Key events
About last night
OK, it wasn’t last night, it was actually two nights ago when things got a bit testy between Geno Auriemma and Dawn Staley, with a post-game altercation that, no question, took away from the actual coverage of the game itself. As it turns out, it was all about some silly handshaking, with Auriemma putting Staley on blast in the final moments of UCONN’s defeat for the SC coach allegedly not shaking his hand before the game. It was enough of an incident that referees and assistant coaches
After a relaxing nights sleep, Auriemma, admitted to throwing his toys out of the pram and apologized sincerely for the altercation and kind of ruining the night for everyone. Staley said she’d address the incident at a later date, choosing wisely to focus on winning the national title, which is sensible.
Anyway, in case you missed it, here’s the drama.
Hello…
…and welcome to our live, rolling coverage of the women’s NCAA basketball championship game between the Bruins of UCLA and the Gamecocks of South Carolina. It’s a blockbuster match-up between two of the best coaches, Dawn Staley and Cori Close, and two top seeds that have made it through to the final in Phoenix, Arizona.
Both teams are coming off lower scoring, defensive games, which, let’s be honest, were of the choppy, less entertaining type, which can happen when the stakes get high and bodies tense up. UCLA turned the ball over 23 times against Texas, a team that got 21 more shots than the Bruins, who still managed to prevail as they bid for their first national women’s basketball title. Needless to say, it was hardly a showcase of the nation’s leading offense.
Meanwhile, the Gamecocks were also in a war, with two of the most overpowering coaches in all of sports, Staley and Geno Auriemma leading South Carolina against UCONN. The Huskies suffered their first loss in 54 games at precisely the wrong time as both teams shot poorly as SC avenged their 82-59 rout by UCONN a year ago in the national championship game.
Now UCLA and SC meet for the third time in the past five years. The last time they met back in November of 2024, the Bruins ended the Gamecocks’ 43-game winning streak during a 77-62 win in LA. The Gamecocks won two years earlier. And now, it’s the rubber match of all rubber matches, a third meeting for all the marbles and a pretty underwhelming partially wooden, partially glass, plaque/trophy.
We’ll have all the action for you, just as it happens. Do you have a prediction, or some thoughts on what may or may not happen? Write in and join our coverage! Tip-off is about 330PM on the east coast of the United States, and 830PM in the UK.
We’ll have more to come shortly – stick with us!
David will be here shortly. In the meantime, catch up on what happened in Friday night’s Final Four games.
South Carolina’s 62-48 victory over UConn in the first semi-final ended the Huskies’ 54-game winning streak. The Gamecocks’ defense silenced UConn’s All-American duo of Sarah Strong and Azzi Fudd and exacted revenge for last year’s national championship game.
Much of the conversation about that game centered on the heated sideline exchange between UConn coach Geno Auriemma and South Carolina coach Dawn Staley in the final seconds. Auriemma, who had used one of his mid-game interviews with ESPN to deliver a fiery diatribe about officiating, skipped the post-game handshake after launching a tirade of words in Staley’s direction. He apologized on Saturday for his “uncalled for” behavior, which he said was sparked by a disagreement over the pre-game handshake. Staley said she would address the incident at a later point and wanted to keep her focus on the chase for a national title.
In the second semi-final, UCLA held off a late surge by Texas for a 51-44 win, securing a berth in the national championship game for the first time in program history. Star Bruins center Lauren Betts made a huge block on a layup attempt by fellow All-American Madison Booker in the final minutes to keep the Longhorns at bay.
UCLA are 34-1. South Carolina are 36-3. The teams have met five times, with
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