JUJU WATKINS OUT FOR SEASON

During the first quarter of the Mississippi State vs USC game, superstar guard JuJu Watkins left the game with a right knee injury.

USC went on to win as Kiki Irafen scored 36 points, but the big question coming out of the game was centered around Watkins’ health, and everyone was hoping that the injury wasn’t as severe as it looked.

Shortly after the game, we received word on her injury, and it wasn’t good

Watkins will miss the rest of the Tournament and the Trojans will have to do their best without their superstar.

Sending all our best to JuJu.

THE ROAD TO THE SWEET 16

Across the tournament, we were treated to an instant classic. It took two overtimes, but Maryland was able to outlast Alabama and Sarah Ashlee Barker’s 45 points. The Terps move on and have a rematch with 1 seeded South Carolina. Maryland gave SC all it could handle in the 2023 Elite Eight, but Aliyah Boston and the then undefeated Gamecocks were too much to handle that night.

The most impressive team thus far might be the Connecticut Huskies. Thanks to the outstanding efforts of Sarah Strong, Azzi Fudd, and Paige Bueckers, the Huskies have won their first two games by a combined 103 points. UCONN is back in action on March 29 against Oklahoma.

  WELCOME BACK, MARINE!

After acquiring Natasha Cloud from the Connecticut Sun, the Liberty also brought back an old friend.

For Johannes, it’s a welcome return to the WNBA after she could not play in 2024 due to the Paris Olympics.

MJ’s relationship with the French leagues is very complicated, as Erica and Jackie Powell of The Next discussed in a special two-part episode of Gotta Get Up in 2023.

As we draw closer to training camp, we’ll have even more on the Liberty’s quest for back-to-back championships.

Also, this week on the BRM airwaves, there will be Tempestade Talk with Erica L. Ayala and Roberta F. Rodrigues.

The duo will discuss the NCAA Sweet 16 Round and players Seattle Storm fans should watch.

 💰 MONEY MOVES

The Business of the Madness

The Tournament is here, and there’s been so much talk about the state of the college game and coverage of the game now that Caitlin Clark is in the WNBA. Through the first week of play, we’ve seen record-breaking performances and new stars making names on the game’s biggest stage. Prior to the start of the tournament, Nicole Auerbach of NBC Sports gave a primer on what to expect in the Big Dance

In addition to, there’s a big new change this year. For the first time, teams are getting shares of the profits. They’re called “units,” which is “money that is paid to conferences when one of its teams appears in the NCAA tournament.”

In addition, the NCAA will be paying teams $15 million out of the funds from their new television deal, which comes out to 26 percent of the revenue from the new TV deal. That number will continue to rise in the following years.

We’ve talked extensively at the Women’s Basketball Roundup about the need for large institutions to properly invest in women’s sports and devote the time and resources it deserves.

When you invest and provide real support, good things happen, and you create new fans along the way. The NCAA has a LOT of work to do to make up for generations of underinvestment, and things like this are a good start.

📰 WHAT WE’RE READING!

At Black Rosie Media, we love to give flowers to other writers and creators in women’s basketball.

Here’s what we’re reading:

• How JuJu Watkins' injury impacts USC, NCAA title race, beyond by Michael Voepel and Paolo Uggetti for ESPN

• The New York Liberty re-sign Marine Johannès by Brian Fleurantin for Netsdaily

• How the Ivy League earned, and reacted to, a historic three NCAA Tournament berths by Jenn Hatfield

• Not many tougher than Notre Dame star Olivia Miles. How did she return from injury? by Tom Noie for the South Bend Tribune

• Diamond DeShields welcomes opportunity, expectations as veteran leader of Connecticut Sun’s rebuilt roster by Emily Adams for the Hartford Courant

• How her UConn teammates support Jana El Alfy as she observes Ramadan during March Madness by Maggie Vanoni for CT Insider

• Bullying, basketball and an online firestorm: How B.C. college star Harriette MacKenzie stood up to anti-trans hate — and won by Bruce Arthur for the Toronto Star

• If the Trump administration is willing to erase Jackie Robinson's history, then no one's safe by Michael Sykes for For the Win

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