PHOENIX — All college basketball season, there’s been a sense of inevitability surrounding both the UConn and South Carolina women’s basketball teams. The teams faced off in last season’s national title game — a dominant 82-59 UConn win — and meet again on Friday evening in national semifinals. But, though the jerseys are the same, these teams look very different than they did last April in Tampa.
“This is a new team that we’re scouting and a new team that’s playing against them,” UConn senior guard Azzi Fudd said.
Some of South Carolina’s core from last season’s national title game run remains on the roster, including fifth-year senior point guard Raven Johnson, sophomore All-American Joyce Edwards and junior guard Tessa Johnson. On the other hand, the Gamecocks lost Te-Hina Paopao, Bree Hall and Sania Feagin to graduation, MiLaysia Fulwiley to the transfer portal and Chloe Kitts to a torn ACL.
Dawn Staley wasted no time rebuilding her roster, however, adding the nation’s leading scorer from last season, Florida State transfer Ta’Niya Latson, and 6’5 Mississippi State transfer Madina Okot to the starting line-up. The Gamecocks also brought in top 15 recruits Agot Makeer and Ayla McDowell, and acquired 6’7 French forward Alicia Tournebize at midseason.
“Obviously this is a different South Carolina team than the one we played last year. Our two wins against them last year don’t really mean anything going into tomorrow. The way that game was played has no bearing on [Friday’s semifinal],” UConn head coach Geno Auriemma said.
“They have added some really key pieces,” he continued. “I think they’re a much better team than they were last year. Really hard to prepare for. They’ve shot the ball exceptionally well this year. They’ve added the size that is hard to match up with.”
The Huskies also retooled their roster since last season, when they lost starting point guard Kaitlyn Chen and All-American Paige Bueckers to graduation. The Huskies retained All-American starters Azzi Fudd and Sarah Strong and added 6’4 Wisconsin transfer Serah Williams. Junior guard KK Arnold has since slotted in as starting point guard, backed up by USC transfer Kayleigh Heckel. Freshman Blanca Quiñonez is the Huskies’ key piece off the bench, bringing her professional experience from overseas to Storrs.
A return to the Final Four with new-look rosters is a testament to the elite status of each of these programs, who have adapted with the times to bring in experienced players from the transfer portal that can make an impact immediately, rather than require a few seasons of development before contributing.
“It’s never been harder for a high school kid to have the same opportunities that an existing college player already has,” Auriemma said. “When your choice is go get a high school senior or go get a college sophomore for your team, a lot of coaches are deciding that getting a college sophomore is way better.”
The two programs bring the most Final Four experience to Phoenix of any of the other teams. UConn is in a record 25th Final Four, while South Carolina is in its 8th total and 6th in a row. Still, Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley partially attributes her program’s success to the standard set by UConn over the past several decades.
“UConn has been the standard in women’s basketball for a very long time. Everyone has to measure up to their standard,” Staley told reporters on Thursday.
“I think they allow us something to reach for,” she continued. “When you have a traditionally rich program like that, I think it helps us all grow. It helps us all try to game plan and figure out ways to just measure ourselves up to them and then possibly beat them.”
Azzi Fudd’s curtain call
The standards in Storrs bring great pride and expectation to the sport’s most elite program, but they also come with immense pressure. For UConn’s first team All-American guard Azzi Fudd, there’s extra emphasis in what could be her final game as a Husky on Friday.
For much of the season last year, Fudd took a second-fiddle role to Paige Bueckers and Sarah Strong. The Final Four, though, was a completely different story. She notched 19 points against UCLA and 24 in the title game against South Carolina to earn Most Outstanding Player honors. Since then, she’s emerged as one of the top players in the nation, earning multiple All-American honors and putting herself in position to be a top WNBA Draft pick.
“I feel like I’ve been kind of in denial thinking about how this is my last weekend,” Fudd told reporters on Thursday. “I know, but I haven’t really accepted that yet. I’m really just trying to enjoy every single moment … the last time being roommates, last trip, all that kind of stuff.”
Having spent years coaching some of the best players in history at UConn, Auriemma has a good sense of what Fudd may be feeling heading into Friday evening’s contest.
“I think the hardest part is being a senior at Connecticut and knowing what that means and what the expectation for you is, and carrying that around with you, this is my last time. So many of our players have ended their careers cutting down nets in the national championship game. You desperately want to be one of those people,” Auriemma said.
“If we win tomorrow and if we win Sunday, Azzi will be crowned one of the greatest of all time. If we don’t win tomorrow and we don’t even get a chance to play on Sunday, she’s going to feel like this was a disappointing year for her.”
It’s true that the Huskies of yesteryear have set a bar so high that even a career that includes four Final Four appearances, in the case of Fudd, still don’t quite meet the expectation without cutting down the nets. Still, no matter the outcome of this weekend’s event, Fudd undoubtedly left her fingerprints all over the UConn legacy, and Auriemma has imparted his Hall of Fame wisdom on the 23-year-old.
“It’s definitely a privilege to be able to play for [Coach Auriemma],” Fudd said. “I feel like every single day it’s something new that he’s teaching us, some new bars, wisdom. Like, I don’t know. He’s taught me so much. I’m going to take a lot with me.”
Howard Megdal contributed reporting to this story.
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