).

That is insane.

— Mallory Hartley (@malloryhartley) April 1, 2023

The math checks out. The Hawkeyes have played eight games between the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments, and Clark has torched Purdue (22), Maryland (22), Ohio State (30), Southeastern Louisiana (26), Georgia (22), Colorado (31), the Cardinals (41) and the Gamecocks (41) for a total of 235 points.

Baccellieri: With Caitlin Clark, Iowa Knew It Could Slay the Beast

That eight-game total eclipses Iowa’s 12-game football total of 230; the Hawkeyes scored more than 30 points just once last season, against Northwestern.

With Iowa fans suddenly acclimated to high-flying feats in big games, it’s clear the football Hawkeyes will need to step the scoring up when their opener roles around Sept. 2.

Josh Heupel’s second season in Tennessee was a big one, as he led the Volunteers to an 11–2 record and Orange Bowl victory and earned a contract extension after the year. It was the first time Tennessee won double-digit games since 2007, and the first time they lost two games or less since 2001.

As a result, Volunteer fans were reenergized by the team and excited for what Heupel can do for the program in the future. One specific fan was so excited that he got Heupel’s face tattooed on his leg.

On Friday, Heupel finally got to meet the fan with his face on his leg.

*Chris Collinsworth voice* Now here’s a guy who’s really happy Josh Heupel got that extension@vawldaddy #GBO 🍊 pic.twitter.com/xRBocwBZoj

— Tennessee Football (@Vol_Football) March 31, 2023

As long as Heupel remains the Volunteers coach, this fan doesn’t seem like the type to regret his decision.

Off to a very strong start with the Vols, Heupel has a good chance to actually finish out his extension through 2028 compared to other coaches at similar programs. However, the pressure is on Heupel to keep this success up and make sure this fan is rewarded.