PORTLAND, Ore. — After being a spectator a yr ago, Paige Bueckers is headed back to the Final 4 after scoring 28 points and lifting UConn to a 80-73 win over Southern California in the ladies’s NCAA Tournament on Monday night.
Bueckers outdueled fabulous USC freshman All-American JuJu Watkins, sparking a decisive run over the ultimate five minutes that sent third-seeded UConn (33-5) to its twenty third national semifinal, essentially the most of any school.
Leading 65-64, the Huskies scored 11 straight points, including seven from Bueckers and a three-point play from Aaliyah Edwards to finally put away the top-seeded Trojans (29-6).
Edwards finished with 24 points, and this Final 4 trip will rank as probably the most unlikely in coach Geno Auriemma’s 39-year tenure.
Beset by injuries that left them with only eight healthy players — including the lack of two starters — the Huskies managed minutes, fouls and exhaustion to win their regional final a yr after seeing a string of 14 straight Final 4 appearances snapped.
Bueckers was sidelined by a significant knee injury last yr when that streak ended. She was determined to get the Huskies back to that stage, and did it by hitting 11 of 23 shots and ending with 10 rebounds and 6 assists.
UConn will face Caitlin Clark and Iowa within the national semifinals on Friday.
A day after the NCAA belatedly realized the 3-point line at one end of the court at Moda Center was 9 inches shorter than the opposite, the Trojans and Huskies played on a corrected floor — albeit with the inaccurate line still visible — with the ultimate spot in Cleveland at stake.
And it was the Huskies celebrating at the top, even though it was a shaky finish. UConn missed six free throws in the ultimate minute and let a 12-point lead dwindle all the way down to five.
Watkins concluded her freshman yr by scoring 29 points, but UConn made it difficult for her to get clean looks on the rim with regular double-teams and constant switching of defenders.
Watkins took about quarter-hour to attain the eight points needed to maneuver past former San Diego State star Tina Hutchinson for essentially the most by a freshman in NCAA history.
Watkins’ 3-pointer at the highest of the important thing midway through the second quarter gave her the record.
PORTLAND, Ore. — After being a spectator a yr ago, Paige Bueckers is headed back to the Final 4 after scoring 28 points and lifting UConn to a 80-73 win over Southern California in the ladies’s NCAA Tournament on Monday night.
Bueckers outdueled fabulous USC freshman All-American JuJu Watkins, sparking a decisive run over the ultimate five minutes that sent third-seeded UConn (33-5) to its twenty third national semifinal, essentially the most of any school.
Leading 65-64, the Huskies scored 11 straight points, including seven from Bueckers and a three-point play from Aaliyah Edwards to finally put away the top-seeded Trojans (29-6).
Edwards finished with 24 points, and this Final 4 trip will rank as probably the most unlikely in coach Geno Auriemma’s 39-year tenure.
Beset by injuries that left them with only eight healthy players — including the lack of two starters — the Huskies managed minutes, fouls and exhaustion to win their regional final a yr after seeing a string of 14 straight Final 4 appearances snapped.
Bueckers was sidelined by a significant knee injury last yr when that streak ended. She was determined to get the Huskies back to that stage, and did it by hitting 11 of 23 shots and ending with 10 rebounds and 6 assists.
UConn will face Caitlin Clark and Iowa within the national semifinals on Friday.
A day after the NCAA belatedly realized the 3-point line at one end of the court at Moda Center was 9 inches shorter than the opposite, the Trojans and Huskies played on a corrected floor — albeit with the inaccurate line still visible — with the ultimate spot in Cleveland at stake.
And it was the Huskies celebrating at the top, even though it was a shaky finish. UConn missed six free throws in the ultimate minute and let a 12-point lead dwindle all the way down to five.
Watkins concluded her freshman yr by scoring 29 points, but UConn made it difficult for her to get clean looks on the rim with regular double-teams and constant switching of defenders.
Watkins took about quarter-hour to attain the eight points needed to maneuver past former San Diego State star Tina Hutchinson for essentially the most by a freshman in NCAA history.
Watkins’ 3-pointer at the highest of the important thing midway through the second quarter gave her the record.
