Life’s a beach

The GIST: When it comes to individual players, no one’s hotter than the aforementioned Mikayla Blakes right now. But it’s teams that win championships — and as the postseason looms, a few squads are red-hot while others are decidedly not.

🔥 No. 1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish: The Irish seized the top spot in the AP Poll for the first time since 2019 on Monday, then immediately proved why with a 64–49 rout of No. 11 Duke, their 18th straight dub. ND continues to boast the country’s best backcourt thanks to guards and SLAM covergirls Olivia Miles and Hannah Hidalgo — watch out, world.

🔥 No. 2 Texas Longhorns: There’s a new sheriff in town! Texas has been absolutely crushing their first season in the big, bad SEC, racking up their third straight top-10 conference W with Sunday’s 65–58 victory over No. 7 LSU. Led by walking bucket Madison Booker, who recorded her sixth double-double of the season in that game, it’s unclear if anyone can stop the Longhorns at this point.

🔥 No. 5 UConn Huskies: Even as parity skyrockets across the league, the OG women’s hoops dynasty is proving they’re still top dawg. They handed powerhouse No. 6 South Carolina their first home loss since December 3rd, 2020 (!!!) on Sunday, and it wasn’t even close. Guard Azzi Fudd brought the most bark for the Huskies, earning her national Player of the Week honors.

❄️ No. 14 Kentucky Wildcats: Big Blue Nation’s hopes soared when Kentucky poached head coach Kenny Brooks and star point guard Georgia Amoore from Virginia Tech. But the new regime hit a major snag last week, suffering one upset loss and one blowout, which dropped them six spots in Monday’s poll and likely put them out of the running for the No. 1 seed in the SEC tournament. Womp womp.

The GIST: Speaking of hot squads, one conference has taken NCAA softball by storm in the first two weeks of the season: the SEC. Turning on that Southern charm.

The context: While former Big 12 juggernaut Oklahoma has been college softball’s It Girls for more than a decade, the SEC has been the most broadly talented conference as of late. But this summer, Oklahoma (and fellow Women’s College World Series regular Texas) dumped the Big 12 to join the SEC, taking the group head and shoulders above the rest of the field.

The latest: As of yesterday’s poll drop, the conference owns a whopping 13 squads in the top 25. The next-best conference? The ACC with just four. Even more mind-blowing, though, is the top of that list: SEC squads make up eight of the top 10. Holy cannoli.

• What’s more, just 12 Division I teams remain undefeated…and seven are in the SEC. If they can keep winning at this clip, they’ll set themselves up for absolutely cutthroat conference play starting up in a few weeks.

Up next: No. 7 Tennessee, No. 10 Arkansas, and No. 22 Missouri will fight to maintain SEC dominance in one of the early season’s most storied tourneys, the Mary Nutter College Classic, which hits the diamond tomorrow.

• Blue-blood No. 4 UCLA, a new member of the Big Ten, is in the running for that tournament, but one thing’s for sure: The road to the Women’s College World Series runs through the Southeast.

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🏀 Men’s basketball: No. 4 Alabama Crimson Tide (21-4) vs. No. 15 Missouri Tigers (19-6) — Tonight at 9 p.m. ET — SEC Network

• The Tide was out to sea with Saturday’s nine-point loss to No. 1 Auburn, but they’re still the hottest offense in the game. If they can pass this difficult road test against Missouri, they’ll have their momentum surging again in no time.

🏊 Women’s swimming & diving: ACC Championships — Today through Saturday — Schedule here — ACCNX

• Remember Alex and Gretchen Walsh, Team USA’s swimming sisters that lit up the Olympics last summer? Well, they both swim for No. 1 Virginia, and as you might guess, they’re ’Hoos legends. Tune in to watch some world-class talent making a splash.

🏖️🏐 Beach volleyball: Outrigger Duke Kahanamoku Beach Classic — Tomorrow through Saturday — Schedule here — Live stats here

• While most of the country endures brutal winter storms, half of beach volleyball’s top 10 teams will take to the sands of Waikiki for the sport’s season opener. Come for the phenomenal athletes, stay because if you squint, it’s almost like you’re on the beach with them.

Hockey, merch, and a trip — sounds like the perfect combo. That’s why we’re giving you the chance to win two tickets to an upcoming PWHL Takeover Tour game to see the best hockey players live. Puck yeah.

The giveaway includes:

• 🎟 Two tickets to a game of your choice: March 16th in Detroit or March 29th in St. Louis

• 👕 PWHL merch prize pack: Gear up like a true fan in style

• 💰 $400 for travel: Cover your trip, grab some snacks, and enjoy the game stress-free

Sharpen those skates because this contest won’t last forever. Will you be the lucky fan hitting the road? Enter now for your chance to win.