NCAAW: MLK Day action headlined by undefeateds UConn and Vandy

Women’s college basketball could not ask for a better triple-header of national television matchups on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

The last-standing undefeateds in Division I—No. 1 UConn and No. 5 Vanderbilt—will both put their perfection to test against ranked opponents, with Commodores facing No. 8 Michigan and the Huskies hosting No. 23 Notre Dame. Before that, No. 10 TCU will strive to certify their contender credibility against upstart No. 14 Ohio State.

The Ohio State-TCU and Michigan-Vandy games are part of the second Coretta Scott King Classic, held at the Prudential Center in Newwark, NJ. The Buckeyes and Horned Frogs tip off at 12 p.m. ET on FOX, followed by the Wolverines and Commodores at 2:30 p.m. ET. Then, FOX also will broadcast the resumption of the Notre Dame-UConn rivalry from Storrs at 5 p.m. ET.

Here’s why guard play, in particular, will be pivotal in all three high-profile games:

Jaloni Cambridge vs. Olivia Miles

The contrast between the Buckeyes’ and Horned Frogs’ point guards encapsulates the overall differences between the two teams.

Sophomore point Jaloni Cambridge is one of the sport’s fast-rising stars for an Ohio State side that began the season unranked but has elevated all the way to No. 14 in the latest AP poll. Super senior Olivia Miles arrived at TCU with a well-established reputation and the expectation that she would help the Horned Frogs replicate, or better, the program’s recent heights.

The Buckeyes, arguably, have the best loss resume in the country, only falling to No. 1 UConn and No. 3 UCLA. A victory over TCU would give them another top-10 win to go with their defeat of then-No. 8 Maryland.

In that one, Cambridge finished with a near triple-double of 28 points, nine rebounds and eight assists. That effort cam after she dropped 41 points on Illinois, and most recently, she poured in 33 points on Penn State. Slowing down Cambridge thus is the top priority for a TCU defense that, while ranked No. 3 in the nation, hasn’t been tested by a team of Ohio State’s caliber.

Miles, of course, will be responsible for making sure TCU’s No. 14-ranked offense runs smoothly against Ohio State’s aggressive as ever defense. Miles has tallied four triple-doubles this season, with all coming across a five-game span in December.

Mikayla Blakes vs. Syla Swords

Before the season, Josh Felton identified Vanderbilt’s Mikayla Blakes and Michigan’s Syla Swords as two breakout stars.

Blakes, certainly, has substantiated all that promise. While a better-than-expected overall roster is responsible for Vanderbilt’s undefeated record, Blakes still deserves tons of credit. Although scoring remains the go-to skill that makes her a star, evidenced by her 25.6 points per game, which ranks second in the nation, she’s not just a scorer. Blakes has better leveraged the threat of her bucket getting to make plays for others, in addition to applying her quickness on the defensive end to collect steals and deflections.

Swords’ star turn hasn’t quite materialized. Her scoring has slightly dropped off, and she’s also finishing less efficiently. And yet, Swords has shown that she is at her best when the lights are brightest, as she almost singularly sent a scare through defending champion UConn in Michigan’s three-point loss to the Huskies in mid-November. An opportunity to hand Vandy to their first loss of the season surely will bring out the fearless and flame-throwing version of Swords.

To keep up with Blakes and the rest of the 3-point shooting Commodores, the Wolverines will need an outlier outburst from their sophomore star-in-waiting.

Hannah Hidalgo vs. Everybody

Will Hannah Hidalgo attempt to single-handedly power Notre Dame past UConn? Of course!

Hidalgo has bent, but not broken, from the weight a trying to carry this Irish team, less talented than previous iterations, to wins. The challenge, instead, has only steeled the competitive mentality of the junior point guard.

Incredibly productive through her first two seasons in South Bend, she’s doing even more this season, averaging career highs in points, shots, assists, rebounds and steals. And while her 3-pointer has been off all season, she’s finishing inside the arc better than ever, despite attracting almost all the attention opposing defenses.

Her all-out, all-everything approach, however, seems unlikely to succeed against a defense as disciplined and connected as UConn’s. While it would be fun to see Hidalgo get on a heater and push UConn to the brink of their first loss, this one, like Notre Dame’s games against other high-quality opponents, is more likely to become a blow out.