South Carolina plays UConn in the national championship. How to watch, what to know
The ultimate goal South Carolina women’s basketball has discussed throughout the 2021-22 season has arrived.
Dawn Staley’s Gamecocks advanced to the 2022 NCAA tournament championship game with a Final Four win over Louisville on Friday and now take on Geno Auriemma’s UConn Huskies for the second time this year. The Huskies beat 1-seed Stanford in Minneapolis to make it to the finals.
South Carolina and UConn play at 8 p.m. Eastern in Minneapolis’ Target Center. The game will be televised by ESPN.
Here’s what you need to know before the Gamecocks play for the national title.
Rematch opportunity after USC’s Bahamas win
When the 2021-22 schedule was originally set, the Gamecocks and Huskies were on a collision course to meet twice during the regular season.
First, the two faced off in the Bad Boy Mowers Battle 4 Atlantis in Paradise Island, Bahamas, where the Gamecocks won 73-57 on Nov. 22 for the Thanksgiving week tournament’s championship.
“The Bahamas game was eons ago,” Staley said. “What did we take from it? We’re going to watch it a little bit, because I liked how we were defending, and we can compare what it looks like from back in November to what it looks like now. I think we’ve gotten better, but we did a pretty good job in the Bahamas.”
South Carolina and UConn were set to meet again in Columbia on Jan. 27 as part of their home-and-home series, but Staley canceled that game to reschedule a postponed matchup with Ole Miss and give the Gamecocks a fair shot at clinching the SEC regular-season title.
Healthy Bueckers leads 2-seed UConn to championship game
The Huskies enter the championship game on a 15-game win streak with NCAA tournament wins over No. 15 seed Mercer, No. 7 UCF, No. 3 Indiana and two No. 1 seeds — N.C. State and Stanford.
UConn was assigned a No. 2 seed in the Bridgeport Region, with regional games played just over an hour from the school’s campus. The Huskies lost five games in the regular season and dealt with a bevy of injuries, including one to sophomore star Paige Bueckers.
Bueckers injured her left knee during a win over Notre Dame on Dec. 5, underwent surgery on Dec. 13 and was cleared to return for a game against Saint John’s on Feb. 25. Her minutes per game were limited to no more than 18 before the Huskies began NCAA tournament play, but she’s averaging 15.4 points in 33.6 minutes.
Staley gave Auriemma credit for UConn’s ability to pivot without Bueckers.
“He played the hand he was dealt, found a way to keep their head above water,” Staley said. “Then they got Paige back. When you get her back, even if she’s 70%, you’ve got to guard her. You’ve got to pay attention to her.”
Lockdown defense pushes Gamecocks to finals
The Gamecocks have allowed an average of 44.8 points through their first five games of the NCAA tournament. They made history by holding No. 16 Howard and No. 8 Miami to a combined 54 points, the lowest ever in the first two rounds.
South Carolina’s defensive pressure has been consistent while its offense has struggled to maintain consistency. The Gamecocks shot 35.4%, 29.5% and 33.3% in their first three tournament games against Howard, Miami and North Carolina, respectively, but improved their field goal percentage to 50.9% against Creighton and 47.4% against Louisville.
South Carolina star forward Aliyah Boston, who swept all four national player of the year honors presented in Minneapolis, has led the way for South Carolina throughout the tournament. She’s averaged 23.3 points and 15.7 rebounds in USC’s last three games.
How to watch South Carolina vs. UConn in the NCAA tournament
Who: No. 1 South Carolina Gamecocks (34-2) vs. No. 2 UConn Huskies (30-5)
When: Sunday, 8 p.m.
Where: Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Watch on TV and stream: ESPN and ESPN app
South Carolina women’s basketball roster
Listed with position, height, class and hometown
- 0 — Olivia Thompson (G, 5-8, Jr.) Lexington, SC
- 1 — Zia Cooke (G, 5-9, Jr.) Toledo, Ohio
- 2 — Eniya Russell (G, 6-1, So., Baltimore, Md.)
- 3 — Destanni Henderson (G, 5-7, Sr.) Fort Myers, Fla.
- 4 — Aliyah Boston (F, 6-5, Jr.) St. Thomas, USVI
- 5 — Victaria Saxton (F, 6-2, Sr.) Rome, Ga.
- 10 — Kamilla Cardoso (C, 6-7, So.) Montes Claros, Brazil
- 11 — Destiny Littleton (G, 5-9, Sr.) San Diego, Calif.
- 12 — Brea Beal (G, 6-1, Jr.) Rock Island, Illinois
- 15 — Laeticia Amihere (F, 6-4, Jr.) Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
- 20 — Sania Feagin (F, 6-3, Fr.) Ellenwood, Ga.
- 23 — Bree Hall (G, 6-0, Fr.) Dayton, Ohio
- 24 — LeLe Grissett (G, 6-2, Gr.) Durham, NC
- 25 — Raven Johnson (G, 5-8, Fr.) Atlanta, Ga.
- 32 — Elysa Wesolek (F, 6-1, Sr.) Charleston, SC
- 44 — Saniya Rivers (G, 6-1, Fr.) Wilmington, NC
This story was originally published April 3, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
