After collecting four NCAA Tournament wins apiece, South Carolina, Louisville, UConn and Stanford are the only teams left hunting for a national championship. The hunt will continue in Minneapolis, the host of Friday’s Final Four and the championship game on April 3.
South Carolina, the AP’s wire-to-wire No. 1 team, will open the Final Four at the Target Center with a 7 p.m. game against No. 1 seed Louisville. It’s a true clash of giants, as both teams have won all but one of their tournament games by double-digits.
The national championship matchup will be set after UConn and Stanford play at 9:30 p.m. Stanford, the reigning national champion, will face a UConn squad coming off a thrilling 91-87 double-overtime victory against No. 1 seed NC State.
Here’s some background for each Final Four matchup.
- The top-seeded Gamecocks slammed the door on No. 10 seed Creighton’s Cinderella Run in the Elite Eight, winning 80-50 behind a 19-point, seven-rebound performance from Naismith Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year Aliyah Boston. Naismith Coach of the Year Dawn Staley will need a plan to contain Louisville guard Hailey Van Lith, who scored a team-high 22 in Louisville’s 62-50 win over Michigan in the Elite Eight.
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After missing 19 games with a knee injury this season, UConn star Paige Bueckers returned to her Naismith Player of the Year form by scoring 27 points – on 10-of-15 shooting – in a thrilling double-overtime win over NC State in the Elite Eight. Up next for Bueckers and UConn is a Stanford team that controlled the paint against Texas in the Elite Eight, blocking 11 shots and outrebounding the Longhorns by 17 in a 59-50 victory. The Cardinal are two wins away from becoming just the fourth women’s program to win back-to-back Division I NCAA Tournaments.
2022 Women’s NCAA Tournament TV schedule, scores
All times Eastern | NCAA Tournament schedule
| (1) Louisville vs. (1) South Carolina | 7 p.m. | ESPN |
| (2) UConn vs. (1) Stanford | 9:30 p.m. | ESPN |
All of the 2022 Women’s NCAA Tournament Final Four games will air on ESPN, and you can stream every game on fuboTV (try for free).
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and emily engstler has just fouled out. she is in tears as she walks off the floor. really tough way for her to potentially end her collegiate career.
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emily engstler back in the game with four fouls. risky, of course, but keeping her on the bench at this point is accepting defeat. not going to come back from an 11 point deficit without her
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End of 3rd quarter: South Carolina 57, Louisville 48
South Carolina star Aliyah Boston has taken over the game, recording 16 points, 14 rebounds and four assists to give the Gamecocks a nine-point lead heading into the final frame. The Naismith Player of the Year capped off the third quarter with a put-back and-one layup that both gave her team a crucial three points and gave Louisville star Emily Engstler her fourth foul. Engstler has done everything she can to keep the Cardinals in the game, swiping four steals to go along with a team-leading 16 points and five rebounds.
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aliyah boston is just so clearly the best player on the floor. every time louisville has made a little run she’s come up with a big play. 16 points, 14 rebounds and 4 assists for her through three quarters
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kianna smith has hit a few really big mid-range jumpers here to keep louisville in the game
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louisville hasn’t been terrible but everything is just a little bit harder for them than it is for south carolina.
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destanni henderson drains her third 3 of the game from the corner. south carolina has ppushed the lead up to 15 and are on the verge of running away with this one
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three fouls now for emily engstler. definitely something to watch for louisville. she’s been their best player so far and there’s still 7 minutes left in the third quarter
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zia cooke with a 3 and then a steal for a layup to start the second half. south carolina all of a sudden up by 11
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Halftime: South Carolina 34, Louisville 28
After a shaky first quarter, Louisville stormed back in the second with a 12-0 run to trail by six after 20 minutes of play. Louisville’s Emily Engstler has been sensational, scoring 10 points to go along with seven rebounds and three steals. Her teammate, Olivia Cochran, has made life difficult for Aliyah Boston with tough interior defense, and she’s added eight points on 4-6 shooting. South Carolina is moving the ball well, though, with 11 assists on its 15 made shots.
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24-24 as we go to timeout in the middle of the second quarter. there was a brief period in the first quarter where it looked like this was going to get ugly, but louisville has done a great job getting back into the game. emily engstler leading the way with 10 points and 7 rebounds already. south carolina needs to keep plying through boston. she has 6 points and 6 rebounds, and they lost their way when they stopped getting her the ball
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and that’s why you give aliyah boston the ball. she takes on multiple defenders and scores to end a louisville run. next time down she draws the defense’s attention and kicks it out to destanni henderson for a 3. south carolina back in front
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louisville’s defense has picked up. they’re on an 8-0 run. south carolina needs to get aliyah boston a touch
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End of 1st quarter: South Carolina 17, Louisville 10
South Carolina’s length suffocated Louisville’s offense in the first quarter, as the Cardinals made only five of their first 16 shots. Cardinals star Hailey Van Lith has been particularly quiet so far, turning the ball over three times and allowing Brea Beal to block both of her two shot attempts. South Carolina’s Zia Cooke has struggled offensively this tournament, but she leads the Gamecocks in scoring thus far with five, including a 3-pointer.
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17-10 south carolina at the end of the first quarter. louisville has settled down a bit after a really rough start, but they’re still having a tough time dealing with south carolina’s size on both ends of the floor. aliyah boston has four points and five rebounds to lead the gamecocks. emily engstler has matched her with four points and five rebounds of her own to lead the cardinals
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