Top-seeded South Carolina women knock off Duke, enter fifth-straight Final Four
South Carolina forward Chloe Kitts (21) and Duke guard Oluchi Okananwa chase a ball out of bounds during the first half in the Elite Eight of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Sunday, March 30, 2025. in Birmingham, Ala. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Chloe Kitts scored 14 points and defending national champion South Carolina reached the Final Four of the women's NCAA Tournament for a fifth straight year, beating Duke 54-50 on Sunday.
The top-seeded Gamecocks are two wins away from becoming the first team to repeat as champions since UConn won four straight from 2013-16. South Carolina will play the winner of the Texas-TCU game that takes place Monday night.
Advertisement
The Final Four is in Tampa, Florida, on Friday night.
Second-seeded Duke was looking to get to its first national semifinals since 2006. That team lost in overtime to Maryland in the title game. The Blue Devils women were also looking to join the men's program in the Final Four.
SPOKANE REGIONAL 4
UCLA 72, LSU 65
SPOKANE, WASH. (AP) — Lauren Betts had 17 points and seven rebounds despite spending the entire second quarter on the bench, and top overall seed UCLA reached its first Final Four of the women's NCAA Tournament with a win over LSU.
The 6-foot-7 Betts added six blocks for the Bruins (34-2), who will face the winner of Monday's game between Southern California and UConn. The Final Four is Friday night in Tampa, Florida.
Gabriela Jaquez scored 18 points for the Bruins and Timea Gardiner finished with 15, helping to pick up the slack went Betts went to the bench after committing two first-quarter fouls.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fox Sports
33 minutes ago
- Fox Sports
Late miscues cost Phil Mickelson a shot at the weekend in his 34th - and maybe last
Associated Press OAKMONT, Pa. (AP) — By the time Phil Mickelson reached the 18th green at Oakmont on Friday evening, the once-packed grandstand was maybe a quarter-full. Same for the luxury suites. There was no grand gesture as the 54-year-old Mickelson loped up the hill. No wave to the crowd the way Arnold Palmer did in the same spot on the same course 31 years ago. No lengthy standing ovation from the gallery in return either. The man whose decades-long pursuit of the U.S. Open made him a fan favorite in his prime — not unlike Palmer in some ways — instead quietly marked his ball 16 feet from the hole, then walked over to the far edge of the green and stared at the leaderboard that glowed in the rainy twilight. A birdie would have let Mickelson stick around for the weekend at his 34th — and perhaps last — trip to the national championship. Wearing a white hat featuring the logo of his LIV Golf team, the HyFlyers GC, Mickelson stood over the line trying to get the right read. When the putt slid a foot left of the hole to keep Mickelson one outside the cut at plus-8, a small groan arose from those who stuck around. There was a shout or two of 'We love you Phil!' Along the railing, a man leaned toward a friend and said, "His exemption is done. No more U.S. Open for you Phil.' Maybe, maybe not. The five-year exemption into the tournament that Mickelson received when he captured the 2021 PGA Championship is expiring. Whether he'll be back to make a run at the one major that has eluded him is anyone's guess. Mickelson sure isn't saying. He politely declined to talk to reporters after emerging from the scoring area, disappearing into the clubhouse and an uncertain future at a tournament where he's been a runner-up six times. There are a number of ways for Mickelson to make it to Shinnecock next June. The USGA could offer him an exemption, as it did at Torrey Pines in 2020, though that doesn't appear to be USGA chief championship officer John Bodenhamer's first choice. 'I think the way that we would also think of Phil is we hope he earns his way in, and I think he'd tell you the same thing,' Bodenhamer said Wednesday. "That's what he did last time. We gave him one and then he went out and won the PGA Championship. So wouldn't put it past him.' Mickelson became the oldest major champion ever when he triumphed at Kiawah in 2021 at age 50. A lot has happened since then. Both on the course and off it. The man known universally as 'Lefty' played a major role in LIV Golf's rise, a move that has taken a bit of the shine off of his popularity back home. And while Mickelson's game can still show flashes — he really did knock a sideways flop shot into the hole during a LIV event last week in Virginia — and he looks fitter now than he did two decades ago, the reality is the swashbuckling approach that once endeared him to so many doesn't work that much anymore at the U.S. Open. Mickelson appeared to be in solid position to play the weekend when he stood on the 15th tee. He even on the day and 4 over for the tournament, well inside the cutline. A tee shot into the ankle deep rough at the 489-yard par 4 led to double bogey. He still seemed to be OK when he got to 17, a short uphill par 4. His tee shot sailed into the rough above a greenside bunker. There would be no magic this time. His attempted flop splashed into the sand instead. He blasted out to 25 feet and three-putted for another double bogey. That put him in a position he's been familiar with for a long time: heading to 18 at the U.S. Open needing to make a birdie of consequence. It didn't happen. And as he disappeared into the clubhouse, along with it came the realization that at this point, it likely never will. ___ AP golf: recommended in this topic
Hamilton Spectator
36 minutes ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Marlins secure multiyear deal to again host Caribbean Series, AP source says
MIAMI (AP) — The Caribbean Series will return to the Miami Marlins' loanDepot park after the team reached a multiyear agreement with the Caribbean Professional Baseball Confederation, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press. The deal will allow the Marlins, who hosted the Caribbean Series in 2024, to host three more editions of the winter league champions tournament beginning in 2028, the person said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the team has not made a formal announcement. ESPN first reported the news. The Marlins had already secured the 2028 edition of the tournament after bringing record numbers to Miami in 2024 — the first time the Caribbean Series was held at a major league ballpark. The future years are not yet set. A crowd of 36,677 watched Venezuela beat the Dominican Republic in the championship at loanDepot park — the largest crowd ever for a Caribbean Series game and a higher attendance than the 2023 World Baseball Classic championship game (36,098) between the United States and Shohei Ohtani's Japan club held at the same venue. Before returning to Miami, the Caribbean Series will be held in Caracas, Venezuela, in 2026 and Hermosillo, Mexico, in 2027. ___ AP MLB:
Associated Press
42 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Texas Rangers CF Evan Carter leaves with right wrist soreness after spectacular catch
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Texas Rangers center fielder Evan Carter exited Friday night's game against the Chicago White Sox with right wrist soreness, three innings after making a spectacular diving catch. Carter made the highlight grab to take a hit away from Mike Tauchman leading off in the fourth inning. Carter put his right hand down to the ground as he was lunging forward to make the catch with his gloved left hand. When the Rangers took the field in the seventh, Wyatt Langford moved from left field to center, and Sam Haggerty entered the game to play left. The Rangers said only that Carter left the game because of the soreness. Carter had three home runs in his previous four games, reaching base at least three times and with at least one extra-base hit in each of those games. He was 0 for 2 with a walk against the White Sox, and in the only at-bat after that defensive play had a flyout to left. ___ AP MLB:
