South-Carolina
Showdown in Phoenix. South Carolina, UCLA meet for national title
The teams in the Women’s Final Four might have been a repeat of the previous year, but the national championship will be different.
South Carolina avenged the 2025 national championship loss against UConn and ended the Huskies’ undefeated campaign in the Final Four.
UCLA got the better of Texas since losing to the Longhorns in November, and continued the 30-game winning streak that transpired since with a statement win.
The epic conclusion to the season will take place at Mortgage Matchup Center on Sunday, April 5, at 12:30 p.m. MST.
UCLA will play for its first national championship, while South Carolina will try for its fourth title and third in five years.
What the Gamecocks can do to win
South Carolina’s defense exploited UConn’s shooting struggles and ran away with an 11-1 run to end the game.
Several players have stepped up offensively throughout the NCAA Tournament. Against UConn, Ta’Niya Latson used her athleticism to float to the rim and came away with 16 points, including 10 from free throws.
Agot Makeer has been effective off the bench, averaging 14.3 points per game and using her length to impact the game on both ends.
The Gamecocks have size in 6-foot-6 center Madina Okot, but it was 5-foot-9 guard Raven Johnson who really impressed on the defensive end. Johnson matched up against 6-foot-2 forward and National Player of the Year Sarah Strong and held her to 4-of-16 shooting.
“We went to a smaller lineup just to match what they were doing out there. I mean, Raven thrives on any matchup, right?” coach Dawn Staley said.
Staley added that Johnson guarded taller players than Strong in the past, including 6-foot-5 Kentucky center Clara Strack.
“We know she’s fearless when it comes to who she’s guarding. She takes really great pride in not letting people score on her,” Staley said. “When you have a guard like that that has elite defensive skills, you let ’em be great.”
Johnson, one of the veterans on a younger South Carolina team, will play a significant role in the national championship and will go up against the best offense in the country.
What the Bruins can do to win
UCLA didn’t have the best night offensively in the Final Four, but the defense came through against Texas.
Texas cut UCLA’s 10-point lead to three late in the game, but Lauren Betts got a big block with 18.1 seconds to go on a would-be Madison Booker layup to help the Bruins advance.
Betts will undoubtedly draw a lot of South Carolina’s defensive attention, as she did with Texas, but it opens the floor for UCLA’s shooters such as Gianna Kneepkens.
“The amount she draws in on offense helps all the guards, because you can go one-on-one, but I don’t know, that’s a choice if you want to make it,” Kneepkens said. “If they double, she’ll kick it out because she’s a great passer.”
UCLA managed to get past Texas without its offense clicking, but Kneepkens played a role with two 3-pointers on five shots.
What got UCLA ahead was Betts, a 6-foot-7 center, providing an intimidating presence inside. The Gamecocks didn’t face a lot of size in the Final Four, which will require adjustments. Texas tried against Betts, but saw three shots blocked from her, while Angela Dugalic blocked two.
UCLA is new to the national championship, but it is an experienced group with six players graduating. Betts, Kiki Rice and Gabriela Jaquez have spent three seasons together.
“We want this so bad for each other,” Betts said. “The way we come out, the way we prep, the way we practice, the way we work on defense, the way we go for steals, that’s all because we just want to earn more days with each other.
“We want to make history. We want to do this for each other.”
Reach the reporter or send tips for stories at jenna.ortiz@arizonarepublic.com, as well as @jennarortiz on X.
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WASHINGTON (TNND) — South Carolina GOP Rep. Nancy Mace called for a one-year moratorium on the creation of data centers in her home state.
“South Carolina is not Big Tech’s personal power grid,” she said in a press release on Monday. “These companies are planting massive data centers across our state, driving up energy demand, and leaving families and small businesses to pick up the tab. South Carolinians are already stretched thin. The last thing they need is a higher electricity bill subsidizing Big Tech’s bottom line.”
Data centers are buildings or factories that house IT infrastructure for building and delivering applications and services.
There has been a lot of backlash from local communities across the U.S. as some are being built in different states.
Many communities are concerned because data centers require large amounts of electricity and water. Communities are concerns about resources being drained, loud noise, land use and tax incentives.
“Reports say South Carolina has become a destination for data centers over the years and more are expected to come,” Mace’s press release reads. “Every new facility brings with it surging energy demand, costly grid upgrades, and growing pressure on utility companies to recover those expenses from ratepayers. South Carolina families cannot afford to keep picking up the tab.”
She said data centers need to pay their own way to come to South Carolina.
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“A one-year moratorium gives South Carolina the chance to get this right,” Mace said. “When it is over, the rules are simple: data centers pay their own way or they do not come here. We don’t want to see eminent domain like what’s happening in Georgia, either.”
The SEC baseball tournament will begin Tuesday with the first round at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium in Hoover, Alabama.
No. 10 seed Tennessee (37-19, 15-15 SEC) will face No. 15 seed South Carolina (22-34, 7-23 SEC) on Tuesday. First pitch between the Vols and Gamecocks is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. EDT.
Tennessee has won five SEC Tournament championships in 1993, 1994, 1995, 2022 and 2024. The Vols are 38-30 all time in SEC Tournament games.
Below is how to watch information for Tuesday’s baseball game between Tennessee and South Carolina. Dave Neal (play-by-play) and Lance Cormier (analyst) will be on the call.
What channel is Tennessee versus South Carolina baseball on today?
Watch Tennessee live
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