Denver upsets NWSL champion Gotham for 1st-ever win

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Denver upsets NWSL champion Gotham for 1st win

One of the NWSL’s newest teams is on the board, as the Denver Summit stunned reigning champion Gotham FC 2-0 on Wednesday to claim its first-ever victory.

• Denver forward Melissa Kössler opened the scoring with her third goal in as many games, before Natasha Flint sealed the deal with a second-half strike.

• “We know there’s going to be difficult moments, we know there’s going to be enjoyable moments — we just want to increase them,” said Summit manager Nick Cushing. “And tonight, it’s definitely one of those.” (Watch full highlights)

Triple threat: Kössler is now the second-ever NWSL player to score in each of her club’s first three regular-season matches, leaving Gotham to rue its missed chances.

• “This team is full of winners at every level, and we’re disappointed to be starting the season this way,” said Bats defender Jess Carter. “We expect higher standards from ourselves.”

• “We know how the NWSL is — often the team that scores first gets the result,” said coach Juan Carlos Amorós. “In the last two games, we haven’t been able to do it.” (See full recap)

Up next: The Summit now gears up to shatter NWSL attendance records, hosting Washington at Mile High Stadium on Saturday at 2 PM ET, live on CBS.

UConn pair headlines Player of the Year shortlist

UConn’s powerhouse duo is back in the headlines, as guard Azzi Fudd and forward Sarah Strong both made this week’s Naismith Player of the Year shortlist.

• Considered a frontrunner, Strong was also named USBWA Player of the Year on Wednesday, with UCLA center Lauren Betts and Vanderbilt guard Mikayla Blakes rounding out the Naismith finalists.

• Geno Auriemma (UConn), Cori Close (UCLA), Shea Ralph (Vanderbilt), and Vic Schaefer (Texas) were named to the Coach of the Year shortlist, with Ralph the award’s only first-time honoree.

Full package: Tapped by the Atlanta Tipoff Club’s committee of journalists, coaches, former winners, and conference commissioners, Betts and Strong also featured on the Defensive Player of the Year shortlist, joined by West Virginia senior Jordan Harrison and Notre Dame guard Hannah Hidalgo.

• “This year’s finalist class represents the best of women’s college basketball,” said Atlanta Tipoff Club president Eric Oberman. “The competition for each of these awards… speaks to the standard of excellence these individuals have set throughout the season.” (See full list)

Up next: Winners will be announced on April 1st, with fans able to cast votes via naismithfanvote.com through March 30th.

WNBA drops expansion draft details

The 2026 WNBA season is drawing near, as expansion franchises Toronto and Portland start building their debut rosters now that the new CBA is all but official.

• The two-team expansion draft is scheduled for April 3rd, shortly before the league’s star-studded free agency period begins in earnest.

• The event opens with a Tempo-Fire coin toss, with the winner then selecting either the top expansion draft pick or the college draft’s No. 6 overall pick.

Big picture: Existing teams can protect up to five players each, though decisions will be complicated by the number of unrestricted free agents about to hit the market.

• The new teams can take just one unrestricted free agent via the expansion draft, while existing teams can protect free agents eligible to be cored.

• Toronto and Portland can also make trades once protection lists are submitted — either to put dibs on an unprotected player or send a protected player to another team in exchange for assets. (See full rules)

JWS’s all-new basketball show is back, as Court Vision presented by Planet Fitness showcases WNBA icon Angel McCoughtry and analyst Ros Gold-Onwude tackling women’s basketball’s biggest headlines, from college to the pros to the broader forces shaping today’s game.

• In this week’s episode, Ros and Angel break down the Sweet 16, exploring the intriguing matchups, standout players, and visionary coaches making noise in March Madness — including No. 10 seed Virginia’s Cinderella run behind star Kymora Johnson.

• “She helped bring Virginia back to the tournament for the first time since 2018,” Ros says of the Cavaliers’ hometown hero. “That’s someone who was a ball girl for University of Virginia, and now she’s bringing this program back to the greatness it once was.”

Tune in: Check out Court Vision on YouTube.

Coco Gauff battles her way to Miami Open semis

World No. 4 Coco Gauff dug deep to reach her first-ever Miami Open semifinal, overcoming a break point in the deciding third set to take down No. 12 Belinda Bencic on Tuesday.

• The 22-year-old is the youngest US player to reach the Miami semifinals since Serena Williams’s 2004 run, as she looks to right an up-and-down start to the year.

• “It just feels like I shouldn’t be where I am,” Gauff said postmatch. “But tennis doesn’t lie, the ball doesn’t lie, so I just have to believe myself.” (Watch full highlights)

Big picture: Today’s semifinal will impact the live WTA rankings, giving Gauff a chance to leapfrog No. 3 Iga Świątek after Świątek’s first-round upset.

• The Polish star has already been overtaken by new No. 2 Elena Rybakina, who will face No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the tournament’s other semifinal. (See full rankings)

Tune in: The Miami Open semis start today at 3 PM ET, live on The Tennis Channel.

Early March Madness sees record viewership

This year’s March Madness is soaking up the spotlight, as early reports indicate the second most-watched first and second rounds in women’s tournament history.

• No. 1 South Carolina’s second-round win over No. 9 USC led the weekend with an average of 1.8 million fans, followed by No. 1 UConn’s ousting of No. 9 Syracuse with 1.5 million.

• Second-round upsets also proved compelling, as No. 6 Notre Dame’s win over No. 3 Ohio State drew 1.5 million viewers, while No. 10 Virginia’s toppling of No. 2 Iowa attracted 1.4 million.

Taking stock: The tournament already amassed 3.3 billion total minutes viewed, delivering the second most-consumed early rounds on record. (See full report)

Quote of the day

NBA commissioner Adam Silver
on WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert’s future after this week’s CBA deal.