As Power 5 conference tournaments wind down and March Madness approaches, I turn my attention from scouring and analyzing women’s college basketball to helping write up our final draft board. With The Next’s first two draft boards having averaged nearly 9,000 words apiece, they’re a bit of a bear to work on. So today we’re going to wind down my Sunday column by having some light fun with the weirdest and craziest things I saw this season.
To recap from last week’s collection of the nastiest handles of the season, avid readers know that I keep an extraordinarily large repository of video clips. Sometimes this comes in handy when I want to quickly see a handful of possessions of incredibly random things. If you’re familiar with Scott Van Pelt’s “Best Thing I Saw Today,” this article is going to be like that, but rummaging through my recent archives for stranger happenings this season.
And now, college basketball:
Carla Viegas’ 3-point shot form
Seriously, what is the deal with this?
This thing Hannah Hidalgo does where she somehow beats the ball-handler to their own dribble
Nika Mühl throwing up a prayer
Cameron Brink’s closeouts
Jadyn Donovan, just as a general concept
Aliyah Matharu’s walk-off shot against Columbia
Paige Bueckers
What?!
Georgia Amoore Pass of the Year No. 1
MiLaysia Fulwiley playing long snapper
Christina Dalce doing a Forrest Gump impression for a block
Madison Booker scoring an own-goal the hard way
I’ve watched this video pixel-by-pixel enough times to confidently say that Sahara Williams definitely does not touch the ball. But do you know how hard you have to hit a basketball with one arm at the angle that Booker does to get it high enough to go through the rim? It’s really hard!
Kymora Johnson buzzer-beater No. 1
Mikaylah Williams accidentally using Sania Feagin as a pitchback
The depth of Caitlin Clark 3-pointers
Specifically this one:
Anna Gret Asi hitting a three-quarter-court buzzer-beater from a near-standstill
Georgia Amoore Pass of the Year No. 2
Kymora Johnson buzzer-beater No. 2
NC State scores a somewhat-own-goal
Duke center Kennedy Brown could not get enough on the ball to actually rebound it, so she tried to just tip it away from the nearest Wolfpack players. Instead, she slaps it straight down, and Mimi Collins accidentally redirects its flight path … straight to the hoop. This is more impressive than the Booker own-goal, if you ask me.
Ashlyn Watkins literally blocking a shot off the backboard
MiLaysia Fulwiley hooping
Every game she does something that I did not previously think was physically possible.
Kamilla Cardoso hits a 3-pointer
You may be slightly familiar with this one, and if not our Gabriella Lewis can get you up to speed. This comes on the heels of South Carolina blowing a 23-point lead, mostly forgetting how to score and Jasmine Powell missing two free throws on the preceding Tennessee possession.
Cardoso had not attempted a three in three years. Enjoy March Madness, y’all.
