The South Carolina and UConn women’s basketball programs will resume their regular season series next fall in Uncasville, CT.
Two lasting, accomplished collegiate rivals on the women’s basketball circuit will exchange hardwood gifts next holiday season.
Fans will no doubt be hyped for the scheduling news that emerged on Wednesday, as the University of Connecticut and University of South Carolina’s women’s basketball programs announced they will resume their regular season series at the Basketball Hall of Fame Women’s Showcase at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, CT. That will resume the regular season non-conference series between the two, which took a year off this season after a 10-year run interrupted only by COVID-19 complications in 2022.
The game will be played on Nov. 24, 2026 two days before Thanksgiving, at a time to be determined.
Respectively led by legendary head coaches Geno Auriemma and Dawn Staley, UConn (9) and South Carolina (3) have united to win 12 of the 17 NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournaments staged since 2009.
Several modern stars of the WNBA game have passed through each program in that span, including top draft choices Tina Charlies, Breanna Stewart, A’ja Wilson, Aliyah Boston, and newly-crowned No. 1 Paige Bueckers. In that span, the two sides have met twice in the national title game: Boston guided the Gamecocks to a 64-49 victory in the 2022 edition, while Bueckers ended her Storrs career on a high note with an 82-59 triumph last spring.
Since the two sides began meeting annually in 2015, the Huskies own a 9-5 advantage, including a 2-1 tally in NCAA Tournament play (also beating USC in the 2018 regional final round). UConn ended the regular season agreement in style with an 87-58 victory in Columbia, powered by a 28-point performance for Azzi Fudd and a 16-point, 13-rebound double-double for Sarah Strong.
To the surprise of few, if any, UConn and South Carolina respectively top the preseason rankings for this women’s season. The Huskies, who opened the season with a 79-66 win over No. 20 Louisville in the first female edition of the Armed Forces Classic on Tuesday, retained both Fudd and Strong while bringing in former Wisconsin standout Serah Williams in through the transfer portal. UConn faces Florida State in its Storrs opener on Sunday afternoon (4:30 p.m. ET, FS1).
Runner-up USC likewise benefitted from the portal, bringing in Ta’Niya Latson (Florida State) and Madina Okot (Mississippi State) before making quick work of Grand Canyon with a 94-54 final on Monday. The Gamecocks return to action Friday with a home showdown against Bowling Green (7 p.m. ET, SEC Network+).
Geoff Magliocchetti is on X @GeoffJMags
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