Tamba, Florida – South Carolina It is one victory away from repetition as Ladies basketball NCAA National Champions, but the only obstacle that remains on their way is also the last team to win consecutive titles.
The second seed ContecticutWhich has not won the championship since its repetition in the period 2015-16, Ucla 85-51 guidance Friday night. This puts a confrontation on Sunday afternoon with GameCocks, which is presented with Easy victory 74-57 Friday on Texas.
“I don’t think we have made a mistake throughout the evening, especially in the defensive end,” said Jino Orima, Uconn coach, who will go to his twelfth national title on Sunday. “I am incredibly proud of these men and what they were able to do … It took everything we have, and I am very modest of their performance tonight.
Both teams achieved easy victories in the semi-finals of Amalie Arena, despite facing strong seeds-the 34-point victory margin in Uconn was the largest in the history of the four women. Auriemma cited the deep talent in his team, on a night when he is a big goalkeeper Paige Bokerz He was held to 16 points, and his team was still raising forward Waller Sarah (22 points) and guard Azzi Food (19). The seeds, which came to Okun with dreams of winning a national title, said they are now grateful to become one victory away from this goal.
“We prayed, we prepared us and we hope to play on the last day of the season, and we will get this opportunity,” said Bouckerz. “Therefore, we do not want to take it as a Muslim, and do not want to be busy at the moment that you are very concerned and try to win the national championship in one possession that you just start from yourself.”
If Uconn managed to win on Sunday, they will do something that Huskies heroes have not done before, by overcoming three seeds number 1 along the way, any team can overcome it. It is safe to say that none of the two teams will have easy as was the case in the semi -finals on Friday.
Gamecocks, who plays Texas for the fourth time this season, got a dual bench from a student Joyce Edwards (13 points and 11 rebounds) and had the best 14 points from a big goalkeeper TE-Hina Paopao, who returned to the fifth year taking into account.
“This is the reason I went back,” Bubao said. “The goal is to go back. We have another one we go to, and we are very excited to go on Sunday. I’m just very excited. I know we will be ready and ready, and it will be a 40 -minute battle, regardless of who wins.”
[RELATED: NCAA Women’s Tournament semifinal highlights]
This was not the last time that Uconn and South Carolina met, as the Huskies team went to Colombia on February 16, and they withdrew 87-58 from GameCocks to finish the victory chain at home 71. South Carolina lost only three games throughout the year, and on Friday won one avenge of those against Texas – the two teams played four times, with South Carolina’s victory with three , Including the SEC Championship.
One of the keys to win on Friday over South Carolina is to get the Texas star forward Madison Booker In an early unpleasant problem. She got her third mistake with 2:29 she left in the first half and rose 33-31, but South Carolina ended the run in the range 7-2, then opened the third quarter with five consecutive points. He gave them 11-0 later in the third separation they needed, and Texas never got 10 points in the fourth.
Uconn was easier, which led to 20 at the end of the first half and withdrawing from there. UCLA has a dominant center in 6 feet and 7 Lauren BatesBut she did not get much help on Friday at a night in which Uconn showed how deep their talents were. Bates ended with 26 points, but that was more than all of her teammates – Bruins had more transformations than field goals until the last minutes of the game. Huskies will celebrate for a long time to advance to the final match, but it will also convert their focus into South Carolina.
“We never get to know our performance,” Food said. “We will celebrate the rest of the night, and we wake up tomorrow, it is a new day, a new scout, and a new opportunity for us to play as a single team. I think the full season, and you know that we are able to a lot, making sure that we benefit from every night and never get to know.”
South Carolina is 3-0 in the championship matches under the leadership of Stallie, including 64-49 victory over Uconn in the 2022 title game, but she said this has no effect in Sunday match where she is seeking a fourth championship.
“I do not bring it,” said Stallie. “It is uniquely focused on winning a game. Nothing before here helped us on Sunday – nothing. If so, it will not help us. If it is Ucla, it will not help us.
Greg Aman is the American Football Association correspondent in Fox Sports. He spent a previous contract to cover Pirate to Tampa Bay Mys and athletes. You can follow it on Twitter on Gregauman.
Do you want great stories that have been delivered directly to your inbox? Create or log in to your Fox Sports accountAnd follow the championships, teams and players to receive a dedicated news message daily!
Get more women’s total basketball Follow your preferences to get information about games, news and more
