The women's game

College basketball belongs to the women now

One quick DOGLAND update: I’m thrilled to be doing an event at Quail Ridge Books in Raleigh on May 14! I’ll be in conversation with Bronwen Dickey, who is not just a good friend but also the author of the brilliant book PIT BULL, which was an inspiration for me as I wrote DOGLAND. We will have a LOT to talk about.

The event is free, but you can buy a special ticket that gets you a copy of the book and a reserved seat. Tickets and more info here. If you’re in or around the Triangle, I’d love to see you!

More tour updates as we nail them down.

And here’s a reminder about our two ongoing preorder deals: I’ll sign and inscribe the book any way you like, or you can enter a drawing for a DOGLAND bandana and signed bookplate. Or you can preorder some other way! Whatever works best for you.

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I was getting ready to post my March Madness picks, like I do most every year, when I realized that this year I was going about it all wrong.

In the past I’ve just picked the men’s tournament. But for a while now—and especially this year—women’s college basketball has a lot more buzz.

I was talking with my ESPN buddy David Hale the other day and we figured that at least three women’s players—Iowa’s Caitlin Clark, LSU’s Angel Reese and UConn’s Paige Bueckers—are more famous than any current men’s college player. That’s probably underselling it. Who’s the best-known men’s player now? I’d guess Purdue center Zack Edey. He’s 7-4, so he definitely stands out. But is he more famous than, say, LSU guard Hailey Van Lith? Edey has 59,000 followers on Instagram. Van Lith has 957,000. So, no.

Same goes for coaches. South Carolina’s Dawn Staley, LSU’s Kim Mulkey and UConn’s Geno Auriemma are better-known—and far more interesting—than any men’s coach, especially since Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski retired. (My sportswriter reflex kicked in just now—I spelled Coach K’s name without looking it up. Although I did doublecheck.)

The problem is that so many of the best young men’s players don’t play college ball anymore. They’re either international players (like last year’s #1 NBA draft pick, Victor Wembanyana*) or they find other routes (like last year’s #3 pick, Scoot Henderson, who signed with the NBA’s developmental league when he was 17).

*I spelled Wemby’s name wrong the first time around. The sportswriter reflex is not infallible.

Men’s players are eligible for the NBA draft the year they turn 19. Women’s players aren’t eligible for the WNBA draft until the year they turn 22. That might change down the road, if the WNBA gets more popular and there’s more pressure to sign great young prospects. But for now the women get more time to develop as players in college, and fans have more time to get to know them.

I watch less and less college basketball every year—not because I don’t love the game but because I don’t watch as much TV as I used to, especially sports, and I had to cut somewhere. The only men’s college basketball I’ve watched all year was the second half of the ACC tournament final, where underdog NC State knocked off North Carolina. But I’ve watched several women’s games all the way or nearly all the way through—the game where Clark set the NCAA scoring record, a couple other Iowa games, the epic South Carolina-LSU battle a couple weeks ago, and a few others.

There’s no ticket for the men’s tournament as hard to get as the tickets for the women’s regional in Iowa City, where Clark and the Hawkeyes will play their first- and second-round games (barring a miracle upset). As of Tuesday night, the cheapest tickets on StubHub were going for $624 apiece. If Iowa makes it to the Final Four in Cleveland, the whole state might empty out.

All this is to say that the NCAA tournament(s), especially the first weekend, are my favorite days in sports. And now I’m going to squeeze in twice as many games.

Here are my brackets, women’s tournament first. Before you base any wagers on my picks, you should know that I have played in tournament pools for at least 25 years and have never won a dime.

And now the men:

There are a few upsets in here, but they’re mostly safe picks. I would like to win a pool once in my life, dammit.

—TT