This classic case of he-didn't-say/she-didn't-say has led to a flood of speculation as to what is really going on. The consensus is that the dust-up started over the recruitment of Connecticut star Maya Moore, only the second freshman to be selected as an Associated Press women's All-America first team. Moore, the 2006 and 2007 Naismith Prep Player of the Year out of Collins High in Suwanee, Ga., was one of the rare Southern recruits Tennessee has lost to Connecticut. Summitt is thought to have ended the series because she didn't think Auriemma's recruitment of Moore was kosher. That theory gained credence after the Southeastern Conference, reportedly at Tennessee's request, logged a complaint with the NCAA.

Candace Parker showed her toughness this week after dislocating her shoulder twice in the Elite Eight game, a fact that only helped solidify her standing as the projected number one pick in the April 9 WNBA draft, experts said Wednesday. A day after a clearly ailing Parker played through the injured shoulder, scoring a game-high 26 points and willing her team to victory over Texas A&M, a group of WNBA coaches and analysts discussed next week's draft and whether the Lady Vols' star remains the top prospect. "For me, it's a no-brainer," said ESPN women's hoops analyst Doris Burke. Michael Cooper, the former Los Angeles Lakers great and now coach of the Los Angeles Sparks, didn't show his hand on Wednesday when asked which player he would choose with the No. 1 pick his team holds. But he admitted Parker is high on his draft board.

Matee Ajavon took the ovation. She solemnly raised her right hand to the bellowing crowd behind the Scarlet Knights' bench, fell into her coach's bearhug, and left the final game of her four-year Rutgers run with 4.6 seconds on the clock, five fouls and the sound of her name in her ears. Essence Carson — she didn't even look C. Vivian Stringer's way lest the coach signal her out, too. Carson went sprawling on the floor in those last ticks and she launched a three, wholly unwilling to trade a salving applause for even a second of this regional final gut-wrencher.

LSU has the distinction of being one of only two programs to make it to five consecutive Final Fours in men's or women's basketball. The Lady Tigers, however, also have a streak they'd like to end: An unprecedented four consecutive losses in the national semifinals. They'll have that chance in Sunday's national semifinal vs. Tennessee. "It's just one of those things you really can't explain," says guard RaShonta LeBlanc, one of five senior starters. "You don't want that to be the case. You've got to erase it."

The key to next season for the Terps lies in filling the gaping hole left by the departures of seniors Langhorne and Laura Harper, arguably the best frontcourt tandem in program history. Langhorne, the program's all-time leading scorer and rebounder, and Harper, the Most Outstanding Player in the Final Four two years ago, take more than 3,500 combined points and 2,200 combined career rebounds with them to the WNBA, where they are likely to be drafted in the first round next week.