A lot has gone down in women’s basketball these past few days. Vanderbilt dropped big scheduling news with a home-and-home series, and over in Ames, Jada Williams announced herself in style by helping Iowa State finally break its losing streak. Plenty to talk about.

The WNBA world has also given us plenty to talk about with the ongoing CBA situation. Now, they have dropped another bombshell by releasing the new schedule.

WNBA Releases 2026 Season Schedule

Amid signs of movement in the WNBA collective bargaining talks, the league dropped its 2026 schedule on Wednesday, and it includes a start that’s one week earlier than usual.

According to the official release, the 2026 season will run from Friday, May 8, to Thursday, September 24.

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Playoffs will start on September 27, pretty similar to last year’s timeline. There had been reports of the league exploring the idea of extending the season into November, potentially overlapping with other leagues such as Unrivaled and Project B.

But since no agreement has been reached between the two parties, the current CBA had to be followed for this announcement.

For those wondering why the league chose to release the 2026 schedule before a new CBA is finalized, the WNBA said the early release was intentional, giving teams, sponsors, broadcast partners, and fans more time to prepare.

Drama is baked into the opening weekend.

On Saturday, May 9, the top picks from the 2024 and 2025 drafts, whose NCAA Tournament showdowns became must-watch television, will meet again at the pro level. In other words, we have Caitlin Clark vs. Paige Bueckers on opening day.

Injuries kept Dallas’ Bueckers and Indiana’s Clark to just one meeting in 2025, but this time they’re front and center.

At the same time, the Sky–Fever rivalry that helped drive massive growth for the WNBA will be featured just three times instead of five, hinting at a philosophical shift in how the league builds its schedule.

Auriemma–Ralph Matchup Official

At the moment, the only two undefeated teams in women’s college basketball are UConn and Vanderbilt. They don’t play each other this regular season, but that won’t be the case for much longer.

Just days after the news broke that LSU and UConn will meet in the 2026–27 season, another big matchup has been announced.

Vanderbilt and UConn have officially agreed to a home-and-home series starting in 2027–28. Now that’s definitely something worth keeping an eye on.

Vanderbilt coach Shea Ralph spent most of her adult life in Storrs. She arrived at UConn in 1996 as a top recruit and went on to become a consensus All-American in 2000. That same season, she led the Huskies to their second national title and won Final Four MOP.

In the record books, Ralph sits 21st in scoring (1,678), 10th in field goal percentage (57.9), second in free throws made (473), 10th in free throw percentage (81.4), and 10th in steals (270).

Knee injuries ultimately cut Ralph’s playing career short.

She tore her right ACL against Lehigh in the 1997 NCAA Tournament, re-tore it five months later, then tore her left ACL in the 2001 Big East Tournament final. Utah took her in the third round of the 2001 WNBA Draft, but she tore her left ACL again in 2002.

Coaching was where she found her love for the game again.

Ralph began her coaching career at Pittsburgh in 2003, then returned to her alma mater in 2008 and spent 13 seasons as an assistant under Geno Auriemma. Across both roles, she helped bring home seven championships.

Seeing the student go up against the teacher? That’s always fun.

“I am so excited for this opportunity to compete against UConn and to return to the place where this journey began for me,” Ralph said in a press release.

“It will be special to see the fans, coaches, administrators, teammates, and friends who have been part of my journey. Our mission at Vanderbilt is to compete for championships, and this series will serve as another opportunity to prepare us for those goals.”

Jada Williams’ 44 points stun Cincinnati

The drought is finally over. After five straight losses, Iowa State returned to the win column, thanks in large part to a breakout performance from Jada Williams.

A player known more for her playmaking, Williams finished with 44 points on 15-of-22 shooting and 8 assists. But that’s not all.

For someone who is a career 28.1% shooter from deep, she knocked down six threes, proving that when she’s in her zone, she can go absolutely lights out.

Coach Fennelly couldn’t hide how much he loved what he saw from his point guard.

Williams helped Iowa State finally snap the losing streak and move to 15–5 overall and 3–5 in the Big 12. According to ESPN, she was involved in 62 of the Cyclones’ 93 points (67%).

Stick around for more women’s basketball news.