TAMPA, Fla. — Sarah Strong and Azzi Fudd didn’t even need much help from superstar Paige Bueckers to propel UConn into the national title game, leading the Huskies to a remarkably easy 85-51 victory over UCLA on Friday night in the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament.
Strong finished with 22 points and Fudd scored all of her 19 points in the first half for the second-seeded Huskies, who are one win away from their 12th national championship and first since the team won four straight from 2013-16, led by Breanna Stewart. The eight-year title drought is the longest for the Huskies since they won their first in 1995.
UConn will face defending champion South Carolina on Sunday for the title after the Gamecocks beat Texas 74-57 earlier Friday. It’s a rematch of the 2022 championship game, which the Gamecocks won 64-49. The teams met in February and UConn shocked South Carolina with a 29-point road victory.
“At this point, anything you did prior to the season means nothing. The record is 0-0 and teams are tying to go 1-0 in the final game,” Bueckers said. “So keep up the defensive intensity like we did tonight, they’re a really good team. They get out in transition, they’ve got interior play and great guard play, so we’ll have our hands full.”
Bueckers, the likely top pick in the WNBA draft, finished with 16 points after topping 30 in each of the previous three games for the Huskies (36-3).
All-America center Lauren Betts scored 26 points for top overall seed UCLA (34-3).
UConn got off to a hot start with Strong and Fudd leading the way. Even when shots looked off, they found their way in. Fudd, one of the best shooters in the country whose career at UConn has been interrupted by multiple injuries, banked in a 3-pointer from the top of the key, prompting Auriemma to throw his arms in the air and smile.
“It’s just so much fun to watch her play with joy and be at this stage,” Bueckers said of Fudd. “You see all the ups and downs, the bad days, the good days and to be at this spot where it’s the light at the end of the tunnel and for her to perform and be at this stage, it means everything to us.”
The Huskies led 23-13 at the end of the first quarter. They continued the onslaught behind Fudd to open a 42-22 advantage at the break. Bueckers had the play of the half with a touch pass in the air to Kaitlyn Chen for a layup late in the second quarter.
UCLA never threated in the second half as the 6-foot-7 Betts had little help. UConn ended up breaking its record for margin of victory in the Final Four or national title game — the Huskies won the 2013 championship by 33 points over Louisville.
The Bruins fell short in their first appearance in the NCAA Final Four. UCLA won a national title in 1978 in the pre-NCAA era of women’s basketball. The Bruins were looking to become the first team from the Big Ten, a conference they joined this season, to win a championship since Purdue in 1999.
UCLA cruised through its best regular season, earning the No. 1 ranking in the AP Top 25 for the first time and holding the spot for 14 weeks.
The Bruins lost only twice this year before Friday, both to JuJu Watkins and USC. UCLA got a measure of revenge by beating USC to win the Big Ten Tournament in its first year in the league after the dismantling of the Pac-12. The Bruins set a program record for wins in a season and won 23 consecutive games, including 22 in a row by double digits.
South Carolina 74, Texas 57
TAMPA, Fla. — Defending champion South Carolina left no doubt it would return to the national title game, getting 14 points from Te-Hina Paopao and overwhelming Texas.
The Gamecocks are a victory from becoming the first team to win consecutive titles since UConn won four straight from 2013-16. They’ll face the Huskies on Sunday in the championship game.
Freshman Joyce Edwards added 13 points, 11 rebounds and six assists for South Carolina (35-3), which used its experience and poise to weather an early deficit and took control with its depth.
Three South Carolina players finished in double figures — Bree Hall had 11 points — and the Gamecocks dominated Texas in the post with 40 points in the paint to the Longhorns’ 22.
Madison Booker had 11 points and three fouls for the Longhorns (35-4), who were trying to reach their first championship since 1986. They were in the Final Four for the first time since 2003 after a dominant season, which was their first in the SEC after coming over from the Big 12.
Texas went 15-1 against the SEC in the regular season and shared the conference title with the Gamecocks.
South Carolina broke open the game in the third quarter with an 11-0 run started by Edwards’ driving layup, and Texas never got closer than 10 the rest of the way.
The Longhorns could not match South Carolina’s pace as the game went on. They only scored nine points in the third, including bad mid-range misses from Booker and Harmon. Harmon, a senior who returned this season from an ACL injury last year, finished with eight points. Jordan Lee led Texas with 16 points off the bench.
South Carolina went undefeated during a dominant championship run last year that featured a physical roster no opponent could match up with. This year’s journey to the final has been slightly more challenging.
Without a star such as A’ja Wilson, Aliyah Boston or 6-foot-7 center Kamilla Cardoso — who led the Gamecocks on their previous title runs — they’ve relied on a dynamic rotation to reach their third championship game in four years.
South Carolina leads the nation in bench points and got 35 points from its reserves Friday, including nine from Tessa Johnson and seven from Milaysia Fulwiley. Former South Carolina greats Wilson, Boston and Allisha Gray cheered them on from the stands.
Booker went to the bench with about three minutes left in the first quarter after picking up two fouls. That allowed South Carolina to climb out of a 12-4 hole before the SEC player of the year came back late in the second, made a free throw and checked back out after picking up her third foul. The Gamecocks outscored Texas by 13 with Booker on the bench and took a 38-35 halftime lead.
This was the teams’ fourth meeting this season — the 17th time two women’s teams have faced each other that many times in a single season, according to Stats Perform. As first-time conference opponents, they split the regular-season series, with each team winning on its home court, before the Gamecocks blew out Texas in the SEC Tournament championship.
UConn rolled past UCLA and defending champion South Carolina overwhelmed Texas in the Final Four on Friday night, setting up Sunday’s national title game.
TAMPA, Fla. — Sarah Strong and Azzi Fudd didn’t even need much help from superstar Paige Bueckers to propel UConn into the national title game, leading the Huskies to a remarkably easy 85-51 victory over UCLA on Friday night in the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament.
Strong finished with 22 points and Fudd scored all of her 19 points in the first half for the second-seeded Huskies, who are one win away from their 12th national championship and first since the team won four straight from 2013-16, led by Breanna Stewart. The eight-year title drought is the longest for the Huskies since they won their first in 1995.
UConn will face defending champion South Carolina on Sunday for the title after the Gamecocks beat Texas 74-57 earlier Friday. It’s a rematch of the 2022 championship game, which the Gamecocks won 64-49. The teams met in February and UConn shocked South Carolina with a 29-point road victory.
“At this point, anything you did prior to the season means nothing. The record is 0-0 and teams are tying to go 1-0 in the final game,” Bueckers said. “So keep up the defensive intensity like we did tonight, they’re a really good team. They get out in transition, they’ve got interior play and great guard play, so we’ll have our hands full.”
Bueckers, the likely top pick in the WNBA draft, finished with 16 points after topping 30 in each of the previous three games for the Huskies (36-3).
All-America center Lauren Betts scored 26 points for top overall seed UCLA (34-3).
UConn got off to a hot start with Strong and Fudd leading the way. Even when shots looked off, they found their way in. Fudd, one of the best shooters in the country whose career at UConn has been interrupted by multiple injuries, banked in a 3-pointer from the top of the key, prompting Auriemma to throw his arms in the air and smile.
“It’s just so much fun to watch her play with joy and be at this stage,” Bueckers said of Fudd. “You see all the ups and downs, the bad days, the good days and to be at this spot where it’s the light at the end of the tunnel and for her to perform and be at this stage, it means everything to us.”
The Huskies led 23-13 at the end of the first quarter. They continued the onslaught behind Fudd to open a 42-22 advantage at the break. Bueckers had the play of the half with a touch pass in the air to Kaitlyn Chen for a layup late in the second quarter.
UCLA never threated in the second half as the 6-foot-7 Betts had little help. UConn ended up breaking its record for margin of victory in the Final Four or national title game — the Huskies won the 2013 championship by 33 points over Louisville.
The Bruins fell short in their first appearance in the NCAA Final Four. UCLA won a national title in 1978 in the pre-NCAA era of women’s basketball. The Bruins were looking to become the first team from the Big Ten, a conference they joined this season, to win a championship since Purdue in 1999.
UCLA cruised through its best regular season, earning the No. 1 ranking in the AP Top 25 for the first time and holding the spot for 14 weeks.
The Bruins lost only twice this year before Friday, both to JuJu Watkins and USC. UCLA got a measure of revenge by beating USC to win the Big Ten Tournament in its first year in the league after the dismantling of the Pac-12. The Bruins set a program record for wins in a season and won 23 consecutive games, including 22 in a row by double digits.
South Carolina 74, Texas 57
TAMPA, Fla. — Defending champion South Carolina left no doubt it would return to the national title game, getting 14 points from Te-Hina Paopao and overwhelming Texas.
The Gamecocks are a victory from becoming the first team to win consecutive titles since UConn won four straight from 2013-16. They’ll face the Huskies on Sunday in the championship game.
Freshman Joyce Edwards added 13 points, 11 rebounds and six assists for South Carolina (35-3), which used its experience and poise to weather an early deficit and took control with its depth.
Three South Carolina players finished in double figures — Bree Hall had 11 points — and the Gamecocks dominated Texas in the post with 40 points in the paint to the Longhorns’ 22.
Madison Booker had 11 points and three fouls for the Longhorns (35-4), who were trying to reach their first championship since 1986. They were in the Final Four for the first time since 2003 after a dominant season, which was their first in the SEC after coming over from the Big 12.
Texas went 15-1 against the SEC in the regular season and shared the conference title with the Gamecocks.
South Carolina broke open the game in the third quarter with an 11-0 run started by Edwards’ driving layup, and Texas never got closer than 10 the rest of the way.
The Longhorns could not match South Carolina’s pace as the game went on. They only scored nine points in the third, including bad mid-range misses from Booker and Harmon. Harmon, a senior who returned this season from an ACL injury last year, finished with eight points. Jordan Lee led Texas with 16 points off the bench.
South Carolina went undefeated during a dominant championship run last year that featured a physical roster no opponent could match up with. This year’s journey to the final has been slightly more challenging.
Without a star such as A’ja Wilson, Aliyah Boston or 6-foot-7 center Kamilla Cardoso — who led the Gamecocks on their previous title runs — they’ve relied on a dynamic rotation to reach their third championship game in four years.
South Carolina leads the nation in bench points and got 35 points from its reserves Friday, including nine from Tessa Johnson and seven from Milaysia Fulwiley. Former South Carolina greats Wilson, Boston and Allisha Gray cheered them on from the stands.
Booker went to the bench with about three minutes left in the first quarter after picking up two fouls. That allowed South Carolina to climb out of a 12-4 hole before the SEC player of the year came back late in the second, made a free throw and checked back out after picking up her third foul. The Gamecocks outscored Texas by 13 with Booker on the bench and took a 38-35 halftime lead.
This was the teams’ fourth meeting this season — the 17th time two women’s teams have faced each other that many times in a single season, according to Stats Perform. As first-time conference opponents, they split the regular-season series, with each team winning on its home court, before the Gamecocks blew out Texas in the SEC Tournament championship.
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