March 31, 2025
Locked On Women’s Basketball: From Elite Eight to Final Four
By The Next
Which teams will fill out the Final Four? Missy Heidrick and Michelle Smith have some ideas
On the latest episode of Locked On Women’s Basketball, host Missy Heidrick talks with award-winning sports journalist Michelle Smith about the transition the NCAA tournament will take from the Elite Eight to the Final Four. The two discuss which teams are, or are likely to, head to the semifinals, and touch on other relevant topics in women’s college basketball.
Continue reading with a subscription to The Next
Get unlimited access to women’s basketball coverage and help support our hardworking staff of writers, editors, and photographers by subscribing today.
Already a member?
Login
Want even more women’s sports in your inbox?
Subscribe now to our sister publication The IX and receive our independent women’s sports newsletter six days a week. Learn more about your favorite athletes and teams around the world competing in soccer, tennis, basketball, golf, hockey and gymnastics from our incredible team of writers.
Readers of The Next now save 50% on their subscription to The IX.
Heidrick opens the show by discussing the concept of super-regionals, and asking Smith for her opinion. “I think everything has been worth a try when it comes to women’s basketball,” Smith says, “but after a few years of doing it, I don’t love it anymore.” Smith’s big reason for souring on the super-regionals? They limit fans’ abilities to travel, and fan participation is a crucial part of the NCAA Tournament experience.
Later on, Heidrick asks Smith for her opinions on the South Carolina Gamecocks, who have officially punched their ticket to the Final Four. “I don’t think this is the powerhouse that we’ve seen over the last couple of years,” Smith says. “But … they figure out how to do it.”
Order ‘Rare Gems’ and save 30%
Howard Megdal, founder and editor of The Next and The IX, released his latest book on May 7, 2024. This deeply reported story follows four connected generations of women’s basketball pioneers, from Elvera “Peps” Neuman to Cheryl Reeve and from Lindsay Whalen to Sylvia Fowles and Paige Bueckers.
If you enjoy his coverage of women’s basketball every Wednesday at The IX, you will love “Rare Gems: How Four Generations of Women Paved the Way for the WNBA.” Click the link below to order and enter MEGDAL30 at checkout.
Heidrick and Smith close out the show by talking about Monday night’s games. “I am excited to see Madison Booker and Hailey Van Lith at the precipice of this,” Smith says, referring to the Texas v. TCU matchup. “The Elite Eight games [are] my favorite game in the whole tournament, by the way.”
Make sure to subscribe to the Locked On Women’s Basketball podcast to keep learning about the WNBA, women’s college basketball, basketball history and much more!
Your business can reach over 3 million women’s sports fans every single month!
Here at The Next and The IX, our audience is a collection of the smartest, most passionate women’s sports fans in the world. If your business has a mission to serve these fans, reach out to our team at editors@thenexthoops.com to discuss ways to work together.
