By Tiffany Williams –
Let’s start with the loudest message in the country: Connecticut isn’t just winning — they’re humiliating people.
On Sunday, UConn Huskies women’s basketball turned a supposed matchup into a demolition, vaporizing Creighton Bluejays women’s basketball 100–51. Yes, 100–51. In March. Against a respectable opponent.
Freshman star Sarah Strong poured in 23 points while the Huskies defense turned the Bluejays into spectators.
And if anyone thought that was a fluke, rewind 24 hours.
UConn opened the weekend by obliterating Georgetown Hoyas women’s basketball 84–39. Two games. Two laughers. Margin of victory: 94 combined points.
That’s not momentum.
That’s a warning.
Meanwhile on the West Coast, the No. 2 ranked UCLA Bruins women’s basketball delivered their own March message — and it was directed squarely at anyone who thought Iowa Hawkeyes women’s basketball could hang.
They couldn’t.
Not even close.
UCLA crushed Iowa 96–45 in a game that was effectively over by halftime. The Bruins’ size, speed and shotmaking turned the Hawkeyes into a running drill. Earlier in the weekend, UCLA had already handled Washington Huskies women’s basketball 78–60 behind 26 points from star center Lauren Betts.
Translation: UCLA is rolling into the postseason looking like a nightmare matchup.
But the biggest shake-up of the weekend might have come in Austin.
The No. 4 Texas Longhorns women’s basketball just punked a national heavyweight.
Texas hammered No. 3 South Carolina Gamecocks women’s basketball 78–61, controlling the game from start to finish. Sophomore star Madison Booker led the charge with 18 points as the Longhorns physically bullied a South Carolina team that rarely gets pushed around like that.
That wasn’t a lucky shooting night.
That was domination in the paint, on the glass and in transition.
Elsewhere, chaos was brewing.
The Duke Blue Devils women’s basketball quietly pieced together one of the strongest weekends in the country. They edged Notre Dame Fighting Irish women’s basketball 65–63 and then survived overtime against Louisville Cardinals women’s basketball 70–65 behind clutch play from guard Taina Mair.
Those weren’t pretty wins.
But they were tough wins.
And in March, tough matters more than pretty.
Meanwhile, West Virginia Mountaineers women’s basketball handled business with a gritty 62–53 victory over TCU Horned Frogs women’s basketball after already beating Arizona State Sun Devils women’s basketball earlier in the weekend.
And if anyone wants an early candidate for wildest finish of the week, look no further than George Mason Patriots women’s basketball beating Dayton Flyers women’s basketball 87–85 in overtime — a track meet that looked more like a playground shootout than a postseason tune-up.
But the theme of this weekend wasn’t the close games.
It was the powerhouses flexing.
UConn looks terrifying.
UCLA looks unstoppable.
Texas just shoved a contender off the stage.
And if this is the appetizer before the NCAA Tournament tips off, the rest of the country might want to buckle up.
Because if this weekend proved anything, it’s that the gap between the elite and everyone else is getting brutally obvious.