What we learned from opening day of women's college basketball

Women’s college basketball is back. There were plenty of teams in action on day one and a few key matchups. Let’s take a look at a few takeaways from opening day, including some big-time performances from newcomers.

1. There’s more parity than ever – from top to bottom

There were no major upsets yesterday, but there were a few “almost” upsets that had major fan bases questioning the legitimacy of their teams. First of all, it’s November 4th. It takes teams a minute to gel and that’s to be expected. 

But it also speaks to the massive amount of parity in women’s basketball this season. 

At noon, we saw No. 1-ranked USC claw their way to a win in the final seconds of their game against No. 24-ranked Ole Miss in Paris. With a team that features so many newcomers, it’s to be expected that the chemistry isn’t all there yet – but Ole Miss is legit too and we can’t discredit that. KK Deans returned from injury and put on a show in the second half. The matchup gave the Trojans a scare – and that’s what we want in college basketball. Having this much parity is good for the game. 

Speaking of “almost” upsets…. The biggest one of the day almost happened when Michigan, an unranked squad that started three freshmen, nearly beat out the defending national champion No. 2-ranked South Carolina Gamecocks. It was a close call and South Carolina didn’t look so good, but Michigan is a team that seemed to be severely underlooked heading into the season. Each power conference is so deep this season, which means we’ll likely be seeing a lot more “almost’s” and actual upsets all season long. 

2. This freshman class is loaded

Last year’s freshman class was a rarity. Stars like JuJu Watkins, Hannah Hidalgo and Audi Crooks emerged as some of the best players in the game. 

But this year’s freshman class is no joke – and we saw proof of that during opening day. 

Let’s take a peek at some of the top freshmen performances of the day: 

1. Georgia Tech’s Dani Carnegie (17 points, 4 rebounds, 2 steals)
2. Vanderbilt’s Mikayla Blakes (23 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals)
3. Louisville’s Taj Roberts (21 points)
4. Kentucky’s Clara Silva (14 points, 7 rebounds, 6 blocks
5. Georgia’s Mia Woolfolk (18 points, 13 rebounds)
6. Michigan’s Syla Swords (27 points, 12 rebounds)
7. Notre Dame’s Kate Koval (18 points, 7 rebounds, 5 blocks, 3 assists)

3. The transfer portal continues to bring star power

The transfer portal is a staple in college athletics. It brought Lauren Betts to UCLA and Hailey van Lith to LSU (and then TCU). There are plenty of transfers that are primed for big seasons – and some of them showed out today during their first game in a new uniform. 

Here’s a few of the transfers that put up big numbers on opening day. 

1. USC’s Kiki Iriafen (22 points, 13 rebounds)
2. Notre Dame’s Liatu King (24 points, 11 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 blocks)
3. Penn State’s Gracie Merkle (21 points, 13 rebounds, 4 blocks)
4. Oklahoma State’s Macey Huard (31 points, 9 rebounds, 5-of-7 from deep)
5. Oklahoma’s Raegan Beers (21 points, 14 rebounds, 2 blocks)

It’s a long season and this was only day one, but it’s looking to be another year full of great storylines and star power.